By: Karen Handlos
In a recent blog post,
Vicki Phillips, director of College-Ready Education at the Bill & Melinda
Gates Foundation, highlighted the work of teacher Colleague Circles.
Colleague Circles are a small group of teachers who come together to
collaborate and learn from one another. These groups share a trust with each
other as they nurture, grow, and engage together around topics of interest in
their profession. These groups are teachers leading teachers, owning and
defining work, and transforming education.
Here in Kentucky, Colleague Circles were
introduced at our first annual Elevating and Celebrating Effective Teaching and
Teachers (ECET2 KY) conference, held on January 25, 2014 and sponsored by the
Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. These Colleague Circles became a big hit,
with the majority of attendees sharing that it was the best part of the event.
One teacher stated, “The most rewarding times
were sitting in Colleague Circles watching teachers encourage one another.”
Another shared, “I felt so much more connected
and energized and I was able to get many great ideas for my classroom.”
A big component of Colleague Circles is to
continue work post-convening and to keep ideas and enthusiasm going. Teachers
have taken that to the next level in Kentucky by forming teams to plan five
regional ECET2 convenings. Each regional team of teachers will come together to
organize, plan and implement a day to inspire and celebrate their colleagues,
provide them with resources and tools to enhance their knowledge and expertise,
and allow teachers to collaborate with each other in Colleague Circles to
continue to elevate their profession. The Fund looks forward to continuing to
provide support and coordination to these teachers at the forefront of
innovating in their profession.
If you are a teacher interested in learning more
about Colleague Circles in your area, please contact Karen Handlos, Initiative
Director.
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