Reflection On Becoming A Teacher Leader

This past school year I have been social chair of Nursing Students Without Borders. I have organized, implemented and hosted social events throughout the Fall of 2016 and the Spring of 2017. This past year the leadership of NSWB has worked to make NSWB community focused which is why the position I held was added this past year. I have been able to mentor a pre-nursing student through NSWB. I was able to answer the questions honestly from a pre-nursing student and provide support during the application process. I have been able to participate in leadership meetings and have learned how to plan well and how to improve event planning.

The importance of effective leadership and its impact on improving student achievement are evident in today’s schools (Leithwood, Louis, Anderson, and Wahlstrom, 2004). While the school principal is traditionally thought to be the school leader, Glickman (1989) proposes that “the principal of successful schools is not the instructional leader but the educational leader who mobilizes the expertise, talent, and care of others” (p. 8). Lumpkin, Claxton, and Wilson (2014) contend that helping “each school fulfill its mission and energize and expand the professionalism and professional contributions of teachers, the expertise of all teachers, especially teacher leaders, is needed” (p. 59). Teachers directly impact student learning, and

Leaders don’t create followers, they create more leaders. This quote by Tom Peters best summarizes my philosophy of teacher leadership. As a teacher leader, it is up to me to inspire, direct, and encourage others so that stronger teacher, administrative, and student leaders may be born from the process. Teacher leadership involves collaboration between teachers, administrators, and teacher leaders with the goal of positively impacting the student learning environment. With student learning as the ultimate objective, teacher leadership “becomes an indispensable avenue for school improvement” (Coggins & McGovern, 2014, p. 21). So how do I as a teacher leader begin this process? I believe that teacher leadership can be achieved through three means: modeling, mentoring, and collaborating.

In this paper, I will reflect on my new knowledge and skills that I have acquired regarding teacher leadership, supportive communication and collaboration. I will also reflect on practical application of these skills, such as assessing the needs, problems or issues, and creating the action plan to address the issues. In the end, I will define how teacher leadership can positively affect student learning and achievement.

Teachers as leaders. Crowther, Ferguson and Hann (2009) in their book, Developing Teacher Leaders (2nd ed.) defined that “Teacher leadership is essentially an ethical stance that is based on views of both a better world and the power of teachers to shape meaning systems. It manifests in new forms of understanding and practice that contribute to school success and to the quality of life of the community in the long term.” They also described the six elements of Teachers as Leaders Framework. (Crowther, F., Ferguson, M., and Hann, L. (2009). P.

I always thought I would be a teacher and I would make differences in lives and it would be the greatest experience in the world for me, yet being a teacher wasn’t enough, I had a need to expand my education. I decided that perhaps I needed a new career, however, I felt certain education remained my passion. I began to explore new areas of education and I realized I still want to be a member of a classroom, a school and curriculum. I aspire to guide those leading our classrooms.

One who is in a leadership position must be knowledgeable in his or her field. If one is not knowledgeable, then he or she cannot provide adequate guidance, be innovative, effectively advocate on the behalf of students, or effectively collaborate with a team of professionals. I strive to be competent by being aware of the latest evidence based research, by collaborating with my colleagues, and by pursuing more about the field of education through continuing my education as a high-quality teacher. An effective educator must be proficient in the skills needed to be a leader. If one is not competent in showing compassion, perseverance, innovation, and collaboration, one cannot depict positive acts of

My mission in educational leadership is to strive to do my best in facilitating a collaborative learning environment that assures that all stakeholders are supported in a climate of

I think and every successful teacher will agree with me that promoting the success of every student is the main value of any educational professional and it is very important for a leader to demonstrate these traits. What is leadership? Some people think that it is good to be a boss and it is easy to rule any organization. Leadership is more than just to rule any organization. It is the development of a practice around a mission or vision and an ability to inspire others to do the same. There are three sets of practices make up this basic core of successful leadership practices: setting directions, developing people and redesigning the organization. Foster (1989) says, “Leadership differs from conventional administration in much the same way that education differs from training (p.10).” This speaks to results- to the why of teaching. And the value of a leader can be determined by their results. If their aim is high-quality education (an admittedly vague term), academic success, and well-being of each student then this is the standard by which they should be judged. Burns admonishes that “power and leadership are measured by the degree of

According to Hans Urs von Balthasar “a vocation is something lived, something enacted and a concrete life story” (Contino, 2004, p. 85). My vocational life story has developed over the past forty years with my first job at twelve babysitting six children to where I stand today teaching home economics at Chowchilla high school. “I build my own life story through the decisions of projects I undertake” and the choices I have made regarding my career path (Contino, 2004, p. 85). Someone looking from the outside at my wandering path might believe of my career changes seem a bit radical. Moving bicoastal, leaving a stable career of twenty five plus years to go back to college, take a pay cut and joining the unstable labor market of Home

Over the years, I have worn many educator hats such as a Director of Resource, classroom teacher, Head Start teacher, special’s teacher, and as a teacher’s aide. My leadership experiences have not been ones in an administrative role, but I have had leadership experiences both informal and formal in nature. My years as a professional educator with a Virginia Collegiate Professional license has allowed me to teach in public settings as well as Catholic schools, at many different grade levels and for me, all of those experiences have influenced my leadership skills.

Over the course of my studies I feel I have grown as a teacher leader. I no longer take leadership opportunities for granted. The courses here at Lamar have shown me that no matter if the leadership opportunity is formal or informal it still can have an enormous impact on student success. I also attribute my growth to the additional

As I began this Leadership in Education course, I entered with an open mind and eagerness to learn about varying leadership styles and approaches. Over the years, I have fortunately been exposed to numerous genuine, caring, exceptional leaders in higher education. They all shared one commonality: student-centeredness. This has been my compass and guides me in my work. Through this course, I wanted to learn how I can better support students, whether directly or indirectly by leading other professionals and para-professionals in their work with students.

Those who learn to be instructional leaders acquire many characteristics that are beneficial to their schools and communities. The writer concurs that Instructional leaders exhibit a clear sense of direction for their schools and prioritize and focus attention on the things that really

The concept and practice of teacher leadership have gained momentum in the past two decades. Teachers are assuming more leadership functions at both instructional and organizational levels of practice. Empirical literature reveals effects of teacher leadership practice, teacher leader characteristics, and conditions that promote and challenge teacher leadership.