The National Commission on Teaching & America’s Future (NCTAF), the author of the seminal “What Matters Most” report of 1996, is calling for a new compact with teachers in order to capitalize on this moment in time when policy and practice are shifting toward more engaging and relevant teaching and learning for all students. “What Matters Now: A New Compact for Teaching and Learning” calls for teachers to have more agency, new roles and leadership opportunities, and be supported by a system of aligned resources and supports. These efforts should be supported by a new shared accountability that encourages collaboration, use of data within a context of continuous improvement, and teacher-led professional learning.
In order to accomplish this, the Commission is recommending that:
- Policymakers should establish and broadly communicate a new compact with teachers
- Every state should establish a Commission on teaching, learning, and the State’s future
- States and districts should codify and track whether all schools are “organized for success”
- Teacher preparation should be more relevant and clinically-based
- States should support all new teachers with multi-year induction and high-quality mentoring
- Education leaders should evaluate all professional learning for responsiveness and effectiveness
The report lays out a compelling argument to reorganize schools in ways that support teaching, drive learning, and provide every student with a strong foundation to build a bright future. What Matters Now consists of two reports. The first issues a call to collective action, and the second provides a robust online base of research, examples, and case studies to support the call to action.
What Matters Now: A New Compact for Teaching and Learning – A Call to Action
http://nctaf.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/08/NCTAF_What-Matters-Now_Call-to-Action.pdf
The Evidence
http://nctaf.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/08/NCTAF_What-Matters-Now_The-Evidence-Base.pdf
