In the overwhelming majority of American classrooms, pupils are divided roughly equally among teachers of the same grade in the same school. Parceling them out uniformly is viewed as fair to teachers-and doing otherwise might be seen as unfair. Parents might wonder, too. But what if more students were assigned to the most effective teachers, Read more about Right-sizing the Classroom: Making the Most of Great Teachers[…]
Applications and nominations are now open for the 2014 Fishman Prize. TNTP, a nonprofit organization working to ensure that all students get excellent teachers, recently opened the third annual application period for the Fishman Prize for Superlative Classroom Practice. The prestigious award is given to four public school teachers a year who demonstrate exceptionally effective Read more about TNTP Seeks Superlative Teachers for $25,000 Fishman Prize[…]
Teacher pay can often be the elephant in the room when it comes to discussion of the success of American education. Many believe that increasing teacher pay, or at least providing possibilities for teachers to earn more, would encourage more high-quality candidates to enter the profession and drive up the reputation of teachers. Others argue Read more about Opportunity Culture[…]
Education Evolving wants to give teachers a larger role in their schools through a model that they call “Teacher Professional Partnerships.” Consider the following three propositions: 1. If teachers are to be accountable for student learning, teachers should control what matters for student learning. It’s a serious mistake to be trying to push accountability down Read more about Education Evolving Launches “Teachers in Partnership” Initiative[…]
The professional lives of teachers have recently been flooded with “the new.” With new standards, new curricula, new evaluations, new assessments, and all the other changes that take place on an annual basis in schools and districts, very little remains constant from year to year. In this sea of changes, teachers must not be left Read more about July Issue Brief: Teacher Voice[…]
To strengthen state implementation of Common Core State Standards and meaningful teacher evaluations, the Aspen Institute and the Council of Chief State School Officers (CCSSO) released a set of recommendations for forging coherence across these efforts at CCSSO’s Implementing the Common Core Standards (ICCS) meeting of 22 states in New Orleans. “Teaching to the Core: Read more about 10 Steps for Integrating Teacher Effectiveness Systems and the Common Core[…]
A new report by Kaitlin Pennington of the Center for American Progress highlights the increase of teacher-voice groups. These groups allow teachers to continue teaching while also having a chance to impact education policy more directly. Furthermore, they provide current teachers with more active leadership positions. In addition, these groups allow for a greater multiplicity Read more about What role will teacher-voice groups play?[…]
Two years ago, active classroom teachers working temporarily at the U.S. Department of Education launched a national dialogue with their classroom colleagues to talk openly and honestly about the challenges and aspirations of America’s teachers. The Education Department engaged more than 5,700 educators nationwide to develop and refine a vision of teaching and leading that Read more about RESPECT: The Obama Administration’s new Blueprint for Teaching[…]
Two new reports from the New Teacher Center and the Aspen Institute both highlight the importance of rigorous training for new teachers. By looking at the work currently being done by certain model school districts, both reports highlight models through which novice teachers become master teachers. Interestingly, both reports also assert the importance of incorporating Read more about Teacher leadership crucial to teacher development[…]
School administrators serve as instructional leaders and set the tone for the culture of a school. The principal’s influence is pivotal. In this month’s issue brief, we explore school leadership and recommendations for improving the preparation, selection and work of educational leaders. What are the qualities that make a great school leader? What essential skills Read more about March Issue Brief: School Leadership[…]
The GRAMMY Foundation and The Recording Academy are partnering to present their first-ever Music Educator Award. The award is open to U.S.-based music teachers from kindergarten through college, in public and private schools. Anyone can nominate a teacher, and teachers may nominate themselves. Nominated teachers will be notified and invited to complete an application. April Read more about $10K Music Educator Award Nominations Open[…]
In the much-debated world of education policy, particularly over the last few years, teachers have taken much of the flak regarding the lack of student achievement and failing schools. Washington DC public schools (DCPS) stands as a lightning rod for these debates. As we wrote about recently (https://coreeducationllc.com/blog2/is-dcps-a-model-urban-school-district/), some see DCPS as a model for Read more about Trusting Teachers with School Success[…]
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[…]
The Hope Street Group will soon be selecting educators to participate as National Teacher Fellows. Selected fellows will be classroom teachers and school coaches from around the country who are leaders among their peers and who want to contribute their ideas and expertise in helping shape national policy. They will participate in meaningful online and Read more about Hope Street Group Announces National Teacher Fellowship[…]
The Obama Administration recently announced the President’s plan for the creation of a new, national Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM) Master Teacher Corps comprised of some of the nation’s finest educators in STEM subjects. The STEM Master Teacher Corps will begin with 50 exceptional STEM teachers established in 50 sites and will be expanded Read more about Obama Administration Creates National STEM Master Teacher Corps[…]
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[…]