Role Group Strategies

Principals
Create leadership roles, both formally and informally, for teachers within the school.  Share school leadership responsibilities with teachers.  Build personal capacity within teachers who display leadership potential.

		Principals who Know How to Share Leadership Alabama Best Practices Center.  (2004, Spring). http://www.bestpracticescenter.org/pdfs/wte4-1.pdf The Spring 2004 issue of "Working Toward Excellence" profiles several principals who've discovered (some late in their careers) the power of teacher leadership to revitalize teaching and learning. The issue also describes the Alabama Reading Initiative's principal coaching program, which is helping dozens of principals gain the confidence, skills and knowledge they need to lead reforms in literacy instruction.
		Leadership Matters:  Building Leadership Capacity Barkley, S., Bottoms, G., Feagin, C.H., and Clark, S.  (2001).  http://www.sreb.org/main/Leadership/pubs/01V18_LeadershipMatters.pdf This guide outlines practical strategies for building leadership capacity in schools that pertain to administrators, teachers, students, parents, and the community.  It also includes a description of the importance of establishing a shared vision and a checklist that can be used to evaluate the supports that a school has in place to encourage risk-taking by teachers and administrators.
		Redefining the Teacher as Leader Usdan, M., McCloud, B., and Podmostko, M. (2001). Institute for Educational Leadership. http://www.iel.org/programs/21st/reports/teachlearn.pdf This report examines the potential power in enabling and encouraging teacher leadership.  It discusses roadblocks to teacher leadership, shares promising practices from districts around the country, and provides a list of “Suggested Questions” that communities can use to start discussions related to teacher leadership within their districts.
		Coaching Moves Beyond the Gym:  Successful Site-Based Coaching Offers Lessons Galm, R., and Penny, G.S. (2004, Spring). Journal of Staff Development, 25(2). http://www.nsdc.org/library/publications/jsd/galm252.cfm This article from the Journal of Staff Development outlines the growing practice of using teacher-leaders within a building to provide on-going professional development and support to teachers and highlights the benefits of coaching on student achievement.  A description of five keys to developing quality coaching programs provides communities with a starting point for establishing their own site-based professional development programs.
		Leadership Library:  Leadership Assessment The Laboratory for Student Success and the Institute for Educational Leadership http://www.e-lead.org/library/resources.asp?ResourceID=16 Assessing the leadership potential of teachers is a relatively new concept in education.  While businesses have screened employees for possible management positions for decades, schools are just beginning to tap into leadership assessment strategies with their faculties.  This link provides a detailed description of the rationale behind school-based leadership assessment, explains the range of assessment tools available and then provides a list web-based related resources.
		‘Making Our Own Road:’ The Emergence of School-Based Staff Developers in America’s Public Schools Richard, A.  (2003, May). The Edna McConnell Clark Foundation http://www.emcf.org/pdf/student_ourownroad.pdf School-based staff developers are becoming increasingly common in America’s public schools.  These professionals, often former teachers looking for an opportunity to advance within teaching, are charged with serving as instructional leaders within their buildings.  This guide from the Edna McConnell Clark Foundation outlines the role of school-based staff developers.  It provides an overview of the need for such positions, a description of the kinds of people filling school-based staff development jobs, several suggestions about the types of roles that school-based staff developers can fill within a school, and an examination of the benefits of school-based staff development programs.
		The Teacher Leaders Network The Southeast Center for Teaching Quality http://www.teacherleaders.org/ This website, an initiative of the Southeast Center for Teaching Quality, provides an electronic home for educators interested in leadership.  Providing resources in areas from coaching and mentoring to NCLB and action research, this link can connect teachers to a wealth of professional resources that empower them to act as leaders in their schools.

Principals
Encourage teachers to attend leadership training seminars offered by the North Carolina Teacher Academy and to pursue administrator certification through the North Carolina Principal Fellows program.

		The North Carolina Principal Fellows Program http://www.ga.unc.edu/Principal_Fellows/ The North Carolina General Assembly funds two year scholarships for accomplished teachers interested in earning a degree in school administration.  This website describes the Principal Fellows Program; it includes a general overview, information about applying for the program, and answers to frequently asked questions.
		The North Carolina Teacher Academy http://www.ga.unc.edu/NCTA/NCTA/index.htm Funded by the North Carolina General Assembly, the North Carolina Teacher Academy offers week-long professional development sessions throughout the summer months.  Several of these sessions focus on school leadership.  Teachers are provided with room and board, continuing education credits, and an honorarium of $100 per day for participating.

Principals
Encourage teachers to pursue certification from the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards.

		Teacher Diary: On the Road to National Certification Starr, L. (2003, August). Education World. http://www.educationworld.com/a_curr/diary_2003/teacherdiary.shtml This website connects to five diaries written by teachers working through the process of Board Certification in 2003. Accompanied by an overview of the process of Board Certification, these diaries allow readers to understand the changes that teachers working for certification undergo and the type of reflection that the process encourages.
		Virginia School Sees Board-Certified Teachers As Key to Turnaround Archer, J.  (2001, May 30).Education Week. http://www.edweek.org/ew/ewstory.cfm?slug=38leadboard.h20&keywords=Fairfax This article describes how National Board Certified Teachers in one Virginia school are taking on leadership roles by providing professional training for their colleagues. The school aims to become a model of how National Board Certified Teachers can help an entire school improve student learning.
		Beginning the Journey toward National Board Certification National Board for Professional Teaching Standards. (2003, August 26). http://www.nbpts.org/candidates/guide/ This guide from the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards describes the certificates, standards, and steps involved in the process of National Board Certification.
		NBPTS:  Building better teachers Starr, L.  (2004, April). Education World. http://www.educationworld.com/a_issues/chat/chat100.shtml This Education World interview with Joseph A. Aguerrebere Jr., President of the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards, outlines the process of board certification, as well as the benefits for teachers and students.  It is a brief and informative look at the potential that board certification has for changing teaching and learning in America.
		Supporting National Board Certification:  Principals National Board for Professional Teaching Standards http://www.nbpts.org/iam/principal.cfm This webpage provides a comprehensive set of resources that principals can use to encourage teachers to pursue National Board Certification.  It includes brochures detailing what principals should know about Board Certification, specific steps that principals can take to encourage teachers, contact information for principals that have successfully supported teachers pursuing certification, lists of the benefits of having NBCT’s on staff, and links to incentives offered at the state and local level for teachers pursuing certification.