What’s the recipe for an effective system of teacher leadership that can lead to higher student growth?

My school, Rocky River Elementary, in Cabarrus County, N.C., ranked at the bottom of student proficiency and student growth in recent years. We clearly needed to cook up something new. So we stirred up equal parts trust-building and capacity-building with student-centered coaching and administrative support, and created a powerful stew that led to meeting student growth goals for the first time in years.

Rocky River added multi-classroom leaders and subject specialization to begin lifting student achievement. To make specialization meet its potential, teachers need to be highly effective in teaching one subject. To craft such individuals, the school needs multi-classroom leaders to help advance teachers in their subjects—and that’s where the recipe kicks in.