Evaluating Teacher Preparation: The problems with inputs — and outputs

Posted on February 25, 2016February 18, 2016 by coreeducation

In a recent article in RealClear Education, Ashley LiBetti Mitchel and Chad Aldeman explore the difficulty with evaluating teacher preparation. Excerpts of “Our Failed Investments in Teacher Preparation” appear below: Each year, new teachers collectively spend about $4.85 billion dollars and 302 million hours on their preparation work. But there is no evidence that any Read more about Evaluating Teacher Preparation: The problems with inputs — and outputs[…]

Poverty Cannot Explain America’s Mediocre Test Scores

Posted on February 24, 2016February 18, 2016 by coreeducation

A recent article by Education Next examines the correlation between poverty and mediocre test scores in the United States. At a time when the national conversation is focused on lagging upward mobility and yawning income inequality, it is no surprise that many educators point to poverty as the explanation for American students’ mediocre test scores Read more about Poverty Cannot Explain America’s Mediocre Test Scores[…]

Learning About Learning: What Every New Teacher Needs to Know

Posted on February 23, 2016February 18, 2016 by coreeducation

A recently published report by the National Center for Teacher Quality (NCTQ) summarizes research-based strategies that new teachers need to help teach students how to learn effectively and then questions the extent to which teachers are learning these strategies in their preparation programs. Future teachers need to learn about learning so that what they teach Read more about Learning About Learning: What Every New Teacher Needs to Know[…]

February Issue Brief: Effective School Leadership

Posted on February 22, 2016February 16, 2016 by coreeducation

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 effective school leadership and recommendations for improving the training, support and evaluation of educational leaders. You can read the issue brief here: http://us5.campaign-archive2.com/?u=a4ae2b1b129b9f8a29d50b80f&id=ade984414e&e=60969abf82 To ensure you do Read more about February Issue Brief: Effective School Leadership[…]

Going Beyond Academics in Assessing School Effectiveness

Posted on February 19, 2016February 12, 2016 by coreeducation

A recent article in Education Week, written by Evie Blad, examines how select California school districts, collectively known as CORE districts, are measuring school effectiveness with criteria that extends beyond academic success. As discussions about school accountability begin to focus more intently on factors beyond standardized-test scores, educators and policymakers nationwide are closely watching these Read more about Going Beyond Academics in Assessing School Effectiveness[…]

When Top Students Drop: Why Even Good Schools Need to Grow

Posted on February 18, 2016March 3, 2020 by coreeducation

Over a the past several months Real Clear Education has been spotlighting schools and teachers participating in the Opportunity Culture initiative, a movement launched in 2011 by education policy and consulting firm Public Impact. Opportunity Culture models are aimed at improving the quality of education by extending the reach of excellent teachers and their teams, encouraging teacher Read more about When Top Students Drop: Why Even Good Schools Need to Grow[…]

Principal Support Framework

Posted on February 17, 2016February 12, 2016 by coreeducation

The University of Washington Center for Educational Leadership (CEL) has released an updated version of the Principal Support Framework. Representing the best thinking of educators from across the country, the framework describes key actions of central offices that effectively support principals as instructional leaders. School system leaders can use this framework and the related self-assessment Read more about Principal Support Framework[…]

No Guarantees: A report on Teacher Preparation Programs and Effectiveness

Posted on February 16, 2016February 12, 2016 by coreeducation

Policymakers are still looking for the right way to identify effective teacher preparation programs and predict who will be an effective teacher. Nothing tried so far can guarantee effective teachers. In No Guarantees, Bellwether recommends an alternative approach that relies on the best available evidence for predicting future teacher effectiveness: initial teaching effectiveness. Instead of Read more about No Guarantees: A report on Teacher Preparation Programs and Effectiveness[…]

More Teaching, Less Learning?

Posted on February 15, 2016February 12, 2016 by coreeducation

One of the main differences between the U.S. education system and the systems that outperform it in student achievement is the amount of time teachers spend in the classroom in front of students versus the time spent in professional development activities. This chart, “Teaching Hours,” shows time spent actually teaching within the classroom, and does Read more about More Teaching, Less Learning?[…]

A Tale of 2 States: Lessons to Be Learned

Posted on February 12, 2016February 5, 2016 by coreeducation

The new Every Student Succeeds Act returns to the states much of the authority for directing school improvement that the federal government had assumed in the past 15 years. Some states are ready to roll, but plenty are searching for potential role models. Fortunately, at least two such candidates are easy to find. Earlier this Read more about A Tale of 2 States: Lessons to Be Learned[…]

Choosing our Future: A Story of Opportunity in America

Posted on February 11, 2016March 3, 2020 by coreeducation

It’s not what you know, it’s who you know. We’ve all heard the phrase. It’s true, of course, and always has been, that who you know is important. But in today’s technology-driven, globalized world, what you know matters more than ever. The set of skills that is most rewarded in terms of employment and wages Read more about Choosing our Future: A Story of Opportunity in America[…]

How Measurement Fails Doctors and Teachers

Posted on February 10, 2016February 5, 2016 by coreeducation

In a recent opinion piece in the New York Times, Robert Wachter focuses on the effects of metrics and measurement on the health care and education professions. While arguing that we, of course, need to hold professionals accountable, he cautions against unanticipated consequences. Following is an excerpt from this piece: Measurement cannot go away, but Read more about How Measurement Fails Doctors and Teachers[…]

Professional Development Transformed

Posted on February 9, 2016February 9, 2016 by coreeducation

In a recent post in Education Week, Marc Tucker examines the teacher professional development systems in Hong Kong, Singapore, Shanghai, British Columbia, and Shanghai. Professional development looks very different in all these places than it typically does in the United States. It is the main driver of school improvement. Far from something that takes the Read more about Professional Development Transformed[…]

ESSA Accountability Design Competition Submissions

Posted on February 8, 2016February 5, 2016 by coreeducation

Under the newly enacted Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA), states now face the challenge of creating school accountability systems that can vastly improve upon the model required by No Child Left Behind. To help spur creative thinking about how they might do so, and also to inform the Department of Education as it develops its Read more about ESSA Accountability Design Competition Submissions[…]

When Students Create their own Curriculum: The Big Picture Learning Model

Posted on February 5, 2016March 3, 2020 by coreeducation

Dozens of schools around the U.S. are opting to ditch the traditional school structure altogether to motivate teens in new ways–and it seems to be working. They are using the Big Picture Learning model. Big Picture’s model is now used in more than 60 schools across the U.S. In Vermont, it’s also a precursor to a Read more about When Students Create their own Curriculum: The Big Picture Learning Model[…]

The Case for Human-Centered Systems Design

Posted on February 4, 2016January 29, 2016 by coreeducation

Policy implementation is perhaps the most difficult element of education reform. But what if policy development and implementation were flipped? What if policy design began with an implementation perspective? In a blog post in Education Week, Jal Mehta explores this concept: The idea of Human-Centered Systems Design is that if we want to design policies Read more about The Case for Human-Centered Systems Design[…]