Echoing TLN blogger Ariel Sacks, Memphis teacher Brittany Clark wonders why well-respected teachers are so often encouraged by their own districts to leave the classroom:
I've seen this pattern. I'm frequently encouraged to move into school administration, instructional leadership and district-level teacher preparation. This sentiment comes not just from my peers, but also from school district leaders and administrators who actually encourage me to leave the classroom.
This does seem kind of ironic, doesn’t it? Clark, for her part, says it would make much more sense for schools to give top educators leadership positions (with appropriate pay increases) that allow them to continue teaching. “Instead of being recognized as effective and then encouraged to step out of the classroom,” she writes, “I want to be supported and elevated in ways that allow me to reach more students.”