The Power of Teacher Teams
With Cases, Analyses, and Strategies for Success
- Vivian Troen - Brandeis University, Waltham, MA, USA
- Katherine C. Boles
Foreword by Richard F. Elmore, Includes a companion DVD with video case studies and CD-ROM with reproducibles and supplemental cases
How to successfully improve teaching and learning with teacher teams
While most educators believe working in teams is valuable, not all team efforts lead to instructional improvement. Through richly detailed case studies, The Power of Teacher Teams demonstrates how schools can transform their teams into more effective learning communities that foster teacher leadership. The benefits of successful teacher teams include:
- Improved performance for both teachers and students
- Meaningful professional development
- Group adoption of a new curriculum
- Shared insights into student work
- Better classroom management
- Support for new teachers
- New roles for teacher leaders
- Opportunities for mentor support
School leaders will find guidelines, methods, and concrete steps for building and sustaining effective teacher teams. Also included are one DVD with video case studies and one CD with reproducibles. The most important reason for building teacher teams is to enhance student learning through improved instruction—and that story is at the heart of this book.
"This is an important book, providing both inspiration and practical guidance for educators impressed by the power of teacher teams. By offering a series of case studies, and protocols for analyzing the cases, Troen and Boles guide readers through a process educators can use immediately in their own efforts."
"The Power of Teacher Teams is an incredible gold mine of ideas, strategies, practices, and advice, rooted in a conceptual frame that is both accessible and engaging! It is must reading for teachers, principals and policy makers who care passionately about transforming our schools for teachers and their students."
“Troen and Boles provide a guide for teams to navigate through the obstacles and opportunities created by collaborative teams. This book offers teams a chance to reflect and learn from their own and others’ experiences.”
“This book is a must-read for any superintendent or school leader, and a guide for educators—whether they are teachers, paraprofessionals, principals, or district staff—on how to work together.”
“By describing and illustrating both the theory and practice of effective teams, the authors have made a major contribution to our efforts to close achievement gaps and boost student learning.”
"Tools ready-to-use! A required resource for principals, teacher leaders, instructional coaches and professional development facilitators. Troen and Boles make teaming practice public so that we can begin to do the same across our schools."
"Change through collaboration occurs when school leaders and teachers meet consistently to talk about student learning and teaching design and hold each other accountable. As a principal practitioner dedicated to adult learning and professional growth, I treasure the gems scattered throughout this salient book."
"This is a powerful book that offers practical advice grounded in research. The case studies in this book can assist superintendents, curriculum/staff developers, teacher leaders, and principals in implementing effective, school-based instructional teams."
"At a time when teacher effectiveness is under attack nationwide, Boles and Troen add a fresh perspective to the conversation. Through thoughtful analysis and case studies, the authors advocate for the use of strategies that improve teacher effectiveness as well as parallel strategies that improve schools’ team effectiveness."
"Finally, a book written in user-friendly language that explains the value of educators working in teams to improve student achievement! Educators who read this book will be able to use its cases and guides to case analysis to solve the challenges they face in their own schools."