Professional development for teachers today is often done "to us," not "by us."  There is a lack of consistency in these top down PD initiatives, as different solutions to old problems are tried almost yearly, but never actually established or appropriately reflected upon by teachers and leaders.  These "flavor of the month" initiatives are met with a lot of eye rolling by teachers, because they rarely speak directly to the needs we have in our classrooms. What's especially strange to me about this model is that it does not set up teachers to be the experts in our own field. 

I imagine that in a transformed, more teacher-driven profession, most teachers would have a professional pathway that looks something like this--

1. Once teachers acquire the basics of teaching (or during that period), we
would identify areas of interest, such as designing assessments, teaching the skills
of collaboration to students, or connecting with communities around student learning, to name a
few possibilities. 

2. Teachers would then explore these areas deeply in their
own teaching, drawing on available research and methods and developing their own practices that work for their students in their school
context.

3. We would also participate in the discourse around
these practices within the wider profession.  Unfortunately, the discourse has often included only
professors and researchers, and to some degree, preservice or beginning teachers through course work, but not
experienced, practicing teachers!

4. Finally, they would find themselves in a position to
share their developments with other teachers, both in their school and outside. They could write, present at conferences, and
moved into various leadership roles.

The result would be a more deeply skilled, empowered teaching force, in which we are clearly the experts at what we do.

[image credit: careergirlnetwork.com]

This is one of those moments where I have so much on my mind, that I don't know what to write about. So I'm just going to level with you:

The past couple of months have taken a toll on me. Fulltime teaching and writing a book in my extra time, on top of my usual writing and teacher leadership activities, have been no joke.  I've pushed myself mentally and physically past what I thought was my limit. No, writing is not a sport; I'm talking about teaching without a full night's sleep too many days each week, for weeks at a time. (Serious empathy going out to the teachers out there who are new moms and dads and do this for their little ones).  

This weekend I'm spending time with family, and I feel like I'm barely here. I haven't had time to just be. I haven't had time to get my nails done or other seemingly unimportant stuff that grounds me.  

I'm not complaining. I'm proud and excited that I've written a book about an aspect of my teaching that I feel so passionately about and can now share on a new level; I love my students and I'm energized by teaching every day. I would not say that this feeling is one of being burnt out. It's just that there is a personal cost to trying to do so much at once.  

Yes, this should be called "Extreme Teacher Leadership"!  There are other ways, though... Check out the discussion by teacher leaders at the Teaching Ahead Roundtable on hybrid roles.   

[image credit: www.tourismontheedge.com ]

I've dreamt of a hybrid role that allows me to teach part time and lead part time.  Here, for example, was my birthday wish a few years ago... the image from that post was so great I had to repeat it here.

Right now, there is a great discussion happening at Teaching Ahead: A Roundtable hosted by EdWeek Teacher and CTQ.  Several teacher leaders, including myself, have posted descriptions of our ideal hybrid roles, and the discussion has been equally interesting.  

My post is about creating a multi-layered teaching position and I'm working on a follow-up.  Brooke Peters of the Odyssey Initiative has been writing about how to create a school around teacher leadership and she shares great suggestions and ideas for hyrbid roles gleaned from her travels to schools around the country.  Ilana Garon, Lhisa Almashy, and Linda Yaron describe their unique, ideal hybrid roles.

Check in now--follow up posts are coming out!

 [image credit: http://natalie.ukdesignernetwork.com/art/psele.jpg]

Riding the train home from work today, I was sitting in the vicinity of two 14 year old-ish boys I've never seen before. They were having a somewhat raucous conversation about taking pictures and posting them and then deleting them and getting girls numbers and that sort of thing. My tired mind tuned it out, and when I happened to tuned back in, the conversation had taken a turn:

"Nah, I didn't do that either," said the first boy.

"I might fail that class," said the second boy.

"Yeah, but she's a very, like, disorganized teacher, so I just focus on my really important classes, like U.S. History."  

"Yeah, me too."

I was quietly amused. I've been on both sides of this coin, and I saw myself in both the "disorganized" teacher and the "really important" teacher they referenced. It was funny to hear it in the students' words.

What exactly makes students, especially adolescents, feel like a class is important? I think organization is an interesting idea to pick apart in this context. There is organization in the typical sense. Do you I know where things are? Do I lose students' papers? Do I check homework and collect assignments? Is there a sense of order in the physical space?

Organization in the traditional sense is important, but another huge factor is the organization of the learning experiences students have.  Are they sequenced logically?  Are they appropriately paced?  Do they lead students to conceptual understanding?  If students feel like the individual experiences they have in a class seem to be part of a unified curriculum--where small ideas have a clear place in connection to larger concepts, which have relevance in their lives and the world--students are more likely to find meaning in the work...and that makes it "important."  

[image credit: robertmanni.com]

I often dream of a flipped hierarchy in education, where at the top of the pyramid
are the classrooms with teachers and students, and below us are all of the
other people in supportive roles, holding up the most important work we do.  

If you are not a teacher, but you're looking at this image, thinking, "Yes, that's exactly how it is," then you should try talking to some teachers.  

I'm fortunate to feel supported at my school by colleagues, school leaders, and parents, but that's not necessarily the norm.  And there are still outside forces that threaten these conditions.  Do teachers feel recognized and supported by the people/organizations that influence and govern their profession?  The answer, by and large, is no.  And when teachers aren't supported, students aren't either. 

If we are really most important, then let's flip the hierarchy!