TEACHER LEADERSHIP IN PRACTICE: A PROGRAM EVALUATION OF OPPORTUNITY CULTURE IN A SMALL, RURAL NORTH CAROLINA SCHOOL DISTRICT

Abstract

Providing students access to effective teachers is a challenge that school districts all over the nation face. Students from high poverty environments and rural settings have less access than their counterparts to effective teachers at disproportionate rates. This disproportionality may present as an insurmountable barrier for some youth in receiving a high quality education. However, consistent access to excellent teachers is beneficial in closing the equity gap and increasing long-term achievement among students from rural, high-poverty environments, as well as students of color. This study examined the challenges of a disproportionality in access to quality teachers for one of the most economically-distressed counties in North Carolina. Such challenges are of particular interest to the small, rural North Carolina school district upon which this study focused, as teachers are an important and necessary factor when striving for student achievement. The purpose of this study was to examine the impact of Opportunity Culture on teacher instructional practices that may result in improved student academic achievement. Opportunity Culture is a coaching and support model that aims to extend the reach of its more effective teachers to more students and more colleagues within the school's normal operating budget. The teacher leaders referenced in this study are those who served in the role of a Multi-Classroom Leader (MCL). Using a mixed-methods approach, the researcher conducted a program evaluation of Opportunity Culture and its effects on teacher performance in two essential standards found within the NC Teacher Evaluation Instrument: Standard III - Teachers Know the Content That They Teach, and Standard IV - Teachers Facilitate Learning for Their Students. While the findings indicate that MCLs impact teacher instructional practices within Standard III and Standard IV, there is evidence that several prominent barriers pose a challenge in the continued effectiveness of MCLs. These barriers to the implementation Opportunity Culture and MCLs, along with recommendations for addressing each, are discussed.