The Wallace Foundation finds after ten years of research that the leadership principals provide to schools is the second most important factor directly impacting student performance, after only teacher performance. According to a new report prepared by the Wallace Foundation, “a national philanthropy that seeks to improve education and enrichment for disadvantaged children”, the reason that Read more about The Effect of Effective Principals[…]
Principals preparing for Common Core implementation have a new set of action briefs at their disposal. Achieve, in partnership with College Summit, the National Association of Secondary School Principals (NASSP), and the National Association of Elementary School Principals (NAESP), has released a series of action briefs on the role of school counselors, secondary school leaders, Read more about Preparing for Common Core with new Action Briefs[…]
Mario Marino of Venture Philanthropy Partners recently blogged on the importance of great people for the success of any education reform. Although his audience consists mostly of nonprofits and philanthropies, his reflections are appropriate for anyone working in the education sector. Marino writes: I’d be the last to discourage innovation, but our problem is not Read more about Great People over Great Models[…]
Education Week Spotlights contain essential news and commentary on the big issues. These Spotlights provide the information you need to understand the most talked-about topics. Each spotlight contains seven articles. Download the Latest Spotlights for Free! Deeper Learning: Applying brain studies to teaching students with disabilities Dual-language classes offering instruction in English and a second Read more about New Spotlights from Education Week[…]
Last week, Nancy Flanagan of the “Teacher in a Strange Land” blog for Education Week reflected on her recent experiences reviewing books on teacher leadership. She became disturbed as she realized the implicit assumption of many books focused on teacher leadership is that it is school leaders who nurture teacher leadership. But what about the Read more about 7 Suggestions for Teachers to Make Their Leaders More Effective[…]
In the latest edition of the Wallace Foundation’s Perspective, the focus is again on school leadership. In “The Making of the Principal: Five Lessons in Leadership Training,” the authors seek to discover what it will take to ensure that all public schools have leaders equal to the challenges facing the public school system. The report Read more about The Making of the Principal[…]
Rural administrators who want to better prepare and support a culturally diverse teaching force need to vary recruitment strategies, seek partnerships, and promote a culture of collaboration, according to a new study. Those are among a list of suggestions in “Teacher Identity in a Multicultural Rural School: Lessons Learned at Vista Charter,” published in the Read more about Tips for Supporting, Preparing Culturally Diverse Teaching Force[…]
A new report from the American Institutes for Research (AIR) argues that principal evaluation systems should not be based only on student achievement gains, but on the quality of principal leadership and performance. Additionally, principals and other school-based leaders are being left out of education reform discussions. The report, called “The Ripple Effect,” also noted Read more about New Framework for Principal Evaluation Challenges National Model[…]
The US Department of Education kicked off Teacher Appreciation Week by initiating a dialogue on improving teaching profession, as well as the public perception of America’s teachers. A vision document for reforming the teaching profession created by active classroom teachers working temporarily for the U.S. Department of Education was posted for public comment on the Read more about National Dialogue on Strengthening and Elevating the Teaching Profession[…]
What makes for an effective principal, and how can effectiveness be measured? Thirty states have recently passed legislation to improve principal evaluation systems and are now grappling with these questions. New legislation recognizes that leadership is the second most influential factor in student achievement, after classroom teaching, but there is a lack of agreement about Read more about Proven Strategies for Designing Principal Evaluations[…]
The State Collaborative on Reforming Education (SCORE), the nonprofit research and advocacy group that is the major partner in effecting change in Tennessee’s K-12 public education system, released its annual report on Tennessee’s education reforms earlier this month. SCORE also outlined what it believes are four priority areas the state will need to focus on Read more about SCORE Releases “State of Education in Tennessee” Report[…]
RAND Corp. released a study last month looking at the effect principal turnover rates have on school performance. About 20% of principals new to a school leave within two years, “leaving behind a school that generally continues on a downward academic slide after their departure.” The report was prepared for New Leaders, a nonprofit group Read more about School Principal Turnover Bodes Ill for Schools[…]
A new Wallace Perspective was released by the Wallace Foundation last month, titled “The School Principal as Leader: Guiding Schools to Better Teaching and Learning.” The Perspective highlights the most important role of the school principal: creating the conditions in which the other variables known to improve student outcomes can come together and “reach critical Read more about The School Principal as Leader[…]
Last month, Gretchen Rhines Cheney and Jacquelyn Davis of the Center for American Progress released a study that looked at school leadership from the ground up. Research shows that principals account for ¼ of a school’s total impact on student learning; moreover, there is a growing base of research that “clearly defines the disposition, skills, Read more about Gateways to the Principalship[…]
Old Dominion University and Johns Hopkins University recently released a study of the National Institute of School Leadership’s (NISL’s) Executive Development Program (EDP), a program established to provide professional development to school leaders to improve school performance. The primary goal of the program is to ensure that school leaders have the knowledge, skills, and tools Read more about NISL Executive Development Program Shows Promise[…]
We have all heard the polls—while most people think their local/neighborhood school is great, they have a poor opinion of other schools across their states and the nation. Recently, a group of past and present state Teachers of the Year took part in a three-day intensive discussion about the public perception of the teaching profession Read more about Teachers of the Year Discuss Public Perception of Teachers[…]