Ann Lieberman

BEST PRACTICES FROM CANADA'S HIGH-PERFORMING SCHOOL SYSTEMS Empowered Educators in Canada is one volume in a series that explores how high-performing educational systems from around the world achieve strong results. The anchor book, Empowered Educators: How High-Performing Systems Shape Teaching Quality Around the World, is written by Linda Darling-Hammond and colleagues, with contributions from the authors of this volume. Empowered Educators in Canada details the core commonalities that exist across Canada with special emphasis on the localized nature of the systems—a hallmark of Canadian education. Canada boasts a highly educated population, and the provinces/territories truly value education as evidenced by the significant proportion of public funds allocated to schooling. Operated by the provinces and territories, participation in kindergarten, primary, and secondary education is close to 100% across the nation. In addition to offering traditional academics, secondary education includes opportunities for students to attend technical and vocational programs. To demonstrate exemplary education systems, the authors examine two top-performing jurisdictions, Alberta and Ontario, which have developed strong supports for teacher development. Canadian teachers are highly qualified, and salary scales in all jurisdictions are typically based on a teacher's level of education and years of experience. While Canada has enjoyed much educational success, the education of First Nations students has historically been one of the country's more controversial and contentious issues. Overall, Canada is a country that is proud of its education system and places a high value on—and participation in—publicly funded education.

By tracing the development of Ann Lieberman’s commitment to exploring the complex, entwined nature of teaching, learning and living, this book reflects on how research in teacher leadership and development has progressed and changed over the last fifty years. This personal account highlights Lieberman’s learning as she engaged in research to build collaborative ways of working. Portraying the fight for teacher participation in research studies about teaching, schooling and teacher improvement so that the complexity of their lives would be represented, and writing about the consideration of teacher’s work in any efforts for school improvement, the book discusses the initial collaboration between researchers and teachers. It then proceeds to outline a number of research projects that document the changing relationship of research and teaching and offers guidance on some of the most important and successful programs and strategies in the field. It questions issues such as how to create a culture in the school that is supportive of teachers, and how research can best assist teachers to improve their work.Teaching, Learning and Living is a personal, historical and professional look at the growth in knowledge that began to change the views of research and teaching and is a must-read for anyone interested in the development of teacher education.

By tracing the development of Ann Lieberman’s commitment to exploring the complex, entwined nature of teaching, learning and living, this book reflects on how research in teacher leadership and development has progressed and changed over the last fifty years. This personal account highlights Lieberman’s learning as she engaged in research to build collaborative ways of working. Portraying the fight for teacher participation in research studies about teaching, schooling and teacher improvement so that the complexity of their lives would be represented, and writing about the consideration of teacher’s work in any efforts for school improvement, the book discusses the initial collaboration between researchers and teachers. It then proceeds to outline a number of research projects that document the changing relationship of research and teaching and offers guidance on some of the most important and successful programs and strategies in the field. It questions issues such as how to create a culture in the school that is supportive of teachers, and how research can best assist teachers to improve their work.Teaching, Learning and Living is a personal, historical and professional look at the growth in knowledge that began to change the views of research and teaching and is a must-read for anyone interested in the development of teacher education.

Teacher Learning and Leadership asserts that teachers should be put at the center of creating, developing, organizing, implementing, and sharing their own ideas for school change rather than being passive recipients of knowledge from the outside. It argues that there is tremendous potential for the good of students and the professionalization of teaching, when teachers work collaboratively to develop their own and their colleagues’ professional knowledge and practices and are supported by school and system leaders, unions and government.The book draws on the groundbreaking work of the Teacher Learning and Leadership Program in Ontario and uses an in-depth case study to illustrate its points. It demonstrates how professional development built around collaboration, teacher leadership, curriculum development, technology and pedagogy can be organized in a way that redistributes control and responsibility to teachers, thereby instilling a genuine sense of pride and accomplishment in their work.This book is a sincere outreach from the authors who advocate for the professional development of, by and for teachers as individuals and, importantly, as a collective profession. The authors argue that projects like the TLLP (a joint initiative between the Ontario Ministry of Education and the Ontario Teachers’ Federation) can radically, and positively, transform teachers’ knowledge, skills and practices. The book provides an important model for school change led by teachers, rather than experts, in partnership with school and system leaders and is a fascinating read for all those concerned with teaching, teacher development and educational change.

Teacher Learning and Leadership asserts that teachers should be put at the center of creating, developing, organizing, implementing, and sharing their own ideas for school change rather than being passive recipients of knowledge from the outside. It argues that there is tremendous potential for the good of students and the professionalization of teaching, when teachers work collaboratively to develop their own and their colleagues’ professional knowledge and practices and are supported by school and system leaders, unions and government.The book draws on the groundbreaking work of the Teacher Learning and Leadership Program in Ontario and uses an in-depth case study to illustrate its points. It demonstrates how professional development built around collaboration, teacher leadership, curriculum development, technology and pedagogy can be organized in a way that redistributes control and responsibility to teachers, thereby instilling a genuine sense of pride and accomplishment in their work.This book is a sincere outreach from the authors who advocate for the professional development of, by and for teachers as individuals and, importantly, as a collective profession. The authors argue that projects like the TLLP (a joint initiative between the Ontario Ministry of Education and the Ontario Teachers’ Federation) can radically, and positively, transform teachers’ knowledge, skills and practices. The book provides an important model for school change led by teachers, rather than experts, in partnership with school and system leaders and is a fascinating read for all those concerned with teaching, teacher development and educational change.

Pathways to Teacher Leadership investigates emerging patterns in the development and effectiveness of teacher leadership. What roles do teachers pursue as they seek to lead change in their schools? What pressures and challenges do emerging leaders face? How can principals and peers support effective teacher leadership?Marya R. Levenson takes a broad view of teacher leadership, encompassing not only instructional leadership but also teachers' roles in organisational improvement at the school level and the emerging movement to give teachers a voice in district, state and federal policy. She looks closely at the particular demands on young teachers in mission-driven urban schools, as well as those in more traditional settings. Drawing on lively case studies of teacher leadership in different contexts, she examines the potentially sticky relationships between emerging leaders, principles, families and communities.Pathways to Teacher Leadership provides a powerful counterpoint to current debates about teacher quality and shows how teachers can work together to make schools better.

Pathways to Teacher Leadership investigates emerging patterns in the development and effectiveness of teacher leadership. What roles do teachers pursue as they seek to lead change in their schools? What pressures and challenges do emerging leaders face? How can principals and peers support effective teacher leadership?Marya R. Levenson takes a broad view of teacher leadership, encompassing not only instructional leadership but also teachers' roles in organisational improvement at the school level and the emerging movement to give teachers a voice in district, state and federal policy. She looks closely at the particular demands on young teachers in mission-driven urban schools, as well as those in more traditional settings. Drawing on lively case studies of teacher leadership in different contexts, she examines the potentially sticky relationships between emerging leaders, principles, families and communities.Pathways to Teacher Leadership provides a powerful counterpoint to current debates about teacher quality and shows how teachers can work together to make schools better.

A useful guide for teacher mentors as they face new and difficult challenges in their work New teachers often struggle to apply their knowledge in real-world settings, and the idea of mentoring these teachers during their first years in the classroom has captured the imagination of schools all over the world. Drawn from the experiences over the last twenty years of the New Teacher Center, the book illuminates the subtleties and struggles of becoming an excellent, effective mentor. The book discusses the five big tensions of mentoring: developing a new identity, developing trusting relationships, accelerating teacher growth, mentoring in challenging contexts, and learning leadership skills. Describes in-depth the most common challenges of the mentor roleA wonderful guide for both new and veteran mentorsIncludes engaging firsthand narratives written by mentors working in a variety of settings This book is from the New Teacher Center, an organization whose highly respected mentor training model has served over 50,000 teachers nationwide. The New Teacher Center is dedicated to improving student learning by accelerating the effectiveness of teachers and school leaders through comprehensive mentoring and professional development programs.

This is a unique insider’s look at the process that teachers experience when they assume leadership positions in their school, district, state, or writing project site. The text features vignettes by K–12 teachers, describing their individual leadership roles and experiences to show how teachers take charge in a variety of contexts. The authors identify four major themes: identity, collaboration, making conflict productive, and learning new practices. Through the teacher leaders’ own words, readers witness how the four themes are an integral part of daily practice. Chapters also examine what research indicates about these new and proliferating roles.How Teachers Become Leaders makes a significant contribution to our understanding of how teachers in leadership positions:Construct a new identity.Develop the skills and abilities to handle conflict and make it productive.Learn to facilitate the building of learning communities, helping teachers to collaborate with one another.Use the practices they already know and incorporate new ones into their work.Reframe the very meaning of leadership, making it work side by side rather than top/down.

Teachers know how complicated their work is. They constantly balance considerations of individual students with those of the group; they think about how past events affect today's lessons; and they constantly adapt and revise for future lessons. But few people ever get to see teachers' work in this way. The most energizing, relational, complicated, inspiring, disheartening parts of teaching remain largely invisible. Over nearly a decade at the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching, Desiree Pointer Mace worked with dozens of teachers across the country to 'open their doors' by creating multimedia, web-based representations of teaching practice. This book describes how such multimedia representations are envisioned, documented, created, and shared and how others might engage in this process. This practical book: examines the cutting edge of electronic-media documentation of teaching practice; features cases studies that represent diverse grades, cultures, and contexts with both novice and veteran teachers; provides clear examples of how multimedia representations of teaching can be used as alternative texts in teacher learning environments; describes the positive outcomes for teachers and learners when teaching is made public; and, includes screen images of teachers' websites, as well as classrooms and children participating in projects.

Based on research and many years of lived experience in schools, the authors have become convinced that teachers learn best within their own work communities. In this volume, they explore what research and practice have to tell us about how such communities grow and develop, and how to negotiate the inherent tension between improving competence and building community.Using five themes that emerged from their studies of practice (context, capacity, content, commitment, and challenge), the authors examine selected research studies, personal reflections, and five cases that were especially commissioned for this volume in order to uncover new insights and understandings. The text begins with essays on research and long-term development projects and concludes with vignettes that address the following questions: What is the context of your program? How does your program deal with facilitating both competence and the building of community? What are the challenges and how has your program dealt with them?

In Teacher Leadership, Lieberman and Miller discuss current changes in the teacher’s role, and make sense of the research on teacher leadership. They offer case studies of innovative programs—such as the National Writing Project—that provide teachers with opportunities to lead within a professional community. In addition, they tell stories of individual teachers—from Maine to California—who are able to lead in a variety of contexts. Teacher Leadership offers a new standard of teaching and community that recognizes all teachers as leaders. It shows how to develop learning communities that include rather than exclude, create knowledge rather than merely apply it, and that offer challenge and support to both new and experienced teachers.

The National Writing Project has become one of the most influential and longest lasting professional development programs in the history of the United States. With 175 school/university sites in 49 states, it has the reputation or being a career-altering professional development experience. This volume looks at the National Writing Project, analyzes what makes it so successful, and shows how other professional development efforts can learn from it.