Iowa
For over a decade, NIET has worked with district partners in Iowa to develop teacher leadership roles and create resources, tools and systems that enable teacher leaders and school leaders to work together to improve instruction. The lessons learned by our partners contributed to the development of Iowa’s Teacher Leadership and Compensation System.
Creating teacher leadership roles
Beginning in the 2014–15 school year, Iowa has made a substantial statewide investment in teacher leadership through its groundbreaking Teacher Leadership and Compensation (TLC) System. This statewide investment has illustrated the power of providing teacher leaders with a leading role in instructional improvement in their school. NIET has helped districts across the state develop instructional teacher leadership roles and align structures and supports, and worked with principals to maximize the impact of teacher leaders on classroom teaching and learning.
Using an instructional framework to coach classroom teachers
Over 100 districts participated in NIET’s training over the last several years on an instructional framework that provides teacher and school leaders with a powerful coaching tool. The NIET Instructional Framework with Aligned Supports for Iowa, previously referenced as the Iowa Instructional Framework, strengthens instructional leadership teams. The use of the framework creates a common language and facilitates conversations about classroom practice. Teacher leaders across the state have been using the research-based NIET framework to create a shared vision and common language for describing, discussing and collaborating to achieve strong classroom instruction.