What is leadership? According to Merriam Webster, a leader is someone who has "commanding authority or influence." We as teachers need to demonstrate this trait in our classrooms. Teachers need to command authority in their classroom walls or their students will walk right over them. Teachers also are obviously huge influencers. They have the authority to shape and mold the minds of these students. The Center for creative leadership believes there are 4 main skills a leader should have. The skills are self awareness, Communication, influence, and learning agility. For more detialed information you can read the article by clicking on the hyperlink above!
Self Awareness: In simple terms, We need to be aware of our strengths AND weaknesses. There are four ways to achieve self awareness: Leadership Wisdom, Leadership Identity, Leadership Reputation, Leadership Brand. Leadership wisdom is when you apply what you have learned to from prior experiences to new experience. Leadership identity is where you are currently are as a professional and personal context. Leadership Reputation is how others perceive you as a leader based on your current and previous behavior. Lastly Leadership Brand is what you try to aspire to and the steps you take to take to achieve your goal. Communication: This skill is probably the most recognizable of all the skills. This includes writing clearly, speaking with clarity, and using active listening skills are all vital. As you climb higher in the work force these skills become even more important. Influence: As a leader everything you do influences people. This includes and is not limited to how you dress, talk, actions you take, and lifestyle choices. Once you learn to have control of this aspect you can use your influence to help communicate you goals and visions. learning aligity: Is the ability to constantly learn. As teachers this is vital because the world is constantly changing. With the new information people are discovering and the technological advances that are coming means the teachers will always be learning to keep up with the world.
Advocate for Equitable Access:
we all know that there is not an equal playing filed when it comes to school district wealth. This can be seen by the differences in many schools. Schools have different budgets and prioritize things differently. When it comes to the technology in your classroom you need to understand there are many resources out there to help get what your students need. There are many grants and scholarships a teacher can get. I think this is important because this world functions on technology. One thing we need to keep in mind when incorporating technicality in the classroom is not all students are aware of proper use of it or even have assess in their home lives. The article titled 4 Ways to Improve Digital Equity in Your Classroom is a great tool when considering equality for technology in the classroom.
Modeling Technology to Colleagues:
Identification: Find new technologies Exploration: Take time to play around with a new piece of software. Evaluation: After messing with thte software determine if its worth having a student work with it. Have your gifted students try it out before implementing it into your classroom. Curation: organize the software. Adoption: Think of ways you could use this software.
Standard 2a
Standard 2b
Standard 2c
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Shape, advance and accelerate a shared vision for empowered learning with technology by engaging with education stakeholders.
Advocate for equitable access to educational technology, digital content and learning opportunities to meet the diverse needs of all students.
Model for colleagues the identification, exploration, evaluation, curation and adoption of new digital resources and tools for learning.