Andrew Wild, writing for Education Week Teacher, has offered a thoughtful examination of the metaphors utilized to speak about learning and suggests that changing our metaphors may help us to reimagine education. Excerpts of his piece appear below: Metaphors communicate the foundational ways we conceptualize others, our actions, and ourselves. Consider the knowing is seeing Read more about Rethinking the Metaphors we Teach By[…]
The Center on Great Teachers & Leaders (GTL Center) is out with the third report in a series designed to explore how great teachers have become the excellent educators they are today and what experiences and supports helped these teachers refine their practice over time. The first two reports explored the perspectives of National State Read more about Good to Great Study Series: “Investing in What it Takes to Move from Good to Great”[…]
Recent research reveals that although districts spend large amounts of money on professional development, PD has a poor reputation for actually improving instructional practice, and research shows that current approaches are not having the desired effect on teacher practice or student achievement. In the May issue brief from Core Education, we offer resources that provide Read more about May Issue Brief: Professional Learning[…]
A new report from the National Center for Education Statistics provides a snapshot of teacher professional development among U.S. public school teachers. The report uses data collected through the 2011–12 Schools and Staffing Survey (SASS) Public School Teacher Questionnaire. This report relies on data provided by public school teachers about their professional development activities. The Read more about Professional Development Activities of U.S. Public School Teachers[…]
If you ever attend an amateur comedy contest, you’ll notice that beginning comics face some of the same classroom-management-style issues that pop up in an inexperienced teacher’s classroom. As with teaching, experienced comics can make “owning the room” look easy. That’s because they’ve had years to develop their material and practice fundamental skills like timing Read more about Five Unexpected Places where You can Learn to Be a Better Teacher[…]
Igniting the Learning Engine, a new report from Education Resource Strategies, examines how leaders in four school systems have successfully re-organized resources to create the type of effective, job-embedded professional learning that teachers are asking for. The report describes three inter-related elements that these systems have in common: (a) Rigorous, comprehensive curricula and assessments aligned Read more about Igniting the Learning Engine[…]
A new report by Ross Wiener and Susan Pimentel of the Aspen Institute makes the case for integrating curriculum into professional learning so teachers can focus on creating engaging learning environments, responding to the needs of their students, and continuously improving their craft. Practice What You Teach: Connecting Curriculum and Professional Learning in Schools highlights Read more about Practice What You Teach: Connecting Curriculum and Professional Learning in Schools[…]
Research from three studies has found that intensive, content-focused professional development (PD) improved teachers’ knowledge and some aspects of their practice, but did not improve student achievement. The studies are summarized by AIR in its brief, Does Content-Focused Teacher Professional Development Work? The PD examined in the three studies emphasized building teachers’ content knowledge and Read more about Learning from Mixed Results: What’s Next for Teacher Professional Development?[…]
A new study authored by researchers from Brown and Harvard universities points to one promising strategy for helping current teachers improve: one-on-one coaching. Teacher coaching has emerged as a promising alternative to traditional models of professional development. Authors reviewed the empirical literature on teacher coaching and conducted meta-analyses to estimate the mean effect of coaching Read more about Meta-Analysis of Teacher Coaching[…]
A new study finds that using retired educators to mentor and support new teachers can be a cost effective strategy to improve math achievement. Regional Educational Laboratory Central worked with Aurora Public Schools in Colorado to conduct a randomized controlled trial study in the 2013-14 and 2014-15 school years during implementation of the district’s innovative Read more about Study Finds Positive Impacts of Retired Educators to Support New Teachers[…]
A new series of reports summarizes what is known about social and emotional learning (SEL) and effective strategies that promote SEL for students ages 3-8. The four-part series is based on a literature review conducted by Regional Educational Laboratory (REL) Mid-Atlantic. Social and emotional learning is the process by which children and adults learn to Read more about REL Report Series Helps Educators and Policymakers Implement Social and Emotional Learning Programs[…]
Despite decades of efforts to support teachers with coaching, most teachers still do not get the support they need in their own classrooms. Yet many teachers, including experienced ones, need support to continue to evolve professionally, hone their practice, and use new tools. Based on experience, the research base on coaching, and a forward-looking analysis, Read more about Coaching Roles That Achieve Their Potential to Improve Teaching and Learning[…]
The Australian Institute for Teaching and School Leadership has released their Designing Professional Learning report, which provides a snapshot of the key elements involved in creating effective and engaging professional learning in a globally dispersed market. This report provides detailed guidance on how to configure and evaluate context-specific models. It includes a Learning Design Anatomy Read more about Designing Professional Learning[…]
It sounds simple—award credit based on student learning. But as more schools and districts begin to develop competency-based pathways, questions have arisen about the best way to go about implementing these models. Complexities related to student grouping, curriculum design, scheduling, assessment, and grading abound. In this month’s issue brief, we explore various resources, research reports, Read more about January Issue Brief: Competency-based Learning[…]
The Getting Smart team has released Preparing Teachers for a Project-Based World, a publication exploring how teacher preparation and professional learning can align to–and be modeled after–the types of deeper learning environments we seek to create for students. This publication is part of Getting Smart’s year long It’s a Project-Based World campaign. Drawing upon the Read more about Preparing Teachers for a Project-Based World[…]
The Education Week Research Center has released an original study examining teachers’ perspectives on growth mindset. The national survey of K-12 educators, conducted with support from the Raikes Foundation, also explores their views about professional development, training, and the use of practices related to growth mindset in the classroom. Growth mindset-the belief that intelligence can Read more about Mindset in the Classroom: A National Study of K-12 Teachers[…]