Mathematics and science lead teachers are K-8 mathematics or science classroom teachers with the knowledge and leadership skills to serve as resource persons to other teachers and to school administrators. They are school leaders in curriculum and staff development. The importance of the lead teacher concept is rooted in the role they can play in teacher professional development, an essential component in efforts to raise our standards in teaching mathematics, science, and technology.
In the belief that lead teachers could be particularly effective in school based efforts to strengthen teaching and improve student learning, the Virginia’s Mathematics Coalition joined with the Department of Education and others in the early 1990’s in advocating the identification, training, and support of mathematics and science lead teachers in every elementary school. These efforts resulted in a Lead Teacher component becoming a central part in Virginia’s NSF funded Statewide Systemic Initiative V-QUEST; a part that was widely judged to have been very successful.
Statewide support for lead teachers was greatly reduced when the NSF discontinued V-QUEST funding. At that time the Coalition became concerned that, without a more active role on their part, Virginia’s lead teacher initiative might stall. In 1996 a second
Virginia
lead teacher initiative became the Coalition’s highest educational priority and a sustained effort to develop support for this initiative was undertaken. The goal of this effort is to establish a sustained program of training and support of lead teachers that will be funded as a regular item in the Commonwealth’s annual education budget.
An earlier document, Implementing Mathematics and Science Lead Teacher Programs in
Virginia
, discussed the dimensions of the needed training program and the costs of providing lead teachers with the necessary support. In the present study we have attempted to document the scope of typical lead teacher activities and to show that, with appropriate support, training, and opportunities, lead teachers can be highly effective. To this end we conducted interviews with school representatives from across
Virginia
.
Needs for Curriculum and Teacher Professional Development
For success in tomorrow’s workplace our students will need increased skills in mathematics, science, and technology. While Virginia’s mathematics and science Standards of Learning address this issue, many of our K-8 teachers lack deep knowledge of their subject and of effective ways to teach. They are not prepared to succeed in teaching all of our students. This represents a large gap between our student’s needs and what we are able to provide. To bridge this gap
Virginia
will need sustained efforts to raise the knowledge and skills of our classroom teachers and then to bring this knowledge to bear on our school’s curriculum and teacher development efforts.
We must invest in teacher professional development and school leadership that is rooted in knowledge of content and pedagogy. Lead teacher programs focus on bringing knowledgeable teachers and leaders into each school.
This Study
We have sought to document the variety and effectiveness of existing lead programs through interviews. V-QUEST and other initiatives have established active lead teacher programs in several
Virginia
school divisions. In addition, the Exxon Education Foundation sponsors a nationwide K-3 Mathematics Specialists Program that shares many common features with the V-QUEST program. In this study representatives from 9 school divisions and a representative of the Exxon Foundation were interviewed. Respondents were asked to describe their program, the support it has received, the program’s strengths and weaknesses, and the effect it has had. Written responses were also obtained from five divisions and the Exxon Foundation. Additional information was obtained from the Department of Education and V-QUEST documents.
The Roles of Lead Teachers
Leadership and Professional Development were the central features mentioned in all of the interviews. While details of implementation varied greatly the following descriptions of the ideal were nearly constant.
- Lead teacher are resource individuals for other teachers. They have specialist knowledge in their subject, are knowledgeable in pedagogy and effective, age specific, teaching practices, and are familiar with appropriate instructional technology.
- Lead teachers are teacher leaders. They have experience and/or leadership training for working with other teachers. They give in-service workshops for teachers in their school or division. They are available to work with other teachers in developing effective lesson plans and teaching strategies.
- Lead teachers are curriculum leaders. They participate and often lead school curriculum development efforts. They often manage instructional materials in their subject and help determine when new materials and supplies are needed.
- Lead Teachers are active professionally. They attend professional conferences and stay knowledgeable of educational developments, policies, and opportunities, and they share this information with fellow teachers.
Administration and Communication were widely mentioned themes.
- Many school systems reported that their lead teachers now serve as the most effective means of communication about mathematics and science issues within the system. Lead teachers meet regularly with content specialists from the administration to set goals and plan agendas. They inform the central administration of their school’s particular needs for training or materials in their discipline. They reliably carry administrative information into the schools.
Information and Public Relations functions, unexpected by us, that were sometimes mentioned.
- Lead teachers have become school spokesmen on such matters as the school’s mathematics and science curriculum. Lead teachers have played this role effectively in public discussions and parent meetings. They have also worked with teachers and principals to develop a shared understanding of curriculum goals or the reasons motivating a curriculum change.
Variations in Lead Teacher Programs
The divisions interviewed display widely varying circumstances in which lead teachers have had significant use for several years. In addition to large demographic differences, there are significant local variations in local particulars. For example:
-
Fairfax
,
Norfolk
, and
Williamsburg-James
City
county all began lead teacher programs before V-QUEST, and these divisions have maintained their programs with division funds.
Stafford
county was a V-QUEST county and has maintained their program, but their mathematics lead teachers have been utilized to a greater degree and have received more training than is the case in science.
-
Giles
,
Hanover
, and
Spotsylvania
counties were the initial V-QUEST Lead Teacher pilot divisions.
Hanover
has maintained the K-3 mathematics specialist part of a lead teacher program with a grant from the Exxon Educational Foundation.
- Giles and Smyth counties supplied recent test scores and are participants in the Southwest Virginia Public Education Consortium which received a 1997 SCHEV Eisenhower grant for a regional lead teacher initiative.
-
Roanoke
county participated in the V-QUEST program but did not have trained lead teachers in all schools before V-QUEST ended. Their program has been continued in those schools with trained lead teachers, but, due to resource constraints, has not been extended to other schools.
