There is another knowledge base of inestimable value to the improvement of our schools. If there was ever a time when a principal could ride in alone on a white horse, like John Wayne or Joan of Arc, and save a troubled school, those days are certainly over. Principals who encourage and enlist teachers' leadership leverage their own. The teachers are more involved and influential in establishing discipline, with selecting textbooks, designing curriculum and even choosing their colleagues than are teachers in low-performing schools.
Students learn when teachers lead.
In order to create communities of learners, teachers must model for students the most important enterprise of the schoolhouse - learning. This is where teacher leadership intersects with professional development. Spending time with other biology teachers and reading information from professional organizations and keeping in contact with other biology teachers on the listserv have helped me improve my own learning.