Everybody knows that she's creative. Everybody knows that she's got the ideas.

Everybody knows.

Well, at least the 28 miniature people that surround her know.  And, sometimes some colleagues. Sometimes, some parents.  

But, rarely, policy makers.  

Rarely, leaders that define her direction, or that of her collection of little people.

As the voice of Leonard Cohen echoes in your heads, stop to consider this: The answers are in the heads of our best and brightest teachers.  Unfortunately, those answers often haven't made it to their lips.  And, they certainly aren't in the ears of those who need to hear them the most.

I know some incredibly creative and smart teachers who get "it," whatever "it" actually is. Unfortunately, only their students and a select few have the privilege of knowing it.  Often, the ones that drive policy have never set foot in a classroom, aside from the patronizing, if not well intentioned, "Teacher for a Day" charade.

These amazing teachers need to be heard.  

I know.  They are busy.  They are tired.  They are even frustrated.  Most importantly, they don't feel that their voice will matter.  But leading major change isn't easy.  It's often fronted by tired and frustrated people.

However, the leaders who history best remembers refused to accept that their voice couldn't matter. Neither should we.  

I believe we have entered a period where increasing frustration and distrust with bureaucratic systems is creating a demand for grassroots solutions like never before.  A time when the voice of the ones most respected can matter.  Further, the platforms for those voices are quickly emerging. For instance, Commit to Lead is a new idea sharing platform that is positioned to garner a great deal of attention, and is certainly being watched by everyone from Arne Duncan to local leaders.  The platform allows for teachers to collaborate and share, but also publicly highlight their capacity for problem-solving.  Crowd sourcing has taken the world by storm.  Why not leverage that power for change in education?  

Those 28 little people should understand the brilliance of their highly-effective teacher.  But so should everyone else.  

After all, everybody knows that it is time for change.