I think that we typically find ourselves in the un-official position of teacher leader. Many times this is because we see a problem exist and step up to take a role in finding a solution. I know for myself that this comes about when other staff are not doing the job they
should do and it is having a negative effect on my classroom and my students.

Thank you for your thoughtful response. I have also observed the situations you have described. I feel it is a reflection of school culture.
You are talking about the dynamics of teacher leadership that occur in school culture and the different variables that effect the perceptions of what it is to be a teacher leader.

One variable is the school administration. When it serves the purposes of the administration, teachers are asked to mentor, plan, and implement programs. We are expected to cooperate. Also, as teachers we are in a giving profession. So we enable. We want to support the team.

Motivation to be a leader is another variable. For example, I was recently asked to mentor a "professional development team" (a new program at some county schools) on action research. In most cases the team was selected by the principal on an involuntary basis. The superintendent wanted these positions to exist. The principals created them and the teachers followed. Several teachers were resistant to learning about action research, unmotivated due to their involuntary status. Yet learning about action research is a positive step in professional development. Why weren't they all volunteering to participate? Sometimes leadership roles are foisted upon the teacher with or without the teacher's consent. Why does this happen? Is it a historically acceptable procedure? Are many teachers not willing to rise up to meet leadership challenges unless forced to? Yet leadership is needed to implement administrative policy. Where are the leaders going to come from? What is the nature of administrative policy vs. teacher leadership?

Teacher workload is another variable. I think teacher leadership is viewed at times as above and beyond our professional responsibilities rather than part of our job. Why? Because our job is so demanding as it is. For some teachers, the classroom is all they can handle.

Personal values about being a teacher leader are another variable. When a teacher is self-motivated in the school community, this can be perceived as a benefit or a threat by administrators and other teachers. If I look good for being an NBCT or writing a grant, why does that mean they look bad? Are professional growth and student learning the true goals of the administration and faculty community? Unfortunately, I think, at times, status quo, power, and jealousy come into play. An example of above and beyond performance by one teacher may become the expectation for all in the future. I especially see this with response to NBCT status. No one wants more expectations or responsibilities because teachers believe their plate is full enough. So the teacher leader may be subtly ostracized by other teachers.

What can teacher leadership look like in the future? Can leadership be fostered and supported without forced participation and colleague resentment? How can we change school culture to promote future teacher leaders?

Mark Rosenkrantz,
Miami-Dade County,FL
4/10/05

I am not clear what things teachers would be doing that are "not in the contract". I think it is important as teacher leaders to uphold the contract. For instance as a credentialed librarian I am a teacher and have the exact same contract as any other teacher in my district. However, some administrators are not "clear on concept" and thought that school librarians did not "need" a prep or a duty free lunch period. This issue went thru a grievance process to be resolved. As co-chair of the local school library association, I tell all school librarians that it is essential that they follow the contract. I don't think that administrators value martyrs. I like the quote from the governor of NC, that teacher working conditions are student learning conditions.

You are addressing how teacher leaders inform the perceptions of policy makers about the teaching environment. Many times policy makers make decisions based on little research, such as feedback from the teachers or the contract, and more on administrative needs. When a teacher communicates and is heard it can make changes. Unfortunately you had to go through a formal grievance process to get planning time and duty free lunch. A contract is supposed to protect our rights but it is only a piece of paper until it is enforced. Many times it is a teacher leader who takes the initiative to have contracts enforced. Sometimes getting contract agreements enforced requires leadership. There exists a warrior role in being a teacher leader vs. the martyr role.

Greetings to all,

I'm only going to respond to "What circumstances hinder our abilities to become leaders?". I need to ponder the other questions.

I have seen [and continue to be astonished] at the administrators in many schools becoming inferior [for lack of a better word], of teachers who are leaders. What eventually happens is the administrator tries "to look at things fairly" so they can "give everyone a chance to experience" responsibility. They rarely call on their teacher leaders to perform leadership type of tasks. I often wonder if the administrators really understand the role of a leader, especially in reference to teachers.

If I was an administrator I would love to have teacher leaders in my school. My confidence in them would extend to knowing their abilities would not supercede my vision, but support it. Those teachers would become my committee leaders and representatives of the grade levels. Therefore, they would have an active role in planning meaningful professional development, and in some cases present the information.

I continue to ponder the question.

Cynthia Brawner, NBCT
Chicago
4/20/05

I’m responding to the part of Mark’s question that asks “What circumstances allow this [teacher leadership] to happen?” For me, it was an insightful administrator who recognized potential I didn’t realize I had. I am fortunate to have worked with her for the last fifteen years and have watched her nudge other teachers into leadership roles also. She has a rare gift for matching people to positions/tasks/responsibilities. Then she says something like, “Have you ever considered . . . ?” “I think you would do very well with . . .” She provides the opportunities and then supports her fledging leaders until they develop enough self-confidence to soar on their own. In addition to her strengths as a Maximizer, she is not afraid to share power and authority. As I read Cynthia’s response, the description of someone who hinders/prevents teacher leadership is the exact opposite of the principal I’ve worked with.

Gail Ritchie
Fairfax County, VA
4/21/05

Thank you, Erin, for that great insight. Definitely food for thought for me as I (as a newer teacher) begin to take on more leadership roles.

From my experience, a major influence on teacher leadership is the structure & daily programming of the school day and the priorities of the administrative leadership based on school needs.

Early in my teaching career I was called into the principal's office. When I arrived I found myself facing two members of a local Kiwanis Club who were looking for someone willing to start and advise a Key Club. I had already been teaching mathematics for seven years and found that it wasn't giving me enough. This looked to be a perfect solution.

