The public school system in Washington, D.C. has hired a reality TV company to produce videos intended to improve the skills of its teachers. So far, 80 videos of 5 to 15 minutes each, have been produced. The videos are “peppered with quick jump cuts, slick screen labels and a jaunty soundtrack.” The videos, financed Read more about Reality TV: Coming to Your Classroom[…]
The first wave of petitions calling for technology professional development for all educators were delivered last week to Senator Patty Murray (Washington), and Representatives Lucille Roybal-Allard (California), Duncan Hunter (California) and George Miller (California) by the International Society for Technology in Education (ISTE). More than one thousand educators are urging Congress to support technology training Read more about Petitions Call for Technology PD for All Educators[…]
Resource Watch: ‘Pinteresting’ Idea for Teachers – Teaching Now – Education Week Teacher. Grockit, the online test prep company, has recently launched a new social learning site similar to Pinterest, but designed specifically for educators and students, according to The Journal, an education-technology news magazine. On Learnist, users can “pin” YouTube videos, audio clips, and Read more about Resource Watch: ‘Pinteresting’ Idea for Teachers[…]
The National Comprehensive Center for Teacher Quality (or TQ Center) has released new resources focused on how “meaningful professional learning” into the design and implementation of teacher evaluation systems. These resources include: Aligning Teacher Evaluation with Professional Learning, an infographic showing the relationship between the two. Generating Teaching Effectiveness: The Role of Job-Embedded Professional Development, Read more about Aligning Teacher Evaluation with Professional Learning[…]
State applications for waivers under the No Child Left Behind (NCLB) Act vary in the degree to which “deeper learning” skills are reflected in the standards, accountability systems, professional development, and teacher evaluations proposed by states, according to a new report from the Alliance for Excellent Education (“the Alliance”). The report, Providing Greater Opportunities for Read more about “Deeper Learning” for College and Career Readiness[…]
Education Week is again offering new “Spotlights on Education” for free. Spotlights are collections of recent articles grouped by theme to give readers an in-depth look at education issues. The currently offered Spotlights are: Implementing Online Learning Blended Learning Sports Variety of Approaches Spotlight Turns Toward Virtual Ed Accountability School Districts Team Up on Virtual Read more about New Education Week ‘Spotlights’[…]
The New Teacher Center (NTC) has released a new study, Review of State Policies on Teacher Induction, which summarizes the Center’s analysis of induction and mentoring policies across the country. The paper uses a battery of criteria to highlight leading state policies, and makes policy recommendations that the Center believes will help states design and Read more about State Policies on Teacher Induction[…]
The Annenberg Institute for School Reform and the Schott Foundation for Public Education recently released a new report, Straight Talk on Teaching Quality: Six Game-Changing Ideas and What to Do About Them. The report, which is more of a guide for improving teaching effectiveness, is based on the plethora of evidence that links teaching quality Read more about Straight Talk on Teaching Quality: Six Game-Changing Ideas[…]
Education First and the Editorial Projects in Education Research Center have released a joint study on the progress of implementation planning for the Common Core State Standards (CCSS). Forty-seven states have adopted the standards so far. Not only did the study look at curriculum realignment to fit the new standards, but also at how teacher Read more about A National Perspective on CCSS Implementation Planning[…]
Last month, Wendy Kopp of Teach for America and Dennis Van Roekel of the National Education Association discussed their thoughts on ways to improve the teaching force in the US in an article that appeared in USa Today. “As [education] leaders…we know from experience that great teachers are made, not born…Unfortunately, not all teachers are Read more about Three Ways to Improve America’s Teachers[…]
Larry Ferlazzo, an Education Week blogger and award-winning classroom teacher, recently addressed concerns from the teaching community on how to create a more supportive work environment. In the wake of high-stakes testing and high-pressure evaluations, morale in the teachers’ lounge appears to have taken a nose dive. One reader asked Ferlazzo how to address “unhealthy Read more about How Teachers Can Support Each Other[…]
A recent study released by the Pearson Centre for Policy and Learning examines how teachers are beginning to embrace new technologies, such as Twitter, to “take control of their own professional development, finding new ways to learn from each other; to reflect on their own practice, and to develop learning and support networks of like-minded Read more about Tweeting for Teachers: Professional Development via Social Media[…]
In a recent blog post for Education Week, educator Nancy Flanagan reflected on a recent encounter she had with a young teacher after a panel discussion. The teacher described her loneliness at her school, which is focused on raising test scores and has an atmosphere of fear and bitterness among the teaching staff subsumed by Read more about Six Ideas about Professional Growth for Teachers[…]
Education Week is offering another free “Spotlight” collection for download, this one focused on professional learning communities (PLCs). Spotlights are a collection of past articles from the publication focused on a particular topic. The 10 articles in this Spotlight offer insights on: –Building effective teacher teams –Starting a new PLC –Preventing Group Burnout –Tips on Read more about Education Week: “Spotlight on Professional Learning Communities”[…]
ASCD Express is seeking short essays on the theme “Supporting Preservice Teachers.” From ASCD:“The learning trajectory from college education student to classroom teacher—and “master of her own universe”—is pretty compressed. Inevitably, much about education must be learned on the job. But can universities better prepare future teachers? If so, how? Are education schools so worried Read more about Call for Papers: Supporting Preservice Teachers[…]
John Merrow recently blogged about a comment made by the Center for Teaching Quality’s Barnett Berry: “Teaching is a team sport,” he told Merrow. Merrow was left wondering—is this true? Baseball is a team sport, with everyone needing to work together for success, while at the same time allowing for individual statistics and honors. But Read more about Is Teaching a Team Sport?[…]