Reading Teaching as Leadership

[fclbrokle]

I have started reading the book Teaching as Leadership from Steven Farr at Teach for America, and it is deeply insightful. Based on the study of their many teachers over the decades, they have identified what they believe to be the six major factors that the really outstanding teachers share. Their standards are high: they are looking to measure teachers who produce two or three years of academic growth (as measured largely by state standardized tests) in students from deeply underserved backgrounds who are many years behind their peers. They profile these truly amazing teachers to demonstrate that it is possible, that a teacher can truly pull someone up from being far behind to being ahead --- and being confident that they can succeed. It is, as I'm sure the authors intend, deeply inspiring.

I've read about 30 pages so far and already found it to be really thought-provoking. I'd like to post my thoughts as I read, and you can expect posts to help me clarify my own thoughts and perhaps start some interesting discussions on teaching.

Meanwhile, for those who are interested, here are their six principles:

1. Set big goals,
2. Invest students and their families,
3. Plan purposefully,
4. Execute effectively,
5. Continuously increase effectiveness, and
6. Work relentlessly.

More on the book as I continue reading. (Indeed, look for two more posts shortly.)