25 years later I'm still at it. We run 30 events a year plus local and international exchanges. Key Club changed my life and the lives of the students it touched.

I bring this up because my involvement was not self-generated. The catalyst was the principal. I don't understand why all principals don't sit down individually with each member of their staff (especially newer members) and ask them what is their passion. It is the principal who must create an environment that allows teachers to empower themselves. It is the principal as the educational leader who should be handing teachers the ball and saying, "Let's see what you can do."

We are all capable of being leaders. What some of us lack is the opportunity.

Mark Grashow
Brooklyn, NY
4/23/05

I would like to jump in and second what Gail, Jennifer, and Mark have said already about teacher leadership and the role of the principal.

Like Mark and Gail, I too have a principal whom I credit with "pushing" me beyond my classroom walls into a teacher leadership role. She asked me in my fourth year of teaching to write a grant. I thought she was crazy, but because I respected her so much, I said to myself, "Wow, if Rowena thinks that I am capable enough to do this, then I must be." She not only asked me to write the grant, but she provided me with the support I needed (resources, time, and money) to be successful. The following year she asked me to be Health Coordinator and a Master Teacher. I still continue to seek her guidance 15 years later. I would definitely agree that there are some gifted administrators that know how to identify and guide teachers into leadership roles.

Having said that I would like to add that just because a teacher is placed in or assumes a leadership role does not necessarily mean that they are seen as teacher leaders. To me, teacher leadership means that you are respected by your peers. In our district, we have Literacy and Math coaches assigned to each school. The role of the coaches are considered teacher leaders, but if you ask teachers at a school where there is an ineffective coach, would they identify that coach as a leader? Principals may open the doors for us, but as teacher leaders, it is our responsibility to live up to the "job" of being a leader.

My own professional development as a teacher leader, like Mark, was not self-generated initially. Although I have known some teachers that self-initiate their own teacher leadership roles early on in the profession, I would say many of us don't start out our careers thinking about leadership roles outside of the classroom. In my career, I had "teacher-leader mentors" that were not in administrative roles, but classroom teachers. Early on in my career, a teacher leader at my school suggested I present at a local conference she was presenting at. I was terrified, thanked her and told her I wasn't ready. Instead she invited me to attend her workshop. By watching her, I learned how to lead an active, teacher-centered, well-organized, effective session. Classroom teacher leaders were the ones that provided my name to a state teacher leadership forum.

I feel it is essential that part of our role as teacher leaders is to recognize, invite, support, and mentor teachers so that they become teacher leaders themselves. There is no greater satisfaction for me, as a teacher leader, than to watch another teacher I have mentored become a leader him/herself. Pass it forward.

A final note, I think some teacher leaders just emerge naturally. They don't need a title or role to play, they just go about being who they are and doing their jobs. They are respected by their peers and lead by example, rather than by authority. I can name those teachers at every school I have worked at. Does that make sense to anybody else?

Jane Fung
Los Angeles, CA
4/24/05

Jane said:

"...there are some gifted administrators that know how to identify and guide teachers into leadership roles."

Carolyn agreed:

I have experienced a principal like this. He was one of my earliest leadership role models. He encouraged everyone to care about our kids and our school and its reputation. He listened to our input as he steered the direction of the school and so we all knew that our voices mattered. I saw mediocre teachers blossom under his leadership. I learned from him to look for what someone was doing well and build from this strength to help them improve overall. He surrounded less experienced or less capable teachers with strong mentors and provided time and avenues for these mentorships to be effective. He created a number of unique programs which afforded teachers in the school to take on leadership roles. If I heard that he had returned from retirement to be a principal again, I would have my name on a transfer request by the end of that day. To work with an administrator who believed in and supported teachers' professional development at all levels was truly a privilege.

Jane also said:

"Principals may open the doors for us, but as teacher leaders, it is our responsibility to live up to the 'job' of being a leader."

Carolyn added:

How true this is. And one of the toughest aspects of "living up to the job" is engendering acceptance and cooperation from our colleagues. I often hear teachers who aspire to lead complain about the chilly responses they receive within their own schools. While we know that it is human nature to resist change, it is our responsibility as leaders to examine ourselves and reflect on our approach when we encounter staunch opposition. If we are truly honest with ourselves, we may have to admit that the responses we received were of our own making. I have seen too many "leaders" whose attitude is what turns others off. I think this sometimes occurs because we are trained to teach and many of us have never had any formal training in leadership. What are the right attitudes and what skills do we need to be effective leaders? How are we supposed to develop these? Until recently there have been few venues to provide such training. "Leaders" were usually identified because they were effective in the classroom which did not necessarily translate into the ability to lead other colleagues. This is an exciting time because I believe this is changing. The largely untapped potential of teacher leadership as a vehicle to overall educational improvement has been discovered and gradually it is being developed.

Jane offered:

"I feel it is essential that part of our role as teacher leaders is to recognize, invite, support, and mentor teachers so that they become teacher leaders themselves."

Carolyn expanded:

You have hit it on the head, Jane. We cannot be "selfish" in our leadership, always wanting to be the one who gets every leadership position or opportunity. Sometimes leading means encouraging someone else to be in the limelight. We must sometimes be "the wind beneath the wings" of others. We must always remember to keep students' best interests as our guiding principle, and that means that more teachers taking leadership roles is good.

Carolyn Guthrie
Miami-Dade County, FL
4/24/05

Dear Mark and Tim,
I have thought about the comments both you and Tim have made. I have volunteered to hold many positions within the organizations I join, whether professional or recreational. However, I have begun more and more to realize that some volunteer positions are actually jobs that are not being labeled as such because it would mean creating a position and funding them.