The National Education Association (NEA), Center for Teaching Quality (CTQ), and National Board for Professional Teaching Standards (NBPTS) are launching a groundbreaking initiative to advance teaching as a 21st-century profession.
The Teacher Leadership Initiative (TLI) will support accomplished teachers in leading effective pedagogical, policy, and union reforms. In the 2014 pilot year, TLI will engage over 150 teachers from six states (Arizona, Colorado, Iowa, Massachusetts, Michigan, Mississippi and Washington) and will include individual capstone projects.
The teachers selected will participate in a comprehensive leadership training pilot program, concluding with a field-based leadership capstone project blending instructional leadership, policy leadership and union leadership. Participants will focus on three key policy areas: The Common Core, educator evaluations and school redesign. Much of the training will be online, with face-to-face statewide meetings.
The goal is for participating teachers to become leaders in the profession, with the knowledge, skills and core values to meet the demands of the teaching profession in the 21st century.
“This initiative will ultimately develop expertise and engage thousands of teacher-leaders in leadership work in schools, with NEA affiliates, and in state houses throughout the country—because every student should have the best possible educators in their schools,” said NEA President Dennis Van Roekel. “The program will prepare and support the next generation of our profession’s leaders to meet the demands of a 21st century teaching professional and ensure the success of their students.”
Participants will engage with an interactive curriculum designed and facilitated by other expert teachers. Their learning will take place on CTQ’s Collaboratory platform and in face-to-face meetings. Once teacher leaders have been prepared, TLI will mobilize their leadership to help advance student learning, strengthen the teaching profession, and provide vision and direction to the Association. In addition, the partners will develop systems to support their on-going professional growth.
The initiative will call on the voices and expertise of accomplished teachers,” said CTQ CEO Barnett Berry. “It’s time to blur the lines of distinction between those who teach in schools and those who lead them.”
“The National Board is proud to partner with NEA and CTQ on the Teacher Leadership Initiative,” said Ron Thorpe, president and CEO of the National Board. “It is our strong belief that positive change in education must be driven by the profession and shaped by the invaluable experience of teachers working in classrooms. The TLI initiative marks an important milestone in our collective effort to elevate the profession.”
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