Curriculum Based Professional Learning: The State of the Field

In recent years, promising open-source, high-quality instructional materials (HQIM) have presented exciting opportunities to enhance students’ engagement and agency in their learning, expand access to grade-level content, and narrow the boundaries between home and school —all without increasing the cost that schools and districts incur for curricula. However, research suggests that curricula, on their own, Read more about Curriculum Based Professional Learning: The State of the Field[…]

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How Learning Forward’s Professional Learning Standards Are Associated With Teacher Instruction and Student Achievement: A Meta-Analysis

In 2022, Learning Forward released a revised set of Standards for Professional Learning for teachers. Since the setting of Learning Forward’s 2011 Standards, a growing body of research and implementation in the field surfaced, revealing additional areas of interest salient to teacher professional learning. These areas emerged as Learning Forward engaged in ongoing discussion with Read more about How Learning Forward’s Professional Learning Standards Are Associated With Teacher Instruction and Student Achievement: A Meta-Analysis[…]

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Self-Assessing Social and Emotional Instruction and Competencies: A Tool for Teachers

The educational community is increasingly focused on the development of students’ social and emotional learning (SEL) competencies and the link between SEL and improved educational attainment and achievement. SEL is the process through which students develop the skills necessary to recognize and manage emotions, build relationships, solve interpersonal problems, and make effective and ethical decisions. Read more about Self-Assessing Social and Emotional Instruction and Competencies: A Tool for Teachers[…]

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Transforming for Tomorrow: A State Policymaker’s Guide for Supporting Student-Centered Education Systems

KnowledgeWorks has released a state policymaker’s guide for supporting student-centered education systems: A personalized, competency-based approach to learning reimagines our K-12 education systems with the goal of ensuring that each child is empowered with the knowledge and skills they need for the future. This approach to education creates engaging learning experiences customized to each student’s Read more about Transforming for Tomorrow: A State Policymaker’s Guide for Supporting Student-Centered Education Systems[…]

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Educators Field Guide to Preparing for Web3: 3 Steps You Can Take Today, to be Ready for Tomorrow

Writing for Getting Smart, Mike Peck recently reviewed trends in web3 and the principles that guide them that can help inform practices to prepare young people for the next generation of the web. Excerpts of the piece appear below: Broadly speaking,there are a few key principles that are guiding the growth of web3. To try Read more about Educators Field Guide to Preparing for Web3: 3 Steps You Can Take Today, to be Ready for Tomorrow[…]

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Coaching Improvement Resources

When told with the perspective of hindsight, many improvement stories can seem relatively clear and straightforward– a team isolates a problem, does some tests, learns some things, and a few iterations later, they’ve made progress. In practice, however, applying improvement science principles, tools, and methods to solve a problem in an educational context can be Read more about Coaching Improvement Resources[…]

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Inside the Incubator Using Apprenticeships to Redesign Teacher Preparation

Writing for The 74, Asher Leher-Small recently reviewed the ways in which apprenticeships are transforming teacher preparation across the country. Excerpts from the piece appear below: Wyoming is rolling out a program designed to eliminate key barriers to becoming an educator — and doing so with the help of a network of more than a Read more about Inside the Incubator Using Apprenticeships to Redesign Teacher Preparation[…]

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Teacher Professional Development Is in a Rut, but Better Research Can Help

For years, researchers have found teacher professional development programs to be largely ineffective. But a  new and growing body of research suggests that professional learning, done well, can both increase teacher morale and raise student outcomes. This means it is: Grounded in the content and curriculum of the teachers receiving it; Dependent on the expertise Read more about Teacher Professional Development Is in a Rut, but Better Research Can Help[…]

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Using Evidence to Support Innovation in Teacher Professional Development

A new research-and-development partnership, led by AIR, focuses on an innovative program for K-12 teacher professional development. With support from a federal Education Innovation and Research grant, AIR is helping two organizations at the forefront of K-12 teacher professional development—The Danielson Group and Learning Forward—to develop, refine, and test the Professional Learning With Impact program. Read more about Using Evidence to Support Innovation in Teacher Professional Development[…]

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How Has the Pandemic Affected Students’ Social-Emotional Well-Being? A Review of the Evidence to Date

Recently, the Center on Reinventing Public Education (CRPE) released a report that aims to provide a definitive account of the best available evidence on how the COVID-19 pandemic has affected the social-emotional well-being of America’s students.  CRPE compiled hundreds of studies and convened panels of experts to interpret what the data show. Initial reports assess Read more about How Has the Pandemic Affected Students’ Social-Emotional Well-Being? A Review of the Evidence to Date[…]

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Zombie Ideas in Education

Recently in the ASCD blog, Bryan Goodwin published an interesting article in which he identified six “zombie” ideas in education, those ideas that “keep returning to life, despite researchers’ best efforts to put them six feet under.” Below are excerpts from this piece: (Un)dead idea #1: Students have different learning styles Serious research has found Read more about Zombie Ideas in Education[…]

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High-quality Curriculum Doesn’t Teach Itself

Recently in Fordham’s Flypaper, Robert Pondiscio reviewed the new “Professional Learning Partner Guide” published by Rivet Education. Excerpts of the piece appear below: A new initiative is taking up the challenge of reviewing and rating professional learning in a more rigorous way, centered on the adoption and use of “high-quality instructional materials” (HQIM), and with Read more about High-quality Curriculum Doesn’t Teach Itself[…]

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Study Finds that Habit Formation Could Block Teacher Improvement

For teachers, the development of habits is a necessary concession to the unpredictable nature of their job. Morning assignments, class transitions, even behavior management need to be governed by routines that are as predictable for kids as they are effective for adults. But according to new research, these habits may be responsible for the slowing Read more about Study Finds that Habit Formation Could Block Teacher Improvement[…]

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K-12 Professional Development Trends to Watch in 2021

Writing for K-12 Dive, Katie Navarra recently reviewed new trends emerging for K-12 educator professional learning. Excerpts from the piece appear below: The coronavirus has required teachers, like their students, to shift how they receive training and support. Even when schools can return to “normal,” these forced changes may result in long-term benefits. Following are Read more about K-12 Professional Development Trends to Watch in 2021[…]

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Six Steps to an Effective Learning Process

Science tells us that learning is not a byproduct of natural intelligence, but a process dependent on skills like focusing and centering your attention, planning and sticking to a program, and tenacity.  The precise process or method used for learning has been shown to consistently predict success. Depending on which learning process students used, scientists Read more about Six Steps to an Effective Learning Process[…]

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Supports for SEL in American Schools and Classrooms: Findings from the American Teacher Panel

Schools across the nation are embracing social and emotional learning (SEL) to help students build skills like setting goals, working together, and making good decisions. But what do teachers think about the SEL-related efforts in their districts and schools? How do they see these efforts affecting their students and themselves? Do they feel they are Read more about Supports for SEL in American Schools and Classrooms: Findings from the American Teacher Panel[…]

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