Most every education official and pundit agrees that effective teachers are the largest determining factor of student success within control of the education system. Many have suggested various methods by which teacher training programs, principals, schools, school districts, and even states can act to ensure a greater number of quality teachers. What is the proper role of the federal government in this initiative?
While there are certainly constraints on federal resources and authority in education policy, the authors of a new report, “Giving Every Student Access to Excellent Teachers: A Vision for Focusing Federal Investments in Education” argue that the federal government has a pivotal role to play in identifying a compelling, high-impact focal point that aligns policy priorities at the federal, state, and local levels.
For the authors, this focal point should be expanding student access to excellent teachers.
To date, the federal government, which can undoubtedly have a large impact on education in the United States, has been largely uninvolved in the issue of ensuring high level teachers. That role is challenged by Public Impact and The Center for American Progress who have collaboratively written the report. This report calls on federal officials to make it their business to do more to ensure more high quality teachers for American students.
This report presents the following four principal levers that the federal government can employ to focus our nation on dramatically increasing student access to excellent teaching:
- Structure competitive grants to induce districts and states to shift to transformative school designs that reach more students with excellent teachers and the teams that these teachers lead.
- Reorient existing formula grants to encourage transition to new classroom models that extend the reach of great teachers, both directly and through leading teaching teams.
- Create a focal point for federal research and development efforts.
- Create and enforce a new civil right to excellent teachers.
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