IAN DANTE A.

ARCANGELES BSED-1A

Roles of Teachers
1. Resource Provider
For me, Teachers help their colleagues by sharing instructional resources. These might include
Web sites, instructional materials, readings, or other resources to use with students. They
might also share such professional resources as articles, books, lesson or unit plans, and
assessment tools. Example Milo becomes a resource provider when she offers to help Carissa, a
new staff member in her second career, set up her classroom. Milo gives Carissa extra copies of
a number line for her students to use, signs to post on the wall that explain to students how to
get help when the teacher is busy, and the grade-level language arts pacing guide.
2. Instructional Specialist
For me, an instructional specialist helps colleagues implement effective teaching strategies. This
help might include ideas for differentiating instruction or planning lessons in partnership with
fellow teachers. Instructional specialists might study research-based classroom strategies
(Marzano, Pickering, & Pollock, 2001); explore which instructional methodologies are
appropriate for the school; and share findings with colleagues. Example, when his fellow
science teachers share their frustration with students' poorly written lab reports, Jamal
suggests that they invite several English teachers to recommend strategies for writing
instruction. With two English teachers serving as instructional specialists, the science teachers
examine a number of lab reports together and identify strengths and weaknesses. The English
teachers share strategies they use in their classes to improve students' writing.
3. Curriculum Specialist
As teacher understanding content standards, how various components of the curriculum link
together, and how to use the curriculum in planning instruction and assessment is essential to
ensuring consistent curriculum implementation throughout a school. Curriculum specialists lead
teachers to agree on standards, follow the adopted curriculum, use common pacing charts, and
develop shared assessments. Example Tracy, the world studies team leader, works with the five
language arts and five social studies teachers in her school. Using standards in English and social
studies as their guides, the team members agree to increase the consistency in their classroom
curriculums and administer common assessments. Tracy suggests that the team develop a
common understanding of the standards and agrees to facilitate the development and analysis
of common quarterly assessments.
4. Classroom Supporter
As a teacher are Classroom supporters work inside classrooms to help teachers implement new
ideas, often by demonstrating a lesson, co-teaching, or observing and giving feedback. Blase
and Blase (2006) found that consultation with peers enhanced teachers' self-efficacy (teachers'
belief in their own abilities and capacity to successfully solve teaching and learning problems)
as they reflected on practice and grew together, and it also encouraged a bias for action
(improvement through collaboration) on the part of teachers. (p. 22) Example Marcia asks
Yolanda for classroom support in implementing nonlinguistic representation strategies, such as
graphic organizers, manipulatives, and kinesthetic activities (Marzano et al., 2001). Yolanda
agrees to plan and teach a lesson with Marcia that integrates several relevant strategies. They
ask the principal for two half-days of professional release time, one for learning more about the
strategy and planning a lesson together, and the other for coteaching the lesson to Marcia's
students and discussing it afterward.
5. Learning Facilitator
As a teacher facilitating professional learning opportunities among staff members is another
role for teacher leaders. When teachers learn with and from one another, they can focus on
what most directly improves student learning. Their professional learning becomes more
relevant, focused on teachers' classroom work, and aligned to fill gaps in student learning.
IAN DANTE A. ARCANGELES BSED-1A

Such communities of learning can break the norms of isolation present in many schools.
Example, Frank facilitates the school's professional development committee and serves as the
committee's language arts representative. Together, teachers plan the year's professional
development program using a backmapping model (Killion, 2001). This model begins with
identifying student learning needs, teachers' current level of knowledge and skills in the target
areas, and types of learning opportunities that different groups of teachers need. The
committee can then develop and implement a professional development plan on the basis of
their findings.
6. Mentor
Serving as a mentor for novice teachers is a common role for teacher leaders. Mentors serve as
role models; acclimate new teachers to a new school; and advise new teachers about
instruction, curriculum, procedure, practices, and politics. Being a mentor takes a great deal of
time and expertise and makes a significant contribution to the development of a new
professional.
Ming is a successful teacher in her own 1st grade classroom, but she has not assumed a
leadership role in the school. The principal asks her to mentor her new teammate, a brand-new
teacher and a recent immigrant from the Philippines. Ming prepares by participating in the
district's three-day training on mentoring. Her role as a mentor will not only include helping her
teammate negotiate the district, school, and classroom, but will also include acclimating her
colleague to the community. Ming feels proud as she watches her teammate develop into an
accomplished teacher.
7. School Leader
Being a school leader means serving on a committee, such as a school improvement team;
acting as a grade-level or department chair; supporting school initiatives; or representing the
school on community or district task forces or committees. A school leader shares the vision of
the school, aligns his or her professional goals with those of the school and district, and shares
responsibility for the success of the school as a whole.
Joshua, staff sponsor of the student council, offers to help the principal engage students in the
school improvement planning process. The school improvement team plans to revise its nearly
10-year-old vision and wants to ensure that students' voices are included in the process. Joshua
arranges a daylong meeting for 10 staff members and 10 students who represent various views
of the school experience, from nonattenders to grade-level presidents. Joshua works with the
school improvement team facilitator to ensure that the activities planned for the meeting are
appropriate for students so that students will actively participate.
8. Data Coach
Although teachers have access to a great deal of data, they do not often use that data to drive
classroom instruction. Teacher leaders can lead conversations that engage their peers in
analyzing and using this information to strengthen instruction. Example Carol, the 10th grade
language arts team leader, facilitates a team of her colleagues as they look at the results of the
most recent writing sample, a teacher-designed assessment given to all incoming 10th grade
students. Carol guides teachers as they discuss strengths and weaknesses of students' writing
performance as a group, as individuals, by classrooms, and in disaggregated clusters by race,
gender, and previous school. They then plan instruction on the basis of this data.
9. Catalyst for Change
Teacher leaders can also be catalysts for change, visionaries who are “never content with the
status quo but rather always looking for a better way” (Larner, 2004, p. 32). Teachers who take
on the catalyst role feel secure in their own work and have a strong commitment to continual
improvement. They pose questions to generate analysis of student learning.
IAN DANTE A. ARCANGELES BSED-1A

Example in a faculty meeting, Larry expresses a concern that teachers may be treating some
students differently from others. Students who come to him for extra assistance have shared
their perspectives, and Larry wants teachers to know what students are saying. As his
colleagues discuss reasons for low student achievement, Larry challenges them to explore data
about the relationship between race and discipline referrals in the school. When teachers begin
to point fingers at students, he encourages them to examine how they can change their
instructional practices to improve student engagement and achievement.
10. Learner
Among the most important roles teacher leaders assume is that of learner. Learners model
continual improvement, demonstrate lifelong learning, and use what they learn to help all
students achieve. Example Manuela, the school's new bilingual teacher, is a voracious learner.
At every team or faculty meeting, she identifies something new that she is trying in her
classroom. Her willingness to explore new strategies is infectious. Other teachers, encouraged
by her willingness to discuss what works and what doesn't, begin to talk about their teaching
and how it influences student learning. Faculty and team meetings become a forum in which
teachers learn from one another. Manuela's commitment to and willingness to talk about
learning break down barriers of isolation that existed among teachers.
11. Role Model
Students look to teachers as examples of professional adults. They often have more contact
with their teachers than their own parents, so it's important for teachers to always reflect a
positive image and teach children things like respect, trust, and responsibility. A teacher can do
this through his actions and words in the classroom, leading by example.
12. Helping hand
A leader in a school is a person who takes on extra tasks such as leading the PTA meetings and
even helping set up a gym for a big event. Teachers who are active in the school will often have
more jobs than just the one they were hired to perform. Often, the goals of the teacher will
match the direction that the school is taking.