The International Association for K-12 Online Learning (iNACOL) has released a new book showcasing the latest research and trends in online teacher mentoring. The book, “Lessons Learned in Teacher Mentoring: Supporting Educators in K-12 Online Learning Environments” was made available at iNACOL’s annual conference, the Virtual School Symposium (VSS) October Read more
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 Read more
With the Race to the Top-District competition focusing on personalized learning for students, many educators are grappling with the concept of personalization and the many questions surrounding implementation. This month’s issue brief offers resources and food for thought around personalized learning. To access September’s Issue Brief, please click here (http://us5.campaign-archive2.com/?u=a4ae2b1b129b9f8a29d50b80f&id=a42f51f627&e=[UNIQID]). Read more
Learning Forward and the Stanford Center for Opportunity Policy in Education (SCOPE) have released Building a Learning Community, a study that provides a detailed look at the formation and maintenance of effective professional learning communities. From the abstract: Education research has found that collegial work is connected to teachers’ professional Read more
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. Featured Spotlights include: The Education Week Spotlight on Personalized Learning – a collection of articles hand-picked by Ed Week editors for Read more
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 Read more
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 Read more
The Partnership for Assessment of Readiness for College and Careers (PARCC), a 24-state consortium working together to create next generation assessments in English language arts/literacy and mathematics, has selected the National Math and Science Initiative (NMSI) to lead the facilitation and management of the Educator Leader Cadres (ELCs). Through this Read more
Improving teacher effectiveness relies on effective professional learning experiences for in-service, induction and veteran educators. With so much in flux — standards, curriculum, assessment, and evaluation — professional learning is more important than ever. So, what are the best practices in professional learning? What resources should guide the development of Read more
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 Read more
The What Works Clearinghouse has released a new guide focused on improving math skills in students in the middle grades. The What Works Clearinghouse (WWC), part of the Institute of Education Sciences (IES), functions as a central repository for education research on “what works” in education. Periodically, IES releases a Read more
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 Read more
The American Youth Policy Forum (AYPF), a nonprofit organization dedicated to providing professional learning opportunities for teachers, policymakers, and other education leaders, has revamped its website to be more user-friendly. The site is more interactive and has more functionality for users, who can now: Perform a dynamic search of all Read more
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 Read more
Last week, the Center on Reinventing Public Education (CRPE) and Mathematica released a follow-up study to their January report on successful charter management organizations (CMOs). The new report, Learning from Charter School Management Organizations: Strategies for Student Behavior and Teacher Coaching, delves deeper, explaining how five successful CMOs put two Read more
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 Read more