Teacher Leader Skills and Dispositions - Essay Example

TEACHER LEADER SKILLS AND DISPOSITIONS To educate to be successful in this rapidly changing world, the education systemand the teaching profession must transform dramatically. Which is why is important for teachers to experience and model what we want students to be able to do. This means creating opportunities and cultures within schools for teachers and students that promote collaboration, sharing of practice, leading from the classroom, and collective responsibility for success of students (Katzenmeyer & Moller,2001). For that reason, teacher Leadership is an important virtue that is expected of every teacher in school. Teacher Leadership simply refers to knowledge, skills and dispositions demonstrated by teachers who positively impact student learning by influencing adults, formally and informally, beyond individual classrooms. In order for Teacher Leaders to flourish, certain characteristics and conditions must actually be present. Teacher leaders must possess the knowledge and skills needed to lead. In order to be seen as a leader, they must also have set of positive dispositions and attitudes (McGuire & Ikpa, 2008). The teacher leader should be able to understand the principles of children and adult learning and knows how to develop teamwork and collaborative culture of collective responsibility in the school. He is able to use her knowledge to promote an environment of collegiality, trust and respect that focuses on continuous improvement in instruction and student learning. The teacher leader understands the evolving nature of teaching and learning, established and emerging technologies, and school community. The teacher leader uses this knowledge to promote, design, and facilitates job-embedded professional learning aligned with school improvement goals. He can do this by facilitating professional learning among colleagues as well as students. The leader can identify and use appropriate technology such as computers to be able to promote collaborative and differentiated professional learning. He collaborates with colleagues and school administration to be able to plan professional learning that is team-based, job-embedded, sustained overtime, aligned with standards, and linked to school improvement goals (McGuire & Ikpa, 2008). He is able to use information about children and adult learning to respond to the diverse learning needs of students and colleagues by identifying, promoting, and facilitating varied and differentiated professional learning. The teacher leader understands that people do come from different social, cultural and economic backgrounds. The teacher leader should be able to know the roles played by families, cultures, and communities that have significant impact on educational processes and student learning. That is why he must be able to impart socially acceptable virtues to students such as responsibility, honesty, fairness as well as caring; so that they can be eventually accepted within their families, societies and communities (Kolis, 2013). He can use knowledge and understanding of different backgrounds, ethnicities, cultures, and languages in the school community to promote effective interaction among colleagues, families, and the lager community. He can also model and teaches effective communication skills with families and other stakeholders focused on attaining equitable achievement for students of all backgrounds and circumstances. In addition, the teacher leader can collaborate with families, communities and colleagues to develop comprehensive strategies to address the diverse educational needs of families and the community. My Teacher Leadership Skills and Dispositions   Skill or Disposition Short summary Rate your experience 3, 2, 1 How would you utilize this skill /disposition? How could you strengthen this skill/disposition Skill #1:  Teamwork      This is to bring people to work together with an objective of achieving a common goal.  2  Initiating programs/teaching and learning activities that brings people together such as group work activities  Assigning roles to each group and closely monitoring and assessing the progress. Doing follow up to ensure everyone participate in the team work hence unity. Skill #2:   Understanding your own strength and weakness     Being able to single out your personal strengths and weaknesses.  3 Encouraging, helping and nurturing students’ personal strengths. Helping those with various weaknesses to be able to cope up with others despite their situations.   In collaboration with colleagues organizing for the co-curricular activities to help nurture various talents and abilities of different individuals. Skill #3    Communication(oral and written)      It involves being able to pass information, idea or even a message to one another and getting the right feedback.  2  Ensuring that I communicate at the right time using a language or mode of communication that can properly pass the intended information.  Share information with the colleagues on how to communicate effectively. Involving students in debates, this would help in developing their communication skills. Having writing competitions, correcting mistakes and awarding the best writers. Skill #4:    Developing Self and Others      This is simply development one can engage in that will have the greatest impact on his personal/professional capacity as well as others.  3  Enhancing my technological knowledge in order to meet the global changing trends; to enable me handle the students’ needs regarding the emerging issues across the globe Work with colleagues in introducing workshops, seminars and lessons that are geared toward enhancing student’s technological abilities as well as teaching staff. Disposition #1:      Caring    It is the act of displaying kindness and concern for others; being sensitive to their feelings.  2  Spending time thinking about how other people are feeling. Taking their situations as my own in order to make them feel loved and accommodated despite their situation.  Role playing activities in class, staff room in order to help others emulate the act of caring for one another. Disposition #2:    Fairness      It simply means treating everyone the same, free of favoritism or without being biased  3  Treating all equally regardless of their socio-economic background. Having in mind that different child has different behavioral entry before making judgment regarding them.  Collaborates with colleagues in assigning equal roles to each and every member of the class. Making rules and regulations applicable to all regardless of race, color and social background. Disposition #3:    Honesty      Being truthful, genuine, sincere and trust worthy to everyone  2  Keeping to my promises in order to be able to win my students’ as well as colleagues’’ confident in me.  Encouraging other colleagues together with me to be role models to our student. Disposition #4:    Responsibility      Being in charge and answerable to any arising situation.  3  Assigning each and every student a property to take good care of; monitoring their progress to enhance their capability.  Encouraging students to be in charge of their personal belongings because they will be answerable to their parents as well as the school administration.   Reference Katzenmeyer, M., & Moller, G. (2001). Awakening the sleeping giant: Helping teachers develop as leaders. Thousand Oaks: Corwin Press. Kolis, M. (2013). Rethinking teaching: Classroom teachers as collaborative leaders in making learning relevant. McGuire, C. K., & Ikpa, V. W. (2008). Policy, leadership, and student achievement: Implications for urban communities. Charlotte, NC: Information Age Pub. . Read More