Principals and districts benefit when principal supervisors move beyond the role of administrator to coach and mentor, according to a new Vanderbilt University report. The report, “A New Role Emerges for Principal Supervisors: Evidence from Six Districts in the Principal Supervisor Initiative,” details the implementation of five key components to reshape the supervisor position in Read more about Revisioning the Principal Supervisor Role[…]
One-on-one teacher coaching generates meaningful improvements to both classroom instruction and student achievement, according to a newly published meta-analysis of existing research. But there’s a tricky caveat: Efforts to expand coaching programs on a wider scale might only dilute their value, the authors find. Key takeaways from this study include the following: Coaching programs tend Read more about Teacher Coaching Can Boost Instruction and Student Achievement. But Can It Be Scaled Up?[…]
The National Association of State Boards of Education has released a policy brief exploring state mentoring policies related to the support of novice teachers and the research on effective mentoring programs. Policy recommendations as well as state exemplar programs are offered. The brief finds that although there is evidence that formal induction programs lasting at Read more about State Mentoring Policies Key to Supporting Novice Teachers[…]
Writing for The 74, Kate Stringer reviews a new randomized controlled trial that finds that one-on-one, in-person mentoring that starts in high school and continues through university study can have a significant effect on college persistence rates for low-income students. Excerpts from the article appear below: A college mentoring program aimed at getting low-income and Read more about Mentoring Program Posts 81% College Persistence Rate[…]
The final results from a U.S. Department of Education Investing in Innovation (i3) analysis has found that the New Teacher Center’s teacher induction model increases student learning by up to five months. These third-party evaluation results show that the NTC induction model yields statistically significant gains in student learning. The teacher induction model increases student Read more about Mentors for New Teachers Found to Boost Student Achievement—by a Lot[…]
The Center on Great Teachers and Leaders has released a new Ask the Team Brief, Teachers Supporting Teachers: State Policies for Non-Classroom-Based Instructors. Across the United States, non-classroom-based positions have been added in districts and schools to provide instructional support to teachers. They go by various names–coach, mentor, teacher leader–but typically they help classroom teachers Read more about Teachers Supporting Teachers: State Policies for Non-Classroom-Based Instructors[…]
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[…]
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[…]
In Education Week Teacher, Elena Aguilar writes an insightful piece about the promise of transformational coaching. Excerpts appear below: I believe new-teacher support programs must be linked to schools’ moral imperative to meet the social, emotional, and academic needs of every child, every day. To that end, the overarching objective of a teacher-support program should Read more about Developing Resilient, Equity-Conscious Teachers[…]
New data show that new teachers make up a significant segment of the U.S. teaching force, making their ability to thrive (and stay) in the classroom an increasingly critical issue for schools. A new special report from Education Week explores the challenges facing new teachers and the ways schools, colleagues, and other stakeholders can better Read more about How Can Schools Help New Teachers?[…]
Karin Klein writes in the Los Angeles Times about a new initiative funded by the Cotsen Foundation for the Art of Teaching that seeks to improve teaching and learning through intensive mentoring by master teachers. She writes: Creating better teachers is more complicated — and more expensive — than claiming we can drastically improve education Read more about The Art of Teaching[…]
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 Read more about What Matters Now: A New Compact for Teaching and Learning[…]
REL Central recently released a paper titled, “Understanding Field Experiences in Tradition Teacher Preparation in Missouri.” The purpose of this study was to describe the characteristics of field experiences in traditional teacher preparation programs completed by first-year teachers in Missouri and how experiences vary by teaching certificate type. This descriptive study is based on data Read more about Understanding Field Experiences in Traditional Teacher Prep[…]
Against a statewide backdrop of sliding student achievement levels, widening education inequities, and high levels of teacher dissatisfaction, the CLASS Project—an Oregon nonprofit initiative—has made sharp gains in all of these areas while simultaneously improving the working relationships between various education system stakeholders. But what exactly IS the Creative Leadership Achieves Student Success (CLASS) Project? Read more about The CLASS Project: Empowering Educators, Raising Student Achievement[…]
In Real Clear Education, Kristin Cubbage reflects on what it means to be a Multi-Classroom Leader, a role her school has adopted in conjunction with Public Impact. She writes: When I became a multi-classroom leader in 2013, the position was new to our school, district and state—new to the nation, in fact. I have vivid Read more about The Role of a Multi-Classroom Leader[…]
The critical issue of teacher shortages is often featured in today’s news headlines. Whether a shortage exists varies from state to state as do the root causes and the approaches states are taking to address the issue. To support policymakers, Education Commission of the States conducted extensive research on the topic and created a comprehensive Read more about Exploring the Teacher Shortage Dilemma[…]