Other very significant institutional variations were found. The following examples illustrate some of these variations and place our findings in context.
- In Norfolk lead teachers have receive comprehensive training, have a contract, and are systematically used in an division wide in-service program. Their lead teachers assist other teachers during the time that is made available to teachers for planning, and two additional days are scheduled each semester to work with other teachers. As leader teachers they do not receive an increased salary.
- In
Williamsburg
the training has been less systematic and lead teachers do not have systematic scheduled opportunities to work with other teachers, but they do receive a stipend.
- The program in
Hanover
county is only a mathematics program and is restricted to grades K-3. It is supported entirely with Exxon funds, but these funds have provided excellent training and support extensive staff development activities during the school year and summer.
-
Roanoke
lead teachers received V-QUEST training. The program is supported with Eisenhower funds. School principals here seem to have been uniquely successful in scheduling brief periods, sometimes 30 minutes in duration, for lead teachers to work individually with other teachers.
- The south west regional program in which Giles and Smyth participate is funded with a SCHEV Eisenhower grant and schools participate voluntarily. The program is seen as a means to make scarce professional development opportunities more available in a remote region of the.
- Spotsylvania’s program started with strong support within the division, but this support eroded with time and changes in personnel. Some schools maintain active lead teacher efforts, but the small stipend paid lead teachers was removed two years ago.
Findings
There are some documented improvements that have occurred during the period when lead teacher programs have been in place.
- From 1992 until 1996, the percentage of passing scores on the Literacy Passport Mathematics Tests rose about 5% in both Giles and Smyth counties.
- In
Stafford
county all mathematics test scores have risen consistently for three years and these scores now are all above state and national averages.
- In
Fairfax
,
Norfolk
, and
Williamsburg
there have been a large documented increases in authentic hands-on science instruction and corresponding lessening of reliance on lecturing from text books.
- From 1988 until 1997 the percentage of students in
Fairfax
county who take algebra in middle school has risen steadily from 16.4% to 45%.
Most indications of improvement brought about by lead teachers are less quantitative. They are descriptions of personal observations by teachers, principals, and administrators. The following selection are representative.
From
Norfolk
, which has a highly structured and supported lead teacher program:
- "Our school principals say that our mathematics and science lead teacher programs are the best programs we have ever had."
- "These programs have been so successful, that this year the division has introduced lead teachers in language arts and social studies."
- "Over five years our programs have made a tremendous difference. Our science teachers are now teaching hands-on science with very few just teaching from the book."
- "Our professional development programs depend entirely upon the lead teachers. Without them they would be impossible."
From
Williamsburg-James
City
County
which is unusual in the fact that their lead teachers receive stipends:
- "The program was established and funded with stipends in the 1980’s. Once funding was eliminated in the 90’s due to budget constraints, but the program had so much support in the schools that it was re-instituted the next year."
- "When communicating with teachers in the schools about mathematics and science, we rely entirely on the Curriculum leaders."
From the Southwest Virginia Public Education Consortium which has established lead teachers as a regional priority. The Consortium developed a Region 7 Lead Teacher Strategic Plan and hired a half-time lead teacher coordinator.
- "We see lead teachers as a means to take control of our staff development and bring opportunities to Southwest Virginia that are not otherwise available ... The Consortium board of directors is committed to leading this effort."
From
Stafford
County
where in recent years there has been a strong effort to develop their mathematics lead teacher program:
- "The K-8 lead teachers developed the idea and implemented the first biannual Math + Science with Technology 2 day institute for Stafford K-12 teachers in 1996."
- "Fifteen of the seventeen K-8 schools have special mathematics family nights or after-school activities."
From
Roanoke
County
where some schools have lead teachers and some do not:
- "There is a noticeable difference between our schools that have had lead teachers and those schools that do not have them. In the schools with lead teachers, teachers discuss mathematics and develop their lessons and curriculum at higher levels. They are more organized and they make much more use of manipulatives."
- "Some lead teachers have been very useful in community relations. They have helped explain to parents the reasons why the mathematics curriculum has changed. In one case a presentation to the PTA resulted in the school receiving a large set of manipulatives."
- "Our lead teachers have become a great resource for special education teachers."
Qualifications For Successful lead teachers
We found broad agreement on the qualifications for lead teachers.
- Demonstrated leadership and enthusiasm for working with others.
- Broad knowledge of their subject and its connections with other subjects.
- An understanding of developmental learning in mathematics and science and the ability to translate this into good classroom instruction.
- A demonstrated proficiency in the use of appropriate instructional technology.
- Experience in staff development and adult learning.
- Broad working knowledge in assessment.
Lead teacher training programs and certification should include work on all of these components. Ideally these qualifications can be sufficiently standardized that lead teacher training can be a recognized component in graduate degree programs.
Requirements For Successful Lead Teacher Programs
We also found broad agreement on the conditions for success in lead teacher programs
- The position of lead teacher must be carefully defined.
- The responsibilities and expectations for lead teachers and schools must be clear.
- Lead teachers must be an integrated component of school and division staff development efforts. Especially they need regular opportunities to work with other teachers.
- Lead teacher programs in large divisions require administrative leadership.
- Lead teachers would be compensated.
The continued professional development of lead teachers would be supported.
[1] -Based on interviews with representatives of the Exxon Education Foundation, the Southwest Virginia Public Education Consortium, and the school divisions of Fairfax, Hanover, Norfolk, Roanoke County, Spotsylvania, Stafford, and Williamsburg-James City County.
