Earlier this month, a handful of wealthy business leaders in Jacksonville, Florida, took a bold and innovative step to elevate teacher and principal salaries in the region. Pooling $40 million in donations, they agreed to provide $20,000/year-- “lifestyle-changing” salary bumps --to educators who are making a difference in the area’s 36 most troubled schools. One donor, former Jacksonville... Read more »
Great Teachers and Leaders for All Learners
Jun 29 | Ellen Sherratt, Senior Researcher, AIR,
Jun 29 | Cortney Rowland, Center on Great Teachers and Leaders,
Education research and policy meetings almost always address the notion that “context matters” to some degree. But Battelle for Kids (BFK) put context center stage at its Rural Education National Forum held in Columbus, Ohio, in October. Jeanette Walls, author of the book, The Glass Castle, shared stories about growing up poor in rural West Virginia and poverty’s profound impact on her life.... Read more »
Jun 29 | Cheryl Pruce, AIR Research Analyst,
Here’s something you already may know: Mathematica Policy Research’s two, large-scale studies on the distribution of effective teachers across schools have made quite a splash in the research and policy worlds. So why yet another blog post on them? Because most of us need help translating meticulous research so we can use it in the field!
That’s why I asked some of the authors of Access to... Read more »
Jun 29 | Angela Minnici, Ph.D., GTL Center Director,
Both new and longstanding debates over reforming teacher preparation took center stage on February 27, 2014, at a joint hearing, “Exploring Efforts to Strengthen the Teaching Profession,” held by the Subcommittee on Early Childhood, Elementary, and Secondary Education and the Subcommittee on Higher Education and Workforce Training. At the heart of the conversation is the quality of teacher... Read more »
Jun 29 | Lisa Foehr, Director of Educator Quality and Certification, Rhode Island Department of Education,
It seems like nearly every school in every state is implementing a new system that defines educator excellence and evaluates educator performance. Policymakers and local leaders declare their interest not only in determining how an educator performs but also in improving educator performance so students benefit. So, how does a state or a school system make good on guaranteeing that educator... Read more »
Jun 29 | Jennifer Sullivan, Consultant Teacher, North Syracuse (New York) Central School District,
Think back to your first work experience. Do you remember what it was like to be the “newbie”? What were you feeling the first time you walked into your new place of employment? With the numerous expectations from employers and co-workers, the first years of a new job are filled with highs and lows. Who did you turn to for support, guidance, and encouragement in those... Read more »
Jun 29 | Renee A. Moore, Mississippi Delta Community College,
During my tenure as our state Teacher of the Year, one of my duties was to help recruit teachers. Because I live in the impoverished Delta region of Mississippi, I took a special interest in encouraging new teachers to come to our area. Unfortunately, the combination of poor working and living conditions in many Delta towns makes attracting and keeping teachers very difficult. This frustrating... Read more »
Jun 29 | Cortney Rowland, Center on Great Teachers and Leaders,
Education research and policy meetings almost always address the notion that “context matters” to some degree. But Battelle for Kids (BFK) put context center stage at its Rural Education National Forum held in Columbus, Ohio, in October. Jeanette Walls, author of the book, The Glass Castle, shared stories about growing up poor in rural West Virginia and poverty’s profound impact on her life.... Read more »
Jun 29 | Christopher Poulos, Teacher-Leader in Residence, Connecticut State Department of Education, and Teacher at Joel Barlow High School, Redding, Connecticut,
This year I have had the unique opportunity of splitting my time between teaching in my Redding, Connecticut, school district and serving as a teacher-leader in residence at the Connecticut State Department of Education. In this hybrid role, I have been able to work alongside policy leaders making decisions that impact public education while reflecting on my classroom practice and representing... Read more »
Jun 29 | Renee A. Moore, Mississippi Delta Community College,
During my tenure as our state Teacher of the Year, one of my duties was to help recruit teachers. Because I live in the impoverished Delta region of Mississippi, I took a special interest in encouraging new teachers to come to our area. Unfortunately, the combination of poor working and living conditions in many Delta towns makes attracting and keeping teachers very difficult. This frustrