I received this article from UEA President Sharon Gallagher-Fishbaugh and wanted to share it.
Five Beliefs That Hold Teachers
Back From Leading
By Anthony S. Colucci
Do you believe that you can
have a positive impact on education beyond the walls of your classroom? If not,
ask yourself why, then give a good hard look at your answers. I’ve seen teacher
leaders do great things for our profession—but I’ve also observed false beliefs
prevent teachers from blossoming into teacher leaders. Do any of these seem
familiar to you?
1) “It’s not my job to get involved in politics.”
There is little doubt that
many of the daily frustrations teachers and students encounter are the results
of misguided policy. Some of these policies exist because teachers did not make
themselves heard prior to their passage. When teachers are inactive
politically, we abdicate our influence, usually putting the decisions in the
hands of those less informed than we are. Most of us would agree that it’s
important to teach students how to become responsible citizens, who keep
current with the news, have conversations with their representatives, and vote.
How can we claim to instill civic virtue when we do not model it ourselves?
Last year, my students
watched me fight for our school by organizing stakeholders and by speaking at
school board meetings and rallies. And guess what I realized? “Walking the
walk” makes a much greater impact on my students than just telling them what
they should do when they are older. I’d go so far as to say that it is part of
our job as teachers to be active citizens.
2) “I’m not the best public speaker (or writer or
fill-in-the-blank).”
Advocating for our
profession means helping policymakers and community members understand what we
do and how we think our schools can be improved. But many teachers start out
with a deficit mindset. They say, “I can’t do that,” because they don’t have
the confidence or skill to do it perfectly.
But you don’t have to be a
Pulitzer Prize-winning author to write a blog post or letter to the editor.
When it comes to speaking, flawless articulation is not required. Sure, there
are tricks we can pick up to improve our skills over time, but knowledge and passion
are the keys to powerful communication. Perfectionism will stop teachers dead
in our tracks—and, paradoxically, keep us from getting any better.
My advice to teachers who
want to lead is to start small. With practice, you’ll become more comfortable
and ready to move on to bigger arenas.
Start with an issue that
taps into your knowledge and passion as an educator. Write an editorial for
your local paper, speak at a PTA meeting, or start a Facebook page dedicated to
the issue. You might be surprised by the impact of your seemingly small action.
Recently, I was shocked to see that a short column I wrote for my local
newspaper garnered national attention.
For teacher leaders,
passion must trump perfection!
3) “My administrator doesn’t want me to lead.”
Yes, some administrators
don’t support teacher leadership. But there are many administrators out there
who feel overwhelmed and appreciate teacher leaders’ fresh perspectives.
And there’s more common
ground than we might think. Many administrators do not like unfair evaluation
measures or beside-the-point standardized tests any more than we do. In fact,
issues that give us headaches often give administrators migraines!
Depending on where we live
and what protections our unions afford, we often have less reason to fear
repercussions for speaking up than administrators do if they speak up.
For many administrators,
it’s not that they don’t want teachers to lead. It’s that they don’t want to be
blindsided or put in compromising positions. I never ask an administrator’s
permission to write or speak. However, I ask about including information that
may put him or her in a difficult situation.
4) “But I’m just a teacher.”
Some teachers don’t want to
take on leadership roles because they feel like the bull's-eye on a dartboard.
Consider all those memes you’ve seen or posted on Facebook defending what we
do.
We shouldn’t let these
perceptions prevent us from leading. In reality, teacher-bashing is not a new
American sport but it is evidence of the concentrated efforts of a few powerful
groups.
The 45th annual Phi
Delta Kappa/Gallup poll noted that more than 70
percent of Americans have trust and confidence in the men and women who teach
in public schools. (That’s the highest level of trust since they started asking
the question!)
Bottom line: “The public”
is not out to get us. The public includes our neighbors and cousins, our postal
carriers and our dentists. They are our former students and the parents of our
current students. They have every reason to back us up. (And even if they
haven’t asked, they’re curious what we think.)
5) “My students will suffer if I’m not in my classroom.”
Leading as a teacher can
mean missing some face-to-face time with our students. Meetings with district
and partner organizations may not be able to convene outside the regular
business day. The truth is, our school schedules are outdated and
inflexible—they don’t allow as much opportunity to lead as they should.
That said, when we do miss
class, do our students suffer? Many would attest that just the opposite
happens—our students benefit from our absence. For example, I missed a few days
of school last year learning how to be a peer coach and then peer-coaching
teachers. Carefully analyzing my district’s teacher-evaluation rubric led to me
to polish some of my own practices—and observing my peers gave me some great
ideas that I then took back to my students and classroom.
(It helps to find a great
substitute. Last year, my substitute was a retired teacher who taught lessons
effectively and with his own unique twist. The kids loved him—and benefited
from the change in routine.)
Teaching is a demanding
profession. It is easy for us to let ourselves off the hook. We can allow false
beliefs to become excuses that let us close our classroom doors. These beliefs
become reasons not to raise our hands or voices. And then, having excused
ourselves from involvement, we groan at the consequences of top-down decision making.
Help elevate our profession by rejecting these fallacies. Jump in and lead!
Anthony S. Colucci, a National
Board-certified teacher, coordinates and teaches in the gifted-student program
at three elementary schools in central Florida. He is the author of Copilots, Duties
& Piña Coladas: How to Be a Great Teacher, as well as a host of articles for Education Week Teacher. A member of the CTQ
Collaboratory, he has earned numerous
awards for his innovative and creative lessons.
Also,
congratulations to Dawn Opie, teacher at Foothills Elementary in Jordan
School District. Thanks to her recruiting efforts, her name was drawn
by UEA President Sharon Gallagher-Fishbaugh as winner of an Apple iPad®.
The iPad was presented to Opie at her school by Jordan Education
Association President Jennifer Boehme.