The Center for the Future of Teaching & Learning at WestEd collaborated with the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation to launch the Teacher Practice Network (TPN) initiative, which supports a vast national network of teacher leaders who mentor and coach their peers. By providing high-quality standards-aligned resources and ongoing professional Read more
McREL’s CEO Bryan Goodwin has teamed up with ASCD authors Pete Hall and Alisa Simeral in this white paper to tackle a question of urgent interest to teachers at all career stages: Can professional learning be better? It can, they argue, if the profession recognizes that PD must begin with Read more
Recently, Bryan Goodwin of McREL International and William J. Slotnik of the Community Training and Assistance Center partnered up to write a piece for Phi Delta Kappan exploring the myth that teachers peak as professionals early in their careers and then reach a performance plateau. Excerpts from their piece appear Read more
A new report from Educators for Excellence New York outlines the importance of teacher preparation and offers recommendations for increasing teacher diversity. Ready for Day One and Beyond is a new paper written by teachers on the Educators for Excellence New York Policy Team. The paper starts with two Read more
Education Evolving has launched a new blog series focused on the growing problem of teacher turnover, and telling the stories of schools, strategies, programs, and leaders that buck the trend. Teachers have long been identified as the number one in-school factor that influences student outcomes. Conversely, teacher turnover is correlated Read more
In the February 2019 issue of Language Magazine, Pam Allyn, Senior Vice President, Innovation & Development, Scholastic Education, and Dr. Carol Chanter, Senior Vice President, Professional Learning Services, Scholastic Education, outlined four ways to cultivate learning experiences for educators that are both effective and enjoyable. 1. Blend it A mix Read more
Stephanie Hirsh, who will be retiring from Learning Forward this June, has laid out four critical elements for educators to ensure professional learning improves results for all students. 4 Cornerstones of Professional Learning, centered on a foundation of the Standards for Professional Learning, shares research, evidence from practice, and reflections Read more
Rates of childhood trauma in the United States are alarmingly high, with exposure to potentially traumatic forms of violence, such as abuse, assault, or family or community violence particularly common. Traumatic experiences and chronic stress can overwhelm a child’s system and negatively impact development and learning. As educators, however, we Read more
iNACOL has released a new report, Moving Toward Mastery: Growing, Developing and Sustaining Educators for Competency-Based Education. The publication re-envisions professional practice, learning and development for educators in competency-based education. As school districts transition to new, more powerful student-centered learning models, it is critical that educators leading the transformative practice Read more
School systems—and the challenges they face—are often complex and diverse; effectively addressing these challenges may require a leadership approach that moves beyond traditional teacher and administrator roles. Teacher leadership is one strategy many states and districts are pursuing to facilitate meaningful change and support better outcomes for their students. To Read more
Learning Forward has released a special open-access issue of The Learning Professional. It builds on a vital topic for educators: the use of high-quality instructional materials. All students deserve access to high-quality content, and all teachers deserve support to implement it well. The message from research is straightforward: instructional materials Read more
On the path to strengthen teacher pipelines, support excellent teaching and improve retention, many states have developed opportunities for teacher leadership and advancement. While most states offer advanced licenses to encourage ongoing learning and growth within the teaching profession, many are now also including supports and incentives to encourage more Read more
Schools are the engines of economic and social mobility, where the virtues required for citizenship are wrestled with and practiced, and where the foundations of a robust and dynamic citizenship, democracy, and economy are nurtured. Teachers are the heart, soul, and muscle of our schools. Research has pointed time and Read more
Learning is a conversation with the world, from a newborn’s brain lighting up as his mother sings to him, to a teenager choking on a test for fear of fulfilling a stereotype, to elderly people heading off cognitive decline by learning a new language. In an update to its landmark Read more
Every student deserves access to powerful learning experiences – experiences that help them develop agency, grow their skills and expand their curiosities. Many schools are shifting their practices to be more student-centered in hopes of ultimately developing these qualities in students. We know in transformative environments that the learning and Read more
The International Society for Technology in Education (ISTE) has announced its new ISTE Standards for Educators: Computational Thinking Competencies (CT Competencies). CT Competencies focus on the knowledge, skills and mindset needed to bring computational thinking to all K-12 content areas and are designed for all educators, including those who are Read more