This article offers description and interpretation for understanding the exercise of leadership in teacher collaboration. Data gathered in two urban high schools through observations and interviews were coded and categorized following Miles and Huberman's modified analytic induction technique. The analysis contributes to emerging theory on…

Purpose: The purpose of this study is to examine the meaning of teacher leadership from teachers' perspectives. The authors examine teachers' practice of and talk about legitimate sources of power and influence in the context of an urban high school reform. Design: This is an interpretive study of teacher leadership situated in one small high…

In addition to identifying and developing superior classroom teaching, the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards (NBPTS) certification process is intended to identify and cultivate teachers who are more engaged in their schools. Here the authors ask, "Does NBPTS certification affect the number of colleagues a teacher helps with…

This study presents the results of a phenomenological qualitative investigation into the new role of teachers serving as team leaders in a professional learning community, as well as the support team leaders need from members and principals to be effective. Collaborative teacher teams in 6 schools that have been developing as professional learning…

Effective educational reform involves changes in the overall operations of schools. Teachers who collaborate, analyze the functions of their schools, and adjust their practices become leaders and participants in whole-school change. This study documents the impact of teacher leadership teams from three schools in their efforts to increase access…

Educational reform is not easy. As school leaders search for a format that leads to improvement on many fronts concurrently, data teams is one such promising practice. The data team design not only involves sensemaking of data as evidence of effective teaching and learning, but also builds a professional learning community, distributes leadership,…

Although most schools are formally structured to support a hierarchical model of leadership, the culture within the education profession supports a rich egalitarian ethic. This article discusses the relational model of school leadership, which offers an alternative to the hierarchical model. The relational model views leadership as residing not in…

The Partnership for Reform in Secondary Science and Mathematics (PRiSSM) is a three-year project that targeted mathematics and science teachers in middle and high schools from six districts in southwest Washington. Consistent with NSDC (2009) recommendations for professional development, PRiSSM involved collaborative teacher teams in reflecting on…

"The Learning Principal" is an eight-page newsletter published eight times a year. It focuses on the important and unique work of school principals. This issue includes: (1) Landmark Study Examines U.S. Professional Learning: Findings Point the Way to Improving Student Achievement (Stephanie Hirsh); (2) School Leadership: Q&A:…

"Teachers Teaching Teachers" ("T3") focuses on coaches' roles in the professional development of teachers. Each issue also explores the challenges and rewards that teacher leaders encounter. This issue includes: (1) Teaching English Language Learners: Mainstream Teachers Make a Stellar Journey as a Team to Transform Classroom Practices (Elsa M.…

Background: Through its Children First initiative, New York City policymakers promoted collaborative inquiry as a process for helping administrators and teachers use student data to improve instruction and raise student achievement. Since 2007, city schools were expected to engage higher proportions of faculty in the inquiry work each year.…

Teaching has long been considered an isolated profession with little opportunity for collaboration. A major task for school leaders is to create improvement from within the school. Teachers are a valuable resource and each one possesses expertise in strategies and methodologies that can be a benefit to others. This action research explored the…

This study examined teachers' positioning of English language learners (ELLs) and instructional strategies to support them within the Problem Solving Cycle professional development program. Using a communities of practice lens (Wenger, 2000) and building on literature related to supporting ELLs in mathematics, Mathematics Knowledge for Teaching…

Research shows that professional learning can have a powerful effect on teacher skills and knowledge, and on how well students learn. To be effective, however, professional learning for teachers needs to be conducted in the ways that it is in many high achieving countries--continuously, collaboratively, and with a focus on teaching specific…

"Our culture underestimates teachers--not only the complexity of their work, but also their potential to contribute substantively to the dialogue about school reform," write the authors of this article. Online teacher networks have the potential to transform traditional concepts of teacher leadership, enabling teachers to bond together into…