Building collaborative school environments that empower teachers to create strong learning communities is the message teacher unions are delivering at the 5th International Summit on the Teaching Profession in Banff, Canada.
Teacher unions get up to speed ahead of Summit opening
Teacher union delegates from around the world learned first-hand what real teacher leadership looks like yesterday in Banff, Alberta Canada in advance of the 5th International Summit on the Teaching Profession (ISTP).
“Self-advocacy is about equal power relations between teachers and governments,” said Education International (EI) Senior Consultant John Bangs on how teacher collaboration is essential in making the profession a force to be reckoned with.
Bangs, joined by Stanford University’s Linda Darling-Hammond, helped the teachers union delegates get ready to hit the ground running with an in-depth briefing on the main topics of this year’s ISTP – developing effective leadership, boosting the value and self-worth of teachers, and innovation in today’s classroom.
Along with Bangs and Darling-Hammond, the EI expert panel included President Susan Hopgood, General Secretary Fred van Leeuwen, and Deputy General Secretary David Edwards.
Education ecosystems need a strong, confident teaching profession
The EI team stressed that teacher collaboration is key to strengthening the profession, both in the classroom and in dealings with governments.
“Without the willing involvement of teachers and their unions in education policy you cannot get far with education reform," said van Leeuwen, who is set to speak at the Summit opening Sunday.
Darling-Hammond shared how teacher collaboration provides teachers the opportunity to directly influence their own careers, including how they are trained.
On mentoring, the renowned Stanford professor said that the “evidence is pretty clear” that teachers, especially early career ones, want it.
“High quality mentoring from someone who comes to coach the classroom” is highly sought by new teachers, she said, adding that bringing in experienced teachers to help guide new teachers is a major positive.
“If we assume all children can learn, then why not assume that all teachers can too?” asked Edwards, who also criticised the harm of short-term contracts.
“Casualization is not a sexy term,” he said, but short-term teacher contracts undermine collaboration and ultimately professionalization.
Size matters
When it came to addressing the issue of class size, and specifically the pressures that teachers face, there was no debate.
Bangs pulled no punches when he warned that "high class size leads to burn out… you will have teacher shortages."
Darling-Hammond, who added that it’s inaccurate that class size doesn’t matter, expanded to the greater issue of how the teacher profession is generally viewed, pointing to the fact that less than a third of teachers feel that their profession is valued.
The Summit, which officially begins Sunday, 29 March, brings together education ministries, unions, organisations and experts from around the world.