Smart education policy should be shaped and guided by what accomplished teachers know about teaching and learning. Too often, individuals with little to no classroom experience are in charge of making policy decisions. Teacher leaders are willing to step up and step out of their classrooms to serve in school, district, state, or national policy leadership capacities to help to shape, and eventually, implement the policies that support student learning.
Also in this section:
- Overarching Leadership Competencies
- Instructional Leadership Competencies
- Association Leadership Competencies
- Foundational Leadership Competencies
Policy Implementation
| Emerging | Developing | Performing | Transforming |
|---|---|---|---|
| • Demonstrate awareness that policy impacts school environment. • Engage in inquiry to learn the policies of their school. • Understand the effects of policies on their school environment. | • Discern information to gain a meaningful understanding of the intent of policy at the school level. • Implement mandated policies. | • Engage and include policy into practice. • Create and utilize a culture of research and inquiry in regard to policy. | • Lead collaboration with diverse stakeholders about effective and innovative policy implementation. • Evaluate policy impact at many levels as a result of inquiry and research. • Implement policies through innovative strategies to minimize the harm of inequitable policy while maximizing the benefit of equitable policy. |
| Evidence Indicators of growth at the emerging stage include, but are not limited to, the following evidence: • Identify and explain the impact of policies on the classroom. • Identify and explain the impact of policies on school and the broader education environment. • Explain the effects of policies on student learning. | Evidence Indicators of growth at the developing stage include, but are not limited to, the following evidence: • Identify the process stages for policy adoption and implementation. • Identify methods for involvement in the process. • Identify the intent of school policy. • Inform others about policy through various communication methods. • Implement policies with equity through a variety of narrative methods. | Evidence Indicators of growth at the performing stage include, but are not limited to, the following evidence: • Analyze policy impact at many levels as a result of research and/or data analysis. • Establish a culture of research through inquiry about policy issues by collaboratively engaging colleagues. • Implement policies by designing decision making frameworks that promote equity and fairness. | Evidence Indicators of growth at the transforming stage include, but are not limited to, the following evidence: • Lead collaboration among diverse stakeholder on effective and innovative policy implementation as a committee and/or PLC member to implement goals for specific policies. • Conduct a focus group, survey, or data analysis to evaluate the policy impact at many levels. • Create an action plan and/or innovative strategy for policies to minimize the harm of inequitable policy while maximizing the benefit of equitable policy. |
Policy Advocacy
| Emerging | Developing | Performing | Transforming |
|---|---|---|---|
| • Research and understand the scope of various policies. • Recognize the positive and negative impact of policies on students and education. • Realize the impact of positive advocacy. | • Use professional expertise to respond positively for mandated policies. • Listen to others’ ideas to evaluate existing and/or proposed policies that impact students, teachers, classrooms, schools, districts, and community. • Advocate for positive changes to existing policies and for best practices in new policies. | • Facilitate purposeful conversations to learn from diverse perspectives of multiple stakeholders. • Reflect on diverse perspectives as well as on their understandings. • Use various communication methods to purposefully organize diverse alliances. | • Create and strengthen alliances through powerful communication methods with various stakeholders. • Inspire colleagues to take action on policy. • Analyze data and trends from policies and share the results with stakeholders. • Reflect on individual and systemic policy impact. |
| Evidence Indicators of growth at the emerging stage include, but are not limited to, the following evidence: • Conduct research about education policies that impact the school environment. • Identify and explain the positive and negative effects of policies that affect students, teachers, schools, or education. • Identify current and new methods of policy advocacy for the benefit of students and broader learning communities. | Evidence Indicators of growth at the developing stage include, but are not limited to, the following evidence: • Seek the perspectives of colleagues on policy problems and solutions by agenda planning and/or idea mapping. • Analyze proposals to generate policy shifts. • Demonstrate advocacy actions by writing letters to politicians and/or decision makers and/or attending a rally or march. | Evidence Indicators of growth at the performing stage include, but are not limited to, the following evidence: • Communicate policy proposals to colleagues through research conducted on identified policy issues. • Build capacity for policy implementation through collaboration and/or analysis of a needs assessment. • Draft new, or revise existing, policy for consideration and adoption | Evidence Indicators of growth at the transforming stage include, but are not limited to, the following evidence: • Build and/or strengthen alignments or relationships with stakeholders. • Organize opportunities to empower others to advocate for the profession through policy reform. |
