Leading Educators

"Over-scaffolding often shows up when all students are representing their thinking in a singular way; in other words, students are imitating the teacher instead of demonstrating their own thinking," says Rebecca Eden Allen, an experienced math instructional coach. This year, Rebecca and Leading Educators supported leaders in select District of Columbia Public Schools (DCPS) to tackle this issue head-on with tailored coaching sessions for math teachers. These sessions focused on shifting instructional moves to better balance support and independence, and they're making a significant difference. In this ⚡ NEW PAPER ⚡, we offer three reflection tools for exploring the effectiveness of your coaching strategy to inform future planning: https://hubs.la/Q02DKLTs0

Shifting practices and ways of working within a system is complex. ⭐ Jamilah Sanchez, a literacy coordinator in Oakland Unified School District discusses how external partnerships have helped the district grow internal literacy expertise and make the changes necessary for students to thrive.  “When creating a big systemic change, you need an outside perspective. You need someone to see your blind spots when you’re so invested in the work. Leading Educators really came through for us by providing support, conducting an assessment system, and guiding us through the visioning process.” Learn more about the bold moves OUSD is making to transform teaching and learning. https://hubs.la/Q02J48f60

👨🏾🏫 Teachers are eager for increased planning and collaboration time, because it offers a space for internalizing instructional goals and strengthening practices together. When teachers learn, students learn. But how much planning time do teachers actually get? ❗According to data from the National Council on Teacher Quality, large districts have only increased guaranteed planning time by a few minutes over the past decade. https://hubs.la/Q02J49zG0 Beyond the instructional benefits, adjusting collaboration time also shows potential to reduce burnout and turnover. ❓Comment: What steps is your school or system taking to help educators plan and practice together more consistently? What's going well? Where are you getting stuck?

With the new school year soon approaching, how will you help your educators bring high-quality instructional materials (HQIM) to life? A strong curriculum is the "how" for teaching to the demands of grade-level standards and a vision for equity. Strong implementation depends on educators' access to ongoing, embedded support to internalize it, refine their practices, and troubleshoot together. ⭐ As you plan, take these factors into consideration: https://hubs.la/Q02HYrQL0 P.S. Figuring out the dosage and structure of effective curriculum-based learning is new to many leaders because it requires deep knowledge of both the standards and the materials. If you need help, we're here for you.

Literacy is liberty! 📚 Learn how we're helping partners like Baltimore City Public Schools build the capacity for systemic improvement: https://lnkd.in/gS9s-76R

AI tools are evolving rapidly, offering teachers more options than ever before. But beyond improving efficiency, are teachers equipped to use these tools effectively? A recent Education Week Research Center survey of 953 educators, including 553 teachers, revealed that over 70% haven't received any professional development on using AI in the classroom. ❓ Comment: How is your school or school system thinking about helping educators experiment with AI and use it thoughtfully? Read the article:  https://hubs.la/Q02HK1Lz0

As summer settles in, don't forget to celebrate all that you accomplished this past school year. We share bright spots from two Leading Educators partnerships that give us hope for the future.

📐 Teachers play a crucial role in shaping students' mathematical identity and aspirations. Making math relevant to their lives takes intention. Michelle Smith, a math coach in Baltimore City Public Schools, shares how the districts' partnership with Leading Educators to provide job-embedded professional learning on strong math practices is helping teachers be more collaborative and pinpoint what their students may need to learn. “During a planning session with one teacher, we sat side by side and wrote down our definitions of math vocabulary terms in our own words," Michelle says. "This hands-on approach made the concept feel authentic for the teacher, and she had an idea: to have students create a word cloud of different words related to the vocabulary terms we study each week and add them to a word bank. As we discussed further, she expressed uncertainty about how students would put certain terms in their own words. For example, when talking about the term 'origin', she realized it might be challenging for students to describe it in their own words because it’s where everything starts. Providing these instructional strategies and seeing the teachers’ light bulbs go off made me realize that these activities aren’t “extra”; they’re integral to our authentic classroom instruction and are what’s best to meet the needs of our students. Witnessing this process with one of the sixth-grade teachers I’m working with this year was truly exciting." 💡 Read more about how City Schools is working to grow a thriving math system: https://hubs.la/Q02HfmK40

Meet one of our Professional Learning Partner Guide certified providers, Leading Educators. This thoughtful team crafts creative, practical solutions that drive equitable change across all levels of the education system. Learn more: https://lnkd.in/eEmReW9g