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Opportunity Culture – FAQ
The Opportunity Culture initiative continues to add sites every year; see OpportunityCulture.org for a complete list of participating districts and results. North Carolina, New York, Indiana, Texas, Arkansas, Illinois, Arizona, Georgia, Tennessee, and Maryland are among the states with participating districts.
We believe that the teacher in the classroom has the most impact on a student’s performance, and Opportunity Culture implementation gives us a way to recruit, develop, retain, and reward excellent teachers. Teachers consistently say that they long to make more of an impact, have leadership opportunities that do not take them out of the classroom, and be paid commensurate with their level of responsibility and impact on students. Opportunity Culture roles address all of this. We also focus on supporting and developing our teachers, and Opportunity Culture teams make consistent, personalized, on-the-job, weekly or even daily support possible.
Researchers from the Brookings Institution and American Institutes for Research found large student learning gains associated with Multi-Classroom Leadership. Teachers who were on average at the 50th percentile in student learning gains, who then joined teams led by teacher-leaders known as multi-classroom leaders, or MCLs (who had prior high growth as teachers), produced learning gains equivalent to those of teachers from the 75th to 85th percentile in math, and, in six of the seven statistical models, from 66th to 72nd percentile in reading. Teams had a median of five teachers in addition to the MCL. For more information, see this column.
We have a rigorous selection process that focuses on competencies, taking into account our mission and school fit. It includes a pre-screening that considers the applicant’s submitted data, which shows the applicant’s record of success with student achievement, followed by interviews from leaders of a specific school.
A team of teachers and administrators in each school adopts the Opportunity Culture roles that best fit their school’s needs, to reach more students with teachers who have produced high-growth student learning; the team figures out scheduling and how to pay for the roles as well.
Great support is a hallmark of Opportunity Culture schools. Multi-classroom leaders get intensive training before the school year begins in how to lead their teams, and all Opportunity Culture staff get on-the-job training and development, and scheduled, dedicated collaborative time for planning, coaching, and support.
Yes. The Opportunity Culture Principles require schools to sustainably fund the roles through school budget reallocations, not through temporary grants. We believe these roles will be the new norm in education, and they continue to spread in other states as well. We believe these roles are best for students, providing them with a great education through well-supported, great teachers or teachers on a team led by a highly successful teacher—and we believe these roles are best for teachers and the teaching profession.
Busy and rewarding! An MCL’s day may include direct instruction with students, co-teaching, coaching, modeling instruction for teachers, planning with teachers, and data analysis, observation, and feedback. MCLs are granted much schedule flexibility, but they are expected to plan their schedules carefully to focus on what will make the most impact on student achievement. For an example of one MCL’s days, watch this video.
Unlike most coaches, multi-classroom leaders are fully accountable for the results of all the students assigned to them and their team—and they continue to teach part of the time in some way as well. And unlike many coaches/facilitators, MCLs lead small teams—typically two to five, although advanced MCLs may lead teams of six to eight. This gives them the protected, in-school time to provide the on-the-job guidance, co-planning, help with data analysis, and feedback that is a hallmark of Opportunity Culture support. Additionally, many MCLs help select their teammates, help them advance in their own careers, and help principals lead instructional excellence schoolwide. Finally, additional pay for this advanced role does not depend on grants.
