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My doctoral research focused on the career choices of teachers so that I might better understand the issues of teacher retention and preparation.  Data from 924 survey responses and nine interviews indicated that “making a difference” is a central goal of those who are prepared to teach, but making a difference varied from person to person.  The career ladder option of serving as a school or district administrator was not appealing, as teachers told me

“So really there are certain roles and there’s a chain of command and it works like this. That’s frustrating, but I don’t want to be part of the people that are making and enforcing the annoying rules, so I’m not going there.”                                                           (Interview with teacher with more than five years in the classroom).

Rather, some teachers seek out informal leadership roles to “make a difference” as they learn and grow.  Informal teacher leader roles are critical for their sense of efficacy by sustaining their professional growth and ultimately lengthening retention in the classroom.   When informal leadership opportunities are not available, experienced teachers leave classroom teaching. This leak in the teacher pipeline is avoidable.

The informal teacher leader is one whose primary responsibilities are as a classroom teacher who, without an official authority or title (e.g. coach, mentor, supervisor), works with colleagues and educators in leadership capacities. For example, they might form collaborations with community experts or work in small groups with interested colleagues, as teachers explained:

“For me it’s been the right mix of allowing me to work with kids, to do some good, to serve others and at the same time continue to learn, to grow, to create, and to be challenged myself every day” (Survey).

“So it has a good feeling there of people really working and working together, a lot of collegiality.  It feels really like I’m a teacher and a learner.  I’m really exploring things.  In that sense, it’s great”

(Interview with teacher with more than five years in the classroom)

We need a continuum of teacher learning and growth that spans between preservice teacher preparation in higher education and K-12 careers as we recognize the struggle of sustaining teacher satisfaction in the classroom.  There is value in multiple stakeholders looking at the leaky teacher pipeline together to facilitate a successful transition from higher education into K-12 systems, as well as to inform effective professional development partnerships among higher education and K-12 systems.  

I was most fortunate to work with dedicated educators from school districts, policy agencies, higher education and non-profit organizations in the development of the Teacher Leader Model Standards as we agreed that  

“We must seek to use the expertise that already exists in the teaching force by ensuring opportunities for recognition and specific leadership roles for those who wish the added responsibilities that come with leadership.”  – Teacher Leader Exploratory Consortium

Teachers, who aspire to informal leadership roles while remaining classroom teachers, must be supported in their own intellectual development. A kindergarten teacher reflects below on her experience working with other informal teacher leaders to improve math pedagogy skills:

“I now realize that there is a world out there where teachers talk to each other in a significant way that I didn’t know was possible.  It’s good for a teacher’s soul” (2020)

It is this potential to lead, to be creative, to be scholarly that attracts educators to the profession and enables them to remain in the classroom.  Those committed to education must share with, debate among and learn from each other so as to strengthen systems and sustain educators throughout their careers.

By Candice Wells

December is the month nationally celebrated as Inclusive School’s Month.  The impacts due to COVID19 and ways that schools decides to engage with remote learning while with good intentions may inadvertently cause more students to become marginalized or segregated.  Everyday is a day to reflect on how each demographic group of students are scheduled and/or provided opportunities for interventions during remote learning. What are the opportunities that schools and teachers can continue to grow during virtual classes, or virtual school activities to promote a school climate and culture of belong, inclusive practices and access to equity. While Inclusive School’s month quickly approaches in December, the time to take action is now and everyday so that students have opportunities beyond December and in anticipation of returning to school.  

Consider the opportunities as a result of virtual learning.  Schools increasing their resources of digital learning platforms bring many technology that are now available as accommodations.  Students engaging and connecting with their classroom peers through Zoom, Webex or Google Meets.  With planning teachers can design opportunities beyond their classes, connect with other teachers from their schools, in their state or globally.  

While seeking to improve access for students with disabilities, do not forget about your teachers of special education.  Administrators should consider how they are modeling inclusive practices by designing support or professional development that includes their teachers of special education attending content workshops and learning opportunities.  All teachers benefit on training regarding Social Emotional Learning and strategies regarding accommodations.  Virtual learning will reveal the need to plan how to execute an accommodation identified in an Individual Education Plan (IEP) and new needs will be identified for both students with or without a disability.  As districts and school based administrators plan workshops to develop the capacity of its staff to teach virtually be sure to role model inclusive practices while supporting the various skill sets of their teachers and staff.

Learning Forward

Study Supports Way Meaningful Inclusion

Candice Wells

Munch, munch, crunch crunch.  That is the sound of your new school initiative being eaten alive by your school’s culture.  Without combining work on strengthening culture into any new initiative, the work is often doomed to failure.  Many school leaders jump into new initiatives with the thought that they can implement new things easily  and they simply need staff ‘buy-in.”  They imagine that they can impact school and student growth with positive messages and well planned initiatives so that all of the teachers will jump on board.   However, the phrase, Culture eats strategy for breakfast, should be a guiding one for any school or district leader planning the rollout of any new initiative or work.  The phrase was first used in the business world, but it has strong implications for schools.

Every school has a culture..good, bad, or indifferent.  It is imperative that leaders, and that includes teacher leaders, take a reflective view on the existing culture in their building.  Because as a leader, you need to realize, that any time your hard planned strategy conflicts with existing culture, the culture will win every time….EVERY TIME!!  Whether that means having teachers let students into their classes upon arrival or getting buy in for teachers to visit one another to observe lessons, or reach out more often to parents, your school’s culture will have a strong impact on whether or not planned initiatives succeed. 

Don’t let culture eat strategy for breakfast, have them feed each other.

School culture, according to Dr. Kent D. Peterson, a professor in Educational Administration at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, is “the set of norms, values, and beliefs, rituals and ceremonies, symbols and stories that make up the ‘persona’ of a school.”   It refers to those written and unwritten rules that influence how a school or organization functions.  For instance, many veteran teachers will just avoid any new initiative and might passively resist it, waiting for they time that “this too” goes away….as most other initiatives seem to do eventually. 

This is not to say that a leader cannot make changes in their organization’s culture.  Awareness is the first step.  Start by conducting surveys of staff, students, and parents.  Many school climate surveys exist that can be found find through your state or by doing a quick internet search.  The schools in our district have been using the CAR framework to drive school improvement.  Rather than looking at work on many different priorities as “new initiatives,” the CAR framework connects them all together into one cohesive framework to drive school improvement efforts.   The three sides of this triangular model focus on school culture: 1) a climate for learning – for students and adults in the building; 2) a climate of communication of connections and high expectations;  and 3) a culture of shared leadership.  Focusing in on those three key cultural elements in your school can begin to build a strong foundation of a positive culture in which ALL stakeholders, both staff and students, are actively engaged in a culture of learning and working together for the best of the school. 

You will not and cannot expect to change a school’s climate and culture overnight.  Be aware of the power of culture.  With strategic planning and concrete steps to build a positive culture that brings your staff into the work through shared leadership and reflection, you can truly begin to shift your school’s culture. You must help drive the change by changing the way people in the organization think and work.  This is not easy work and cannot be done alone.  It is imperative for  school leaders to SHARE leadership in their building and to use that shared leadership with staff as an element to build a positive school culture.

Such work will ensure that any initiatives you hope to see implemented are part of a collaborative, strategically planned strategy, and ensures that the culture of your organization doesn’t “each your strategy for breakfast!”

Plan for it and make it work for you.