ABSTRACT
In this chapter, we describe how teachers can build and leverage social capital for educational improvement. We use Coburn and Russell’s (2008) dimensions of social capital—relationship structure, access to expertise, trust, and the content of interactions—to analyze data collected in studies of the Knowles Teaching Fellowship Program. The 5-year professional development program connects beginning secondary mathematics and science teachers with a network of more than 300 teachers and is designed to build leadership capacity by supporting teachers to strengthen the profession from within. Key strategies include multiple, scaffolded opportunities for Fellows to learn from each other, their colleagues, and outside experts, interactional norms that create safe spaces for exploring the complexity of teaching, and explicit attention to taking an inquiry stance. We present evidence that shows how Fellows leverage tools and processes from their Knowles work to strengthen social capital within their schools and beyond. Given the growing body of research that connects teacher social capital and reform, supporting teachers to strengthen their relationships in substantive ways is a promising mechanism for teacher-driven improvement.