Policy Making
| Emerging | Developing | Performing | Transforming |
|---|---|---|---|
| • Demonstrate awareness of the process of creating policy. • Identify key stakeholders and influences. | • Effectively explain policy and its relationship to current work to others. • Engage with stakeholders. | • Demonstrate effective policy content knowledge based on deep understanding of research. • Build and strengthen alliances with a broad and diverse set of stakeholders. | • Build and sustain relationships around policy shifts to leverage change. • Drive policy change for school improvement or student rights. • Take a role as a policymaker or other formal leadership role beyond the school setting or environment. |
| Evidence Indicators of growth at the emerging stage include, but are not limited to, the following evidence: • Identify and explain the policy creation process. • Identify key stakeholders and policymakers and their viewpoints. | Evidence Indicators of growth at the developing stage include, but are not limited to, the following evidence: • Share processes for identified policy projects with colleagues. • Communicate with colleagues and stakeholders about policy projects by attending meetings and/or signing petitions. | Evidence Indicators of growth at the performing stage include, but are not limited to, the following evidence: • Create research based policy proposals and build capacity for their implementation, then share them through professional media posts and/or email. • Build and strengthen collaborative alliances to create and implement policy and share the message through personal narratives. | Evidence Indicators of growth at the transforming stage include, but are not limited to, the following evidence: • Create and build relationships with policy stakeholders to continue the change process. • Use written proposals such as endorsements and proclamations, or technology tools such as videos, podcasts, radio broadcasts, or sound bites to support policy change. • Pursue and accept a formal policy role beyond school (e.g., elected office, appointed office/position, etc.) |
Policy Engagement and Relationships
| Emerging | Developing | Performing | Transforming |
|---|---|---|---|
| • Prepare themself for conversations about current issues regarding education. • Know the names, roles, alignments, and functions of various policymakers. | • Develop powerful messages about school culture, climate, and environment. • Connect with policymakers, using methods that effectively engage them and enhance their willingness to listen and learn. | • Take formal leadership roles that directly influence or involve policymaking. • Build strong relationships with policymakers that encompass the ability to both listen to them and influence them. | • Identify and support other teacher leaders to take a role in policy making. • Foster the development of coalitions and gain the support of organizations in pursuit of a positive policy agenda. • Influence other teacher leaders to own the positive policy agenda. |
| Evidence Indicators of growth at the emerging stage include, but are not limited to, the following evidence: • Maintain awareness of current educational issues through engaged research. • Reflect on the implications current educational issues have on their policy leadership. • Maintain awareness of current and changing names, roles, alignments, and functions of various policymakers through political mapping. | Evidence Indicators of growth at the developing stage include, but are not limited to, the following evidence: • Use powerful messages about school culture and environment shared on professional social media. • Maintain strong connections with policymakers through personal contacts. • Engage policymakers in ongoing dialogue recorded in a communication log with the purpose of enhancing perspectives of all. | Evidence Indicators of growth at the performing stage include, but are not limited to, the following evidence: • Pursue and accept a formal leadership role with influence or direct involvement with policymaking. • Improve or strengthen relationships with policymakers to enhance learning and leverage influence by attending board meetings, facilitating a community meeting and/or organizing a meet-and-greet. | Evidence Indicators of growth at the transforming stage include, but are not limited to, the following evidence: • Empower other teacher leaders to take action in campaigning for policy advocacy. • Develop coalitions pursuing a positive policy agenda. • Practice collaborative leadership by empowering other organizations and teachers with full ownership of the policy agenda. • Record and share the results of policy advocacy through narratives, testimonies, or other recorded methods. |