The director of the Chicago Academy for School Leadership addresses the kind of leadership that would have kept her, a former English teacher, from failing a struggling African-American student 30 years ago. A culture of collegial support, mentoring/coaching, results-driven professional development, and instructional leadership would have helped.…

This article presents findings from a qualitative case study that examined the role of teacher leaders amid whole school reform. Findings suggest that leadership is ambiguous: a contested notion between principal and teacher(s) and among teachers as well. This ambiguity was manifest on the conceptual and operational levels and significantly…

This book attempts to take a whole school view of approaches to making learning central, so that staffing and structures, external links and resources, are all dealt with in examining ways in which learning schools can evolve. The belief is that unless every aspect of a school's life is put under scrutiny, an emphasis on learning will remain an…

Few colleges of education include theory and practice about the need to nurture resilient teacher leaders. This issue should be addressed in order to improve the preparation and continued development of the nation's teachers, particularly those in urban schools. This newsletter suggests that as problems confronting schools, particularly urban…

Suggests strategies for mobilizing more leadership and power in the early childhood profession including: (1) getting teachers, providers, and directors to the table; (2) taking time to reflect and raise questions; (3) using a constructivist, empowering pedagogy; and (4) forging relationships of integrity and respect. (SD)

This paper examines the interactions between literacy teachers and instructional leaders and their effects on students' reading achievement gains. The results of this study have implications for how instructional leaders work with colleagues and how these relationships may impact student achievement. Forty-two suburban elementary and middle school…

In Kentucky, the administrative roles of the superintendent and the principal have received considerable attention from state-level policymakers since the passage of the Kentucky Education Reform Act (KERA). Although there are comprehensive, ongoing assessment procedures for Kentucky principals and superintendents, there are no state-level…

When we learn, we learn through our own experiences. So when we teach, how do we incorporate our own invaluable life lessons into a state mandated curriculum? Dale Brubaker's "Revitalizing Curriculum Leadership" provides an innovative and liberating solution to this problem. In this updated resource, the author tells why educators need to move…

This book explores how teacher leadership is an intrinsic and important part of school and classroom improvement. It investigates teacher leadership in action and considers the roles, responsibilities and influence of teachers who lead. It considers the implications of teacher leadership for teachers' professional development and focuses on ways…

This book addresses the contemporary realities of schools and teaching, focusing on both the constraints and possibilities embedded in practice. It uses the words and experiences of teachers and principals to show what growth and change look like from the inside, focusing on what change requires, how differences in context and personnel are…

If contemporary plans for devolved decision making to schools in Australia are to be realized, the role of all teachers in curriculum decision-making processes will need to be acknowledged. This paper presents findings of a study that sought to build a theory of curriculum leadership from the teachers' own perspectives--a theory of curriculum…

This book offers an overview of leadership as a dynamic process available to all teachers, reviewing research-based theories applicable to teacher leadership and presenting strategies for the development of teacher leadership skills. It reflects the philosophy that leadership is best developed through the combination of theory and experience that…

A study of two new middle schools demonstrates that reform is difficult to achieve unless teachers are expert in their work, share their expertise, and seek and create new knowledge to support their work. Leading from the center, school leaders figure significantly in expanding learning and developing community even in "teacher-run"…

The Annenberg Institute for School Reform recently invited three distinguished educators (a superintendent, principal, and teacher leader) to Providence, Rhode Island, to reflect on the relationship between leadership and student achievement. Schools must tap into educators' training backgrounds; conversations at all levels must stress increasing…

The authors report on a teacher survey that was conducted in North Carolina to determine the wants and needs of teachers in North Carolina. The survey had Likert-scaled quesitons about administrative support and professional development needs as well as information about professional and personal characteristics. The research was conducted to give…