Embarking on a course like the Teacher Leadership program can seem daunting. In this blog post I’m going to try and break down my thoughts on what the course means, why I wanted to do it and how I hope things will go!
What is Teacher Leadership?
Contrary to the opinion of many teacher leadership is not about climbing the greasy pole of promotion. To me it is about teachers having the confidence and ability to read, reflect, enquire and evaluate their own teaching and sharing their findings with others.
Why do the course?
My own journey to the SCEL teacher leadership program started with my engagement with educational twitter. There is so much established educational research and a vibrant discourse on effective teaching and learning that was to me invisible. Being a champion of effective teaching and learning in a school is a powerful engine to improve the education of young people and the development of colleagues.
Hopes
I’m looking forward to really focusing on teaching and learning this year (and beyond!). I’m hoping I will learn a lot of new things, meet some inspiring fellow teachers and give my professional practice a real boost.
Hi Chris
I think many would agree that there is such a variety of articles and approaches to teaching and learning on twitter that don’t come up in workplace discussions (and should do). Knowledge of the debates, reading, trialling with children and young people and sharing more widely, should help build that confidence.
Absolutely! I’m hoping to do a WeeGoo event at my school soon and I’ve also set up a CPD library. The challenge is getting other staff to engage as they are just so incredibly busy – it is hard to find time to engage.
Time is an issue, no getting away from it.
Hi Chris,
Thanks for your post; I enjoyed reading your thoughts. I agree that we need to keep chipping away at the mindset about leadership equating with promotion.
I definitely need to engage more myself with educational Twitter (“tweachers”?!) although I do use #pedagoofriday most weeks.
Your CPD library sounds a great idea – I set up a BALTI board at my school (Brilliant Assessment Learning & Teaching Ideas) and am slowly getting people to add to it. We also do positive outcomes/sharing good practice at our weekly department meetings.
Gill
I think talking about teaching and learning in DM’s is a great idea!