The Path to Instructional Excellence and Equitable Outcomes

Posted on August 14, 2019August 8, 2019 by coreeducation

The Path to Instructional Excellence and Equitable Outcomes explores District of Columbia Public Schools’ innovative approach to supporting teaching instruction, called Learning Together to Advance our Practice, or LEAP. LEAP is based on research that has found the most effective professional learning is school-based and content-specific, grounded in the instructional materials and strategies that teachers Read more about The Path to Instructional Excellence and Equitable Outcomes[…]

50 Best Educational Technology Tools, Ever!

Posted on August 6, 2019August 3, 2019 by coreeducation

Common Sense Education has compiled a Top Picks list containing their 50 favorite learning tools ever. This megalist has tools that span all subjects, grades, and purposes. Since 2013, Common Sense Education has been teachers’ trusted source for in-depth, independent, and unbiased ratings and reviews of edtech tools. They have rated over 3,000 products for Read more about 50 Best Educational Technology Tools, Ever![…]

Choosing Wisely: How States Can Help Districts Adopt High-Quality Instructional Materials

Posted on June 13, 2019June 8, 2019 by coreeducation

Chiefs for Change, a bipartisan network of state and district education chiefs, released a report showing that many states, tacitly or explicitly, promote the use of low-quality K-12 instructional materials. In the most recent review cycles, some states did not approve even a single highly rated curriculum for school districts to use — despite research Read more about Choosing Wisely: How States Can Help Districts Adopt High-Quality Instructional Materials[…]

Trio of Studies Confirms Benefits from Teachers’ Visits to Students’ Homes

Posted on June 12, 2019June 28, 2020 by coreeducation

When teachers visit families at home and ask, “What are your hopes and dreams for your child,” chronic absenteeism goes down, test scores go up, and teachers change their own mindsets. Studies from Johns Hopkins University and RTI International evaluated Parent Teacher Home Visits model in use in 700 communities in 27 states & D.C. Read more about Trio of Studies Confirms Benefits from Teachers’ Visits to Students’ Homes[…]

Teachers Learning from Teachers: Dynamic Initiative Taps into Educators’ Expertise

Posted on June 11, 2019September 1, 2021 by coreeducation

The Center for the Future of Teaching & Learning at WestEd collaborated with the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation to launch the Teacher Practice Network (TPN) initiative, which supports a vast national network of teacher leaders who mentor and coach their peers. By providing high-quality standards-aligned resources and ongoing professional learning led by teacher leaders, Read more about Teachers Learning from Teachers: Dynamic Initiative Taps into Educators’ Expertise[…]

Teacher Turnover and the Disruption of Teacher Staffing

Posted on May 30, 2019May 30, 2019 by coreeducation

Helen Ladd and Lucy Sorensen, writing for the Brookings blog, recently explored the concerns associated with within-school turnover, focusing on the churn in middle school core subject areas. Excerpts from their piece appear below: We draw on a recent paper in which we examined how middle schools in North Carolina responded to changes in the Read more about Teacher Turnover and the Disruption of Teacher Staffing[…]

Experienced teachers key in California districts that ‘beat the odds’

Posted on May 23, 2019May 19, 2019 by coreeducation

John Fensterwald, writing for California’s EdSource, recently reviewed a study of 156 California districts that ‘beat the odds’ in student achievement for underserved students and distilled the characteristics of those districts that had the most impact on results. Excerpts of the piece appear below: Research released this week identified 156 California school districts with higher Read more about Experienced teachers key in California districts that ‘beat the odds’[…]

May Issue Brief: Effective Teacher Hiring Practices

Posted on May 21, 2019May 18, 2019 by coreeducation

Every year, schools must hire new teachers to replace the nearly 15 percent who leave annually. But what if schools are doing it wrong? In Core Education’s May issue brief, we explore the data science behind teacher hiring, look at the teacher characteristics that have the most impact on teacher effectiveness and retention, and benchmark Read more about May Issue Brief: Effective Teacher Hiring Practices[…]

Why They Leave: The Reasons Teachers Give for Quitting the Profession

Posted on April 17, 2019April 13, 2019 by coreeducation

Thousands of public school teachers voluntarily leave their jobs each year, hurting student achievement and costing districts billions of dollars to find replacements. Lynnette Mawhinney and Carol Rinke were once part of that churn. Now, with both women serving as professors at teacher prep programs, Mawhinney and Rinke have co-authored a new book that illuminates Read more about Why They Leave: The Reasons Teachers Give for Quitting the Profession[…]

New teachers often get the students who are furthest behind — and that’s a problem for both

Posted on April 16, 2019April 13, 2019 by coreeducation

Matt Barnum, writing for Chalkbeat, recently wrote an article exploring the fact that new teachers often end up in the most challenging classroom assignments. Excerpts of the piece appear below: Being a new teacher is notoriously difficult — and schools often make it even tougher. New research out of Los Angeles finds that teachers in Read more about New teachers often get the students who are furthest behind — and that’s a problem for both[…]

Culturally Responsive Teaching in State Teaching Standards

Posted on April 11, 2019April 7, 2019 by coreeducation

New America has analyzed professional teaching standards in all 50 states to better understand whether states’ expectations for teachers incorporate culturally responsive teaching. To support this analysis, researchers identified eight competencies that clarify what teachers should know and be able to do in light of research on culturally responsive teaching. The study finds that while Read more about Culturally Responsive Teaching in State Teaching Standards[…]

How State and Local Leaders Can Strengthen Teacher Pipelines

Posted on April 3, 2019March 29, 2019 by coreeducation

Diverse, learner-ready teachers in the classroom means students have access to the instruction and learning needed to meet education goals. But the reality is that too many students are without these teachers State and district leaders can change that by using data to make informed policy decisions that strengthen their teacher pipelines. Data Quality Campaign’s Read more about How State and Local Leaders Can Strengthen Teacher Pipelines[…]

Instructional Coaches: The Heroes of the Golden Age of Educational Practice

Posted on March 28, 2019March 25, 2019 by coreeducation

Recently in the Fordham Flypaper, Michael Petrilli wrote about the practice and promise of instructional coaches. Excerpts from the piece appear below: Whether initiated from the bottom-up or the top-down, any effort to help educators align their practice with the best evidence is going to succeed or fail on the strength of its implementation. This Read more about Instructional Coaches: The Heroes of the Golden Age of Educational Practice[…]