ASCD

September 2007 | Volume = 65 |=20 Number 1
Teachers as=20 Leaders Pages 87-88 =

As this issue of Educational = Leadership makes=20 clear, teacher leadership is a concept that = extends far=20 beyond a slogan and has become an integral part = of=20 education reform. It is no coincidence that=20 award-winning school districts have made teacher = leadership a key part of their strategies for = continued=20 success. Another characteristic of such school = districts=20 is their insistence on continuous improvement. = Consider=20 Jenks Public Schools in Oklahoma, winner of the = 2005=20 Baldrige Award for school quality. The = cooperative=20 efforts of teachers and administrators have led = to=20 remarkable progress for some of the most = challenging=20 students in the system.

Intervening to Prevent Failure

Although Jenks has enjoyed a = history=20 of academic success, the district recognized = that too=20 many students continued to face failure. The = faculty of=20 Jenks High School worked together to find the = most=20 accurate early-warning indicators of student = course=20 failures. For example, when they considered the = factors=20 that predicted math failure, the faculty learned = that=20 any 9th grade student who earned a D in = English=20 or math in 8th grade and also failed a=20 criterion-referenced reading or math test was = almost=20 certain to fail his or her next math course. = That's=20 right: Trouble in reading is a clear predictor = not only=20 of trouble in future English courses, but also = of=20 trouble in future math courses. In the past, = these=20 students would not have received intervention = until=20 after failing one or more 9th grade courses. Now = Jenks=20 uses its data analysis to intervene to prevent=20 failure.

The strategies that Jenks = High School=20 uses have three striking characteristics. First, = intervention is proactive, not reactive. The = school does=20 not wait for a failing grade to institute = intervention=20 strategies. Second, intervention is delivered by = outstanding faculty members. In a remarkable = example of=20 teacher leadership, expert faculty members, = including=20 those who have taught advanced placement courses = to the=20 school's most successful students, have = volunteered to=20 take on the classes that contain the school's = most=20 challenging students. Third, intervention = strategies=20 include time=E2=80=94twice the classroom contact = hours that had=20 been provided in the past. These interventions = are=20 mandatory for students who need them. Teachers = and=20 administrators are relentless in their = determination=20 that all students will succeed=E2=80=94even = students who resist=20 the requirements imposed on them to prevent = failure.

Of course, extra time alone = does not=20 ensure success, but time is a crucial variable. = Even=20 great teachers equipped with an excellent = curriculum=20 cannot erase a multiyear deficit in learning if = students=20 do not have the time necessary to acquire = essential=20 background knowledge and also master grade-level = requirements. For example, Jenks students who = need=20 intervention in English receive not only the = regular=20 grade-level course but also an extra reading and = composition class. In math, students receive not = only=20 the regular Algebra I class but also an = =E2=80=9CAlgebra Lab=E2=80=9D=20 class in which they are taught the essentials of = number=20 operations, problem solving, and analysis.

The results speak for = themselves. In=20 the regular math classes populated by students = who had=20 no apparent need for intervention, 38 percent of = the=20 students received a grade of A or = B and 36=20 percent received a C. In the math lab = classes,=20 populated by students who started the semester=20 significantly behind their peers and were = considered at=20 high risk of failure, 46 percent earned an = A or=20 B and 25 percent earned a C. Lest=20 skeptical readers attribute this performance to = positive=20 bias on the part of the lab teachers, consider = the=20 following: On the state math exam, 42 percent of = the=20 students enrolled in the lab classes scored at = the=20 Advanced or Satisfactory levels, compared with = 20=20 percent of students enrolled in regular = classes.

What is the secret of this=20 award-winning system? Superintendent Kirby = Lehman=20 credits teacher leadership. =E2=80=9COutstanding = teachers have=20 chosen to be directly involved in the remedial = courses,=E2=80=9D=20 he notes. =E2=80=9CWe are making the correct = decision by=20 doubling the time for our high-challenge = students in=20 both math and language arts and using the best=20 instructors available to provide such = remediation.=E2=80=9D

By intervening decisively = and=20 immediately=E2=80=94before failure takes = place=E2=80=94Jenks High School=20 has already achieved a dramatic reduction in = failures.=20 The superintendent's comment on this success is=20 particularly telling: =E2=80=9CWe are not yet = satisfied with the=20 results.=E2=80=9D Lehman and his colleagues will = not be content=20 until 100 percent of students achieve = proficiency.

Does Intervention Hurt Electives?

Whenever a school provides = extra time=20 for students and teachers to prevent failure, = the=20 short-term effect on elective courses is = inevitably a=20 source of controversy. Students who take an = algebra lab,=20 composition class, or reading course are losing = a 9th=20 grade elective. Of course, students who fail = English or=20 algebra courses and then retake those classes as = 10th=20 and 11th grade students are losing electives in = these=20 grades, often accompanied by increasing levels = of=20 frustration for teachers and students alike. As = the=20 results from Jenks make clear, preventing = failures in=20 9th grade leads to fewer course repetitions = later in=20 high school.

Leadership at Every Level

In their determination to = help=20 struggling students succeed, Jenks and many = other=20 schools face challenges that cannot be addressed = by one=20 more program, inspirational speaker, or = administrative=20 command. Their success is the result of great=20 leadership, to be sure. But leadership in these = systems=20 takes place at every level, including leadership = by=20 example from teachers who place the interests of = students first.