10 Ways to Become a Teacher Leader

How to Practice Leadership as an Educator in Any Role

A new school year is rapidly approaching. The start of a new school year is a great time to think about change, growth, and stretching beyond your comfort zone as an educator. Leadership isn’t only reflected in select positions in a school. Leadership is fluid, flexible, and looks different in varying spaces and scenarios. Leaders are principals, of course, but they’re also classroom teachers who empower their peers, guidance counselors who introduce an innovative new program, or intervention specialists who pioneer new instructional methods. Leadership inspires change and shapes school culture. It’s necessary, to a degree, in every member of a school community and every educator is capable of it.

This year, the ways in which you lead may be reflected in your practice or they might be the result of starting in a new position. Regardless of your journey, here are ten ways you can become a leader in your role as an educator:

1. Identify what you’re best at. Then, share your knowledge. Take a moment to reflect. What are your greatest strengths as an educator? What challenges have you faced that you excelled in overcoming? Strive to grow your knowledge and skills in that area, working toward becoming a true expert. Finally— this is important — share your knowledge with your learning community. Leaders want their teams to thrive, too!
2. Identify your weaknesses. Then, work to improve. Reflecting on where you need to do better is just as important in your leadership journey as identifying your strengths. Seek out professional development and opportunities for practice.
3. Listen more. When you think of a leader, do you think of a person in front of a crowd, speaking behind a podium? We often associate leadership with being the one doing the talking — but good leaders start by listening! Read up on active listening habits and practice present, empathetic, thoughtful listening with students, parents, peers, and school administrators.
4. Find a mentor. Perhaps your mentor is an expert in an area where you want to grow. Or perhaps they’re in a leadership position that you would one day like to hold. Your mentor could be a peer who teaches at another school district (connect online if you’re located far away), with a different student population and challenges. Their perspective could inform your practice in ways you didn’t anticipate.
5. Prioritize relationships. Inspiring other educators and influencing your students requires strong relationships. Leaders make an impact on those around them — but not without first building a foundation of trust and respect. Communicate early and often with parents and families, get to know your peers as individuals, and seek out knowledge from them in their areas of expertise. Find out what your students are passionate about and demonstrate your investment in their learning.
6. Take risks. Leaders carve their own paths. Create lesson plans that grant learners more agency than you’re accustomed to, that challenge your students, and that push you out of your comfort zone. Let your class get noisy, messy, and maybe even a bit chaotic! Modeling risk-taking (and sometimes failure) for both your students and your peers empowers them to take risks in teaching and learning, too.
7. Experiment with technology. Leaders are innovators. Use technology for instruction in new ways, such as integrating augmented reality to drive creativity among students or supplement your ELA instruction with leveled articles about current events. Or, use generative AI as a springboard for planning engaging new lessons.
8. Practice empathy. Leaders empathize with the experiences of individuals in their communities to respond to challenges with solutions that work. Practice active listening and empathy in your interactions with students, parents, peers, and school administration. Modeling empathy and talking about it is also important for students’ growth and overall school culture. Try these empathy activities for your classroom.
9. Support your peers (while protecting your own time). While leadership is about stepping up and supporting the other educators in your school when they need it, it’s not about overworking yourself or disrupting your boundaries. Do what you can to help your peers, but remember that self-care is just as important to maintain your ability to be the best you can be — especially as most schools face staff shortages and ask more and more of educators. A path to leadership isn’t sustainable when you’re fighting burnout!
10. Keep your mission at the center of everything you do. Whether you like to choose a yearly focus or goal and update it at the beginning of every school year or you have a central, core mission for your work, reflect on why you became a teacher, how you hope to impact your students and community, and keep that mission at the center of everything you do. It will shine through!

For more on leadership, read:

It’s Unanimous: Everyone is Tired. Everyone is Done. What’s a School Leader to Do?

Keep Moving: How Teacher Leaders Can Move Themselves, Their Peers, and Their Students

3 Steps to Creating Empowered Leadership in Your School

3 Steps to Creating Empowered Leadership in Your School

5 Things Educators Need to Know About Leadership

Leadership Tips for Principals