Conversation #38 digs into the power of teacher leaders as a scaling mechanism for strong professional learning. I really enjoyed hearing Candace Morell, Director of Teaching and Learning for Mansfield Public Schools in Connecticut talk about the nuance of marrying high-quality instructional materials with student-centered learning opportunities. She believes that students must have an active role in their learning every day and she is building a culture of professional learning that affirms this.

"From the moment I stepped into this position, my aim has been to empower teachers as leaders within the district. The district has developed a Teacher Leader Team to support the ongoing progress of key actions aligned with our district mission. I’m deeply committed to engaging all educators in professional learning experiences that build capacity and community. Our teacher evaluation plan seeks to achieve this goal by providing opportunity for action-based research that elevates educator voice in their professional growth.

Two fundamental questions guide my thinking about profession learning:

1. How do we empower our teachers as true leaders of teaching and learning?
2. How do we leverage our educator talent to ensure shared ownership?

Placing teachers at the center of their learning is a top priority for Mansfield Public Schools. We achieve this through our evaluation plan and by leveraging opportunities such as our recent adoption of a core literacy program required to meet state mandates for the science of reading. As part of the implementation, we actively engaged our educators as leaders in the work. Teams participated in coaching, lab sites, and the sharing of practices that inform instructional expertise and further cultivate teachers as leaders.

Over the past two years our Mansfield Public Schools Teacher Leader Team led the charge in developing a framework for student-led conversations and celebrations that occur each March. Their leadership has supported the implementation of highly successful Student-Led Conversations and Celebrations (SLCCs). As part of the SLCC, students share their learning portfolios, highlighting “glows” and “grows” with their family and classroom teacher. This highly impactful work is the result of educator commitment and innovation.

We believe in fostering educator growth through relevant, connected, and authentic professional learning. Providing staff with access and opportunity to elevate their own learning and contribute to the growth of others is a powerful experience. Our recent AI work serves as a prime example. In this initiative, teachers across the district explored the use of AI tools such as Brisk, Diffit, and Google Gemini. This team then led sessions for colleagues, sharing how AI tools could support instructional planning. Empowering teachers leads to connected and engaged leaders."

Thank you Great Schools Partnership for bringing Candace's work to our attention at your recent conference!