Achieve More Beyond The Classroom

Teacherpreneurship allows more teachers to become better classroom instructors. It allows them to have an impact in fields other than their own classroom, to have richer, more diverse and fulfilling professional experiences. And financial opportunities too.

Are you a passionate teacher? Do you love teaching, but eager to earn more beyond the classroom?

There is a new brand of teacher, that is bridging the gap between the innovative education ideas, traditional classroom teacher and the administrator or policy maker : the Teacherpreneur.

Teacherpreneurs are imaginative teachers. They create a classroom culture of creativity and reflection. They think beyond the classroom in terms of how to make lessons meaningful, and in doing so they might see a need elsewhere in school for innovation.

“Teacherpreneurs are classroom experts who teach students regularly, but also have time, space, and reward to incubate and execute their own ideas. Just like entrepreneurs!,” says the CEO of Center for Teaching Quality, Barnett Berry.

Teacher + Entrepreneur

Teachers and entrepreneurs undoubtedly share the same mindset. Jack Ma, the founder of the globally known Alibaba Group, worked as an English lecturer before launching his highly successful online company. In 2016, he was listed among the wealthiest billionaires by Forbes, with his company providing innovative tech solutions to millions of consumers.

Teachers and entrepreneurs have more in common than we might think. The characteristics and qualities required to run a classroom are quite similar to those needed to build and grow a business. The Teacherpreneur is the new wave of entrepreneurial success.

Teachers are organized, professional and educated individuals. They are lifelong learners that are motivated, smart, passionate, and mission-driven professionals. All of these traits are needed in order to be a successful entrepreneur as well. It takes courage, effort and resilience to be successful entrepreneurs. They take their work seriously, invest in improving themselves, adapt to current market and customer needs. They are ready to take calculated risks and are always learning.

Teaching requires the same level of improvisation and dedication. Most importantly, teachers have more at stake than just profits. They are ones who dedicated their efforts to improve their students’ well being. And also contribute to the educational institution, the schools’ progress.

Teachers That Lead But Don’t Leave

Teacherpreneurship allows more teachers to become better classroom instructors because of their multifaceted works. But other than that, it allows them to have an impact in fields other than their own classroom. It allows teachers to have richer, more diverse and fulfilling professional experiences. And financial opportunities too.

Teacherpreneurs are educators who take a swing at entrepreneurship. Teachers have solid background in fundraising. And with their strong desire to inspire real change in the world, teacherpreneurs can receive funding much more quickly than traditional education trough grants which can take years to go trough.

The teacherpreneurs step outside the classroom to affect multiple aspects of education. They involve in educational leadership, writes their own curriculum, research educational philosophies, integrate their innovative methods with the existing school programme, educate other teachers and even works to reform official educational policies. These allow additional income stream for the school and for the teachers them selves.

The key here is that the teacher creates a different way of navigating the profession without leaving that profession entirely. Their talents remain in the classroom and on the school site, but they’ve had the opportunity to shake their dice, learn and try something new, use their skills in a different way.

“Teacherpreneurs maintain their teacher cred with their peers because they are regularly engaged with students. They maintain their firsthand experience with all aspects of teaching while also being afforded the opportunity to lead beyond their own classroom,” Ann Byrd, co-authors of TeacherPreneurs : Innovative Teachers Who Lead But Don’t Leave.

Some positions allow teachers to be the main leaders in individualised professional development. Some allow them to create afterschool programs or enrichment workshops. Some allow those teachers to focus on grant writing, curriculum design, teaching other teachers or parent outreach.

Those who have the right level of energy and find that teacherpreneur positions offer the flexibility that they need to stay interested in their work and offer better services to schools, and may just end up ultimately changing the world.

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