How to Be Heard: Lessons Teachers Need to Advocate for Their Students and the Profession Dr. Celine Coggins Founder, Teach Plus Harvard Lecturer and Entrepreneur-in-Residence Dr. Megan Allen, NBCT Director of Partnerships, NNSTOY

How to Be Heard Celine Coggins, Ph.D. Harvard Graduate School of Education

Describe what policy is in a sentence (Can you do it?!)

My Story Teaching. Policy. Teaching.

10 Lessons for Teacher Advocates 1. There are no experts. 2. The policies that affect our classrooms are not random. 3. Bilingualism is the price of admission to policy making. 4. Equity is everything (and nothing). 5. “Is It Good For Kids?” Is The Wrong Question

10 Lessons for Teacher Advocates 6. Accountability is inescapable. 7. Effective policy advocates “think inside the triangle”. 8. There is no such thing as one best policy for all. 9. Entry points are hidden in plain sight. 10. If you’re not at the table, you’re on the menu.

There Are No Experts Most common reason teachers give for staying away: I don’t know enough Blind men and the elephant Its contentious because all have different perspectives Need to be a constant learner- see multiple sides of the elephant

Policies Are Not Random Common for teachers to think policy makers are crazy, ill-informed, or anti-teacher Knowing where a rule comes from is essential to understanding what can and cannot be changed Common Core: Do you think its okay if kids in Alabama learn less than kids in Massachusetts and Rhode Island?

As a teacher, what keeps you up at night?

Pressures Teachers Face Individual Students TIME! Outside Factors Pressures Teachers Face

The Language of Practice PLAY VIDEO (1 MIN 20 SECS); IF VIDEO EMBEDDED IN SLIDE DOESN’T WORK, USE THIS LINK TO THE ORIGINAL VIDEO ONLINE: https://www.ted.com/talks/pearl_arredondo_my_story_from_gangland_daughter_to_star_teacher

The Language of Policy

Bilingualism= Policy and Practice Dimension Practice Policy Unit of Focus Individual/Class District/Nation Size of Unit 1-100 1,000 -1M+ Primary levers for changing education Relationships with students, parents, other teachers, principals Legislation, regulation, budgets, contracts Key marker of personal success Impacting the life of a child Re-election or re-appointment

Bilingualism= Policy and Practice Dimension Practice Policy Knowledge Base Subject matters content (i.e. math, science, language) Classroom management Child/adolescent development Research on classroom practice (sometimes) Legal and financial rules governing education Procedure for initiating and leading policy change Power dynamics of groups Research on systems (sometimes)

Bilingualism= Policy and Practice Dimension Practice Policy Imperatives driving work Time scarcity Individual student needs Factors outside class that influence class Equity Accountability Resource scarcity

Equity is Everything (And Nothing)

Equity is Everything (And Nothing) The purpose of public education is ensuring that all young people are prepared to be successful adults Every person’s definition of equitable is different Focusing on teacher quality is important path to equity

“Is It Good for Kids?” Is the Wrong Question

“Is It Good for Kids?” Is the Wrong Question Resource scarcity is a defining feature of policy Policy, therefore, is about tradeoffs Most supports (teacher leadership roles, pre-K, etc) could have absolute value for kids, but we can’t fund everything Policy makers seek to determine which supports have greatest relative value

Accountability Is Inescapable More than 1/2 of state tax dollars go to education Public and parents have a right to know where things are working and where they are not Must include some standard measures To ask for greater investment, must show how it will matter

Effective Teacher Advocates Think “Inside the Triangle” Equity Resource Scarcity Accountability Effective Teacher Advocates Think “Inside the Triangle”

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