Revere High educator chosen to turn teachers into leaders

REVERE – Revere High School English teacher Nancy Barile has been chosen to participate in a national initiative that aims to turn teachers into leaders within their school systems.”It’s always been for teachers to advance, or obtain any success, they have to be in administration,” said Barile. “I don’t believe that. I love to teach. I want to stay in my classroom but that shouldn’t mean I can’t be a leader.”The 19-year teaching veteran applied for a spot in the Teacher Leadership Initiative, a joint endeavor of the National Education Association (NEA), the Center for Teaching Quality (CTQ) and the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards (National Board). Made up of 150 educators, Barile said the initiative is a collaborative aiming to define what would make a teacher a leader in terms of competency and experience, what they would need for support and how to tap into it all.”The program will prepare and support the next generation of our profession’s leaders to meet the demands of a 21st century teaching professional and ensure the success of their students,” said NEA President Dennis Van Roekel in a press release.Barile said participants have been broken into groups and get together online for webinars and chats.”We talk collaboratively almost every day,” she said.Initiative officials stated in a prepared statement that once the effort is put into practice, “TLI will mobilize its leadership to help advance student learning, strengthen the teaching profession, and provide vision and direction to the Association.”The pilot program requires a year commitment and Barile is eager to get into it.”I already see things that can impact my school and teachers,” she said.Barile said a lot of teaching is “trial by fire” but this would put supports into place and allow schools to tap into an individual teacher’s strengths for the greater good. One could be a leader in data analysis and another on curriculum, she said.”There are a lot of roles for teachers to play,” she said. “Realizing it and preparing teachers for these roles so they don’t just get thrown into them, it’s really important.”