U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan has pledged continued support for the Department of Education鈥檚 Teach to Lead program, an effort that invites teachers to come up with ideas to promote teacher leadership in schools and offers them support for implementation.
Mr. Duncan had announced the creation of Teach to Lead in March 2014 at the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards鈥� inaugural Teaching & Learning conference here, vowing he would return a year later to be held accountable for the program鈥檚 development.
鈥淥ur hope is to accelerate the pace of change and build upon the sense of momentum,鈥� he said in a March 13 speech at this year鈥檚 conference. 鈥淥ur teachers and our students simply cannot wait.鈥�
The secretary鈥檚 announcement provides some clarity about the program鈥檚 future; up until this month, even some of its organizers were unsure of its direction.
However, in an interview with Education Week at the conference, Mr. Duncan also acknowledged that 鈥渢here鈥檚 no huge pot of funding鈥� for Teach to Lead, which relies on financial support from nonprofit and private-sector organizations.
鈥淚f we can use [existing] money in smarter and more effective ways,鈥� he said, 鈥渨e can empower great teachers to lead this [program]; we can be in much better shape.鈥�
Among educators who have coalesced around the idea of teacher leadership, the Teach to Lead initiative has been seen as a significant steppingstone, in part because of its potential to add authority to a movement that has remained stubbornly amorphous.
A Stronger Voice
Teacher-leadership advocates say the interest in the concept speaks to a need many teachers feel to influence education outside the classroom, without leaving it, as well as fatigue from seeing education policy driven by people who aren鈥檛 educators and then watching those policies fizzle.
鈥淭he eternal optimist in me thinks that ... we鈥檙e at a tipping point where we鈥檙e realizing that we cannot have those outside education, with no education background, with no education experience, leading the path for our public education students,鈥� said Megan M. Allen, the director of programs in teacher leadership , in South Hadley, Mass. 鈥淲e鈥檝e got to be smarter than that, and let our teachers鈥攐ur experts鈥攍ead the charge.鈥�
Supporters of greater teacher input in education policy point to sundry initiatives designed without significant teacher involvement, or implemented without teachers鈥� buy-in鈥攄istrict-administered programs to transition to the Common Core State Standards, for example, or cuts in enrichment offerings to focus on standardized testing. Noticeably, they say, many such efforts have yet to offer much proof .
"[Policy] implementation has been most effective in the places where it has been teacher-driven and teacher-led, collaborative change,鈥� said Ruthanne Buck, a senior adviser to Mr. Duncan. 鈥淎nd in some places, the structure just hasn鈥檛 existed to allow that collaborative environment.鈥�
Teach to Lead emerged, organizers say, in part from a growing understanding inside the Education Department that its own ambitious plans had outpaced implementation, and that implementation appeared to be smoothest when teachers had a strong voice.
鈥淭here definitely has been a push to get a lot of things out, a lot of things changed,鈥� said Emily Davis, a teaching ambassador fellow at the department. 鈥淎nd what I鈥檝e seen a lot of the past year is taking a step back, taking a look at what鈥檚 working, [and] listening to the field.鈥�
The ambassador fellows, a group of practicing teachers intended to serve as a bridge between the Education Department and the profession, did much of the legwork in designing Teach to Lead, working in partnership with the NBPTS.
While many organizations have championed teacher leadership, the department鈥檚 involvement adds heft to the movement.
鈥淲hat separates [Teach to Lead] is, if you have the backing of the U.S. Department of Education, which has connections and ties to different districts and states, that gives it some authority,鈥� said Genevi猫ve DeBose, a teacher who helped develop Teach to Lead as a liaison for the NBPTS.
In December, Teach to Lead launched a set of three summits across the country, with events held in Louisville, Ky., Denver, and Boston. Each gathering required educators to apply for attendance by submitting an idea to cultivate teacher leadership in their schools or districts. The Teach to Lead events emphasized group work over formal presentations, even giving teachers a chance to hone their elevator pitches. Attendees also received feedback from 鈥渃ritical friends,鈥� experts brought in from the nearly 70 organizations that support Teach to Lead, which include the major unions, ASCD, and the American Institutes for Research.
鈥淚t鈥檚 amazing to see this many teacher leaders together, and hear all their ideas, and to know that we are not all so different from each other,鈥� said Andrea Shunk, a Denver attendee and a co-creator of the , a Portland, Ore., teacher-leadership program.
Thirty days after each summit, participants went through a check-in with the Education Department to see how their ideas were progressing. Additional check-ins were slated for the 60- and 90-day marks.
In addition, Teach to Lead organizers are selecting ideas from each event to treat as 鈥渓eadership labs,鈥� which will get extra investment for implementation support and possible scaling-up.
Structural Supports
Whatever Teach to Lead鈥檚 success, the federal government鈥檚 interest in teacher leadership is no guarantee that state or district policymakers will exhibit the same enthusiasm, though states like Connecticut and Tennessee have been designing programs that bring teachers into policymaking. If teachers expect broader change and influence, advocates say, they need to pursue additional structural supports.
鈥淭eacher leadership is not just a policy, it鈥檚 a systematic change,鈥� said Mount Holyoke鈥檚 Ms. Allen.
The structural changes needed, experts say, start with schools providing genuine professional opportunities to teachers.
鈥淚f you don鈥檛 offer leadership opportunities for teachers to excel in their profession, to grow鈥攖o be frank, to make more money鈥攁nd to have elevated roles, ... you are asking for your best and brightest teachers to leave the classroom in order to excel,鈥� said Ms. Buck, Mr. Duncan鈥檚 adviser.
At the same time, teacher-leadership supporters say, administrators need to make space in school cultures to accommodate teacher voice, ensuring that teachers for offering their ideas or feedback.
Finally, advocates say one of the best things school leaders can do to help is give teachers space to collaborate on projects and learn from each other.
鈥淪ometimes, the best thing we can do for teacher leadership is just step back and get out of the way,鈥� Ms. Allen said. 鈥淚 think you put a bunch of really great, hardworking, dedicated teacher leaders together, and they can do great things.鈥�
