Professional Capital: Transforming Teaching in Every School

241 Pages·2012·0.96 MB·English

by  Andy Hargreaves

Advance Praise for Professional Capital
“Transforming education is one of the signature challenges of our times. Pro-
fessional Capital sets out exactly and undeniably why the only way to do it is to
honor and improve the profession of teaching. Written by two of the sharpest
educational thinkers in the world, Professional Capital is an incisive critique of
the failing reform movements in many countries and a powerful manifesto for
the only strategy that can and does work. Th is book should revolutionize how
policymakers and practitioners alike think and act in education. Th e price of
failure is more than they or our children can aff ord.”
— Sir Ken Robinson, educator, author
“A must-read! Brimming with insights and action ideas, Hargreaves and Fullan
lay out a clear and cogent plan to transform American public education, com-
munity by community. Professional Capital is a fi nely written and urgent argu-
ment for real change in how we do our business.”
— Dan Domenech, Executive Director,
American Association of School Administrators
“Th is important book makes it clear that teaching stands at a crossroads between
policy decisions that will help create a great profession for all teachers or ones
that will make teaching robotic and unexciting—hurting student learning for
years to come. Hargreaves and Fullan urge us not to stand aside or to wait. It is
time, they say, for the teaching profession to be led by, for, and with teachers
and for others to join in concerted action to support that transformation.”
— Dennis Van Roekel, President,
National Education Association
“I love the focus on professional capital and decisional capital. Hargreaves and
Fullan give us a deep, practical understanding of ways to improve our schools
and our school systems. Th is is new, exciting thinking.”
— Steve Munby, Chief Executive,
National College for School Leadership
“Michael Fullan and Andy Hargreaves’ latest book shows that transforming our
public school system isn’t magic: It comes from supporting all educators to ‘teach
like a pro.’ Th e best performing education systems focus on improving the entire
profession, not just lauding the highest performers and lopping off the lowest.
Hargreaves and Fullan have, once again, amassed the evidence to challenge our
thinking and better our practice—from the teachers’ lounge, to the union hall,
to state and national policy tables. Th eir concept of ‘professional capital’ can
help redefi ne and refocus eff orts at all levels to build and maximize teaching
capacity and improve results for students.”
— Randi Weingarten, President,
American Federation of Teachers
“Th e teaching profession is at a crossroads. Grounded in global knowledge and
experience, Professional Capital provides brilliant insight into what the next
generation of teaching should look like. Th is book is a must-read for anybody
thinking of teaching in the 21st century.”
— Pasi Sahlberg, Director General,
CIMO at the Finnish Ministry of Education
“This is a really terrifi c book. It’s balanced, thoughtful, yet also passionate.
Remarkable in its reconciling divergent positions in sensible ways. Among the
best things Hargreaves and Fullan have done—which is no small compliment,
I assure you!”
— Ben Levin, Professor and Canada Research
Chair in Education Leadership and Policy,
OISE/University of Toronto
“Anyone, anywhere who has anything to do with schools and the world of
education will want to read, refl ect, and react to the content of this book . . .
a real treasure trove of riveting and informed insight into what really matters
in teaching and learning. A powerful duo with a powerful challenge to the
world of education. Professional Capital cries out for informed action—for the
good of all children and their teachers.”
— Christopher Harrison, President,
National Association of Head Teachers, England
PROFESSIONAL
CAPITAL
Transforming Teaching
in Every School
ANDY HARGREAVES
MICHAEL FULLAN
Teachers College Toronto, Ontario
Columbia University Canada
New York and London www.principals.ca
Published simultaneously by Teachers College Press, 1234 Amsterdam Avenue,
New York, NY 10027, and by the Ontario Principals’ Council, 180 Dundas St. W,
25th Floor, Toronto, ON M5G 1Z8, Canada
Copyright © 2012 by Teachers College, Columbia University
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted
in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopy, or any
information storage and retrieval system, without permission from the publisher.
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Hargreaves, Andy.
Professional capital : transforming teaching in every school / Andy Hargreaves,
Michael Fullan.
p. cm.
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN 978-0-8077-5332-3 (pbk. : alk. paper)
ISBN 978-0-8077-5333-0 (hardcover : alk. paper)
1. Teachers—In-service training—United States. 2. Eff ective teaching—
United States. 3. Teachers—Professional relationships—United States.
4. School improvement programs—United States. I. Fullan, Michael.
II. Title.
LB1731.H268 2012
370.71'1—dc23 2011051529
ISBN 978-0-8077-5332-3 (paperback)
ISBN 978-0-8077-5333-0 (hardcover)
Printed on acid-free paper
Manufactured in the United States of America
19 18 17 16 15 14 13 12 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
To our fi rst graduate teachers and mentors—
Dennis Warwick of Leeds University,
Peter Woods of Th e Open University,
David Hargreaves of Oxford University,
Jan Loubser of Th e University of Toronto,
Matt Miles of New York, and
Per Dalin of Norway.
Th ey generously invested in our own professional capital.
We have done our best to give them a decent return.

An investment in knowledge always pays the best interest.
—Benjamin Franklin

Contents
Preface xi
Acknowledgments xix
1 A Capital Idea 1
Two Kinds of Capital 1
Th e Wrong Strategies 5
Th e Right Answers 7
2 Competing Views of Teaching 10
Pinpointing the Problems 10
Two Visions of Teaching 13
Flaws in the U.S. Strategy 18
Conclusion 22
3 Stereotypes of Teaching 24
What Is Teaching? 24
Teaching as Work 29
Teaching Today 35
Conclusion 45
4 Investing in Capability and Commitment 46
Evidence and Experience 46
Capability 55
Commitment 59
Career 63
Commitment, Capability, and Career 72
Conclusion 75
ix