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Opportunity Culture® Voices: Showing Veteran Teachers Some Love

by | April 21, 2016

“We’ve all heard the saying, “You can’t teach an old dog new tricks,” but how many of us have actually stopped to wonder why? Is the dog just apathetic? Insecure in his ability to learn? Unsure of the goal? Maybe the greater question to ask is, “Why not?” With the right motivation, feedback, love, and support, I could have my 13-year-old black lab, Linus, rolling over by sunrise. This, however, can only happen with the right approach—from someone who has taken the time to get to know Linus and understands why he’s not rolling over already.

“Unfortunately, in the ever-changing world of education, too many people believe our veteran teachers are unwilling to change—or are even incapable of learning “new tricks.” As an Opportunity Culture multi-classroom leader in New York’s Syracuse City School District, I have found that could not be further from the truth. I’ve been fortunate to work with several veteran teachers, some with more than my 15 years’ experience, and watched them challenge themselves, growing into better teachers who feel professionally renewed.”

–Syracuse, N.Y., Math Multi-Classroom Leader Sharon Archer, in Want Veteran Teachers to Learn New Things? Show Them Some Love

When Sharon Archer began leading her middle-school math teaching team, she quickly grasped how many different approaches she needed to bring to her job. Her team included experienced and brand-new teachers, and she knew she needed to “slowly and deliberately” shake up the classroom of one experienced teacher, and guide another back to a love of teaching.

Read what Sharon did in the latest Opportunity Culture column in Real Clear Education, and hear her thoughts on an Opportunity Culture.

Is Multi-Classroom Leadership Right for You?

by | March 24, 2016

If you're interested in: --Spreading your excellent teaching to many more students --Leading a team of teaching peers toward the great outcomes you've gotten with your students by: collaborating with them co-teaching coaching co-planning giving (and getting)...

Opportunity Culture® Voices: Raising My Teacher Voice

by | March 16, 2016

“What does ‘teacher voice’ actually mean? Until this year, it sounded like a nice phrase, but it didn’t hold much meaning for me.

“But I have a job I love, one that shakes up traditional teaching and holds the promise of making a huge difference in students’ and teachers lives—as it did for my students. I wanted to spread the word about my job—and now, with positions like mine under threat at my school, I needed to find my voice. I needed to empower others to explore the idea of an Opportunity Culture.”

–Nashville, Tenn., Math Multi-Classroom Leader Karen Wolfson, in Raising My Teacher Voice to Save My Job–and My Students’ Success

Last year, as the multi-classroom leader for fifth- and sixth-grade math at Bailey STEM Magnet Middle School, a high-poverty, historically low-performing school, Karen Wolfson took her teaching team and their students to new heights:

“Our school had the highest level of growth in the entire district in math in grades three through eight. My team’s two teachers overcame the long odds that the previous year’s data predicted they would face. In one grade, we were projected to have just 12 students rank as proficient or advanced. We ended the year with 43. We saw similar results in the other grade. Both teachers ended the year with the highest level of teacher effectiveness and evaluation scores.

“These teachers were new to the district, its protocols, and the Tennessee state standards, and one was a first-year teacher. Their results were practically unheard of—but under the MCL model, they felt supported and successful.”

But a coming merger of her school with a high school threatens to do away with the MCL model that Karen feels passionate about.

“I can’t let MCL positions disappear. I want to see my district provide many, many more opportunities like mine. And that’s why I took the idea of “teacher voice” very seriously—and what I found was just how powerful my voice can be.”

Read what Karen did to raise her voice, and why she intends to keep speaking up, in the latest Opportunity Culture column in Real Clear Education, and hear her thoughts on an Opportunity Culture.

Opportunity Culture® Voices: Blending Better Learning for More Kids

by | February 19, 2016

“Technology in education is one of the most exciting, terrifying and threatening developments for teachers today. Now into my second year as a blended-learning history teacher—meaning I have a group of students in my classroom every other day, assigning them to work online, at home, on the ‘off’ days—I’ve found the scary parts less frightening than most fear, with far greater benefits than I expected.

“My blended classroom opens the door to 21st-century learning, student-centered instruction, project-based learning, and an emphasis on learning as a lifelong experience, not just what you do for six hours at school. Rather than being another challenge for teachers or a new education fad, my class helped tie this all together.

“It’s been intense but gratifying: Because I teach one class while another works from home, I reach twice as many students in that period than in a traditional setting. The challenge is to reach more students while keeping results as strong as before I extended my reach—and preferably stronger. In the first blended year, my students’ growth scores in American History I were well above the district average, with students exceeding “expected” growth; this year, my blended class averaged higher growth than my traditional class.

“And this isn’t restricted to already-great or highly motivated students—I’ve seen high growth from honors, ESL, special education and average students alike.”

–Cabarrus County, N.C., American History Blended-Learning Teacher Scott Nolt, in Blending the Best: Better Learning for More Kids

What does Scott Nolt pinpoint as keys to getting that high growth in his students? In the latest Opportunity Culture column in Real Clear Education, Nolt notes three big priorities educators should focus on in designing a blended class–including a total commitment to a whole new way of teaching, and an ability to adjust quickly to the different needs of a blended environment. “My class is evolving faster than ever,” Nolt says.

Read more in his full column, and hear his thoughts on students in a blended classroom.

Opportunity Culture® Voices: MCL vs PLC–What’s the Difference?

by | January 20, 2016

“When out with friends or at dinner parties, I frequently get asked, ‘So what do you do?’ My ‘I’m a biology multi-classroom leader’ response receives perplexed looks, so my boyfriend usually pipes in, ‘It’s kind of like the science department chair’—and then I have to kindly say, ‘Well, sort of, except that I do all this other stuff…’

“As the leader of a five-person teaching team at a high-need Charlotte, N.C., high school, I teach a senior International Baccalaureate biology class every other day for one period—leaving 88 percent of my time to coach my team teachers, teach with them, pull out students to work one-on-one, lead data meetings, or anything else necessary to help my teachers and students succeed. Now, instead of teaching just my own 80 or 100 students, I reach all 500 biology students.”

–Charlotte-Mecklenburg Multi-Classroom Leader for Biology Erin A. Burns, in More Powerful Than a Department Chair

In January’s installment in the Opportunity Culture series on Real Clear Education, Erin Burns writes about her experience as a multi-classroom leader (MCL) at West Charlotte High School, and the difference between that role and a previous position as a “professional learning community” (PLC) lead. “As PLC lead, I was in the dark,” about what the teachers in the PLC actually did in the classrooms–and no true authority to match the title, regardless of how the teachers were doing.

As an MCL, she has authority to coach the team, and accountability for the results of all the team’s students. She continues to teach, but has just one regularly scheduled class–giving her great flexibility to co-teach, analyze student data for the team, lead the lesson planning for each week, and meet weekly with the team together and individually.

Read more in her full column about how she does it all, and what glitches she’s encountered–and the difference it makes for students, and hear her thoughts in the accompanying video.

This is the ninth in the Opportunity Culture series–read them all here.

Opportunity Culture® Results: Dashboard 2.0

by | December 18, 2015

22,000+ students reached by Opportunity Culture® teachers, more than 800 teachers in advanced or team roles, $2 million in higher pay in one year alone, and more high growth and less low growth than other schools: These are just a few results from the schools in...