Synopses & Reviews
Praise for Teaching as Leadership"Eliminating our nation's unjust achievement gap and providing schools where all children can learn is part of the unfinished business of the Civil Rights Movement and of our nation. Teach For America is dedicated to this goal—and this new book is a terrific resource that shares the valuable lessons learned from studying highly effective teachers and successful classrooms across the country."
—Marian Wright Edelman, president, Children's Defense Fund
"Every teacher, principal, and superintendent should read this book. Over the last two years, we have seen our students' reading, writing, and math skills improve significantly. The principles outlined in Teaching As Leadership have played a critical role in our progress."
—Andrés Alonso, chief executive officer, Baltimore City Schools
"By assessing the actions of highly effective teachers in some of America's most challenging teaching environments, Teach For America outlines key strategies to close the achievement gap—investing in students and their families, planning purposefully, and working relentlessly. This inspiring book will inform the work of everyone engaged in the training and support of teachers in high-poverty schools."
—Kathleen McCartney, dean of Harvard Graduate School of Education and Gerald S. Lesser Professor in Early Childhood Development
"For new teachers, there is no substitute for getting into a classroom and suffering the pain and frustration of finding what works best for them. This book, however, offers new teachers a resource sure to make those first months a little less difficult. Teaching As Leadership assembles wisdom from dozens of successful Teach For America teachers, addressing every problem one could imagine. This is a smart gift for the new teacher in your family."
—Jay Mathews, Washington Post education columnist and author, Work Hard. Be Nice: How Two Inspired Teachers Created the Most Promising Schools in America
"From its very beginnings, Teach For America has invested more energy in understanding effective teaching than any teacher preparation program I know. And year after year, they have fed that information back into their own selection processes and teacher supports with a single goal: producing more teachers who can change the life chances of poor children. With this book, they have distilled what they are learning—along with relevant research—into a guide that is at once both fabulously readable and highly practical. If I had three thumbs, they would all be pointed up."
—Kati Haycock, president, Education Trust
"Teaching As Leadership works. This is the approach taken by teachers who lead diverse students to great academic achievements."
—Beverly Hall, superintendent of Atlanta Public Schools and 2009 National Superintendent of the Year
Review
"Teaching as Leadership demonstrates a commitment to and professional endorsement of the power of teachers. Farr's book speaks to the moral, ethical, and economic imperative to effect improved achievement for all students, not just some. This is a must-read for anyone at any level of our education system, including those who are preparing to revise and reauthorize NCLB." (Huffington Post, March 1, 2010)
Synopsis
A road map for teachers who strive to be highly effective leaders in our nation's classroomsTeach For America has fought the daunting battle of educational equity for the last twenty years. Based on evidence from classrooms across the country, they've discovered much about effective teaching practice, and distilled these findings into the six principles presented in this book. The Teaching As Leadership framework inspires teachers to: Set Big Goals; Invest Students and Their Families; Plan Purposefully; Execute Effectively; Continuously Increase Effectiveness; Work Relentlessly. The results are better educational outcomes for our nation's children, particularly those who live in low-income communities.
- Inspires educators to be leaders in their classrooms and schools
- Demystifies what it means to be an effective teacher, describes key elements of practice and provides a clear vision of success
- Addresses the challenges every teacher, in every classroom, faces on a daily basis
An accompanying website includes a wealth of tools, videos, sample lessons, discussion boards, and case studies.
About the Author
Steven Farr leads Teach For America’s efforts to discern what distinguishes teachers whose students in low-income communities achieve dramatic academic growth. Those findings inform the organization’s teacher selection, training, and support. Farr also works to build the organization’s knowledge by learning from and sharing with other organizations working toward educational equity.
Table of Contents
Foreword by
Jason Kamras xiIntroduction 1
Chapter 1: Set Big Goals 15Foundations of Effective Goal Setting 18
Inspiring Strong Results with Measurable Outcomes 19
Inspiring High Performance with High Expectations 26
Leading with Students’ Needs and Interests 36
The Qualities of Effective Big Goals in Action 37
What Measurable Academic Progress Should My Students Achieve? 41
What Traits and Mindsets Will Best Serve My Students? 44
What Pathways to Student Opportunity Should Inform My Big Goal? 45
What Student Interests and Motivations Could Shape the Big Goal? 46
Conclusion: Key Ideas and Next Questions 48
Key Ideas 48
Next Questions 49
“Why Do People Set Big Goals?” from Ms Lora’s Story 50
Chapter 2: Invest Students and Their Families 53Key Elements of Investment 57
Shaping Students’ Mindsets 57
Collaborating with Students’ Families and Influencers 62
Strategies for Investing Students 72
Creating a Welcoming Environment to Increase Student Investment 72
Developing a Culture of Achievement 84
Investing Students Through Instruction and Learning 98
Conclusion: Key Ideas and Next Questions 102
Key Ideas 102
Next Questions 103
“What If You’re Wrong?” from Ms Lora’s Story 105
Chapter 3: Plan Purposefully 107Foundations of Purposeful Planning 110
Developing Your Vision of Success 111
Translating Your Vision into a Well-Designed Assessment 112
Mapping Out a Vision-Aligned Plan by Imagining Yourself Implementing It 115
Three Forms of Classroom Plans 119
Long Term Plans 119
Lesson Plans 123
Classroom Management Plans 135
Conclusion: Key Ideas and Next Questions 137
Key Ideas 138
Next Questions 139
“It Still Tastes Good” from Ms Lora’s Story 140
Chapter 4: Execute Effectively 143Key Elements of Effective Execution 146
Doing Well What Must Be Done 146
Insisting on Seeing Reality 148
Adjusting Course as Circumstances Change 150
What Effective Execution Looks Like in the Classroom 152
Effectively Communicating Key Ideas 152
Coordinating Student Practice 153
Checking for Understanding 154
Tracking Progress 158
Maximizing Efficiency with Organization and Routine 161
Asserting Authority 163
Conclusion: Key Ideas and Next Questions 167
Key Ideas 168
Next Questions 169
“Light Monitor Form Collector Plant Manager” from Ms Lora’s Story 170
Chapter 5: Continuously Increase Effectiveness 173Foundations of Continuous Improvement 175
Effective Teaching Is a Learnable Skill 175
“Data may not tell us the whole truth, but it certainly doesn’t lie” 177
We Drive Our Own Improvement 178
No Teacher Is an Island 179
A Cycle of Reflection That Leads to Increased Effectiveness 182
Phase One: Analyzing Outcomes 183
Phase Two: Discerning Causes 185
Phase Three: Identifying and Implementing Solutions 191
Conclusion: Key Ideas and Next Questions 192
Key Ideas 192
Next Questions 193
“This Was My Summer School Seat” from Ms Lora’s Story 194
Chapter 6: Work Relentlessly 197We Control Our Students’ Success and Failure 198
Key Elements of Working Relentlessly 200
Persistence 200
Maintaining High Expectations 202
Expanding Time and Resources 206
Expanding Your Influence 209
Sustaining This Work Over Time 217
Conclusion: Key Ideas and Next Questions 223
Key Ideas 223
Next Questions 225
“You Are Going to Be Totally Handsome in Them” from Ms Lora’s Story 226
Conclusion 227
Afterword: Teaching As Leadership and the Movement for Educational Equity by Wendy Kopp 231
Appendix A: Teaching As Leadership Rubric 237
Appendix B: About Teach For America 269
Appendix C: Our Approach to Teacher Development 273
Appendix D: How We Learn from Our Teachers 285
Teacher Biographies 291Notes 317About the Author 328Acknowledgments 329Index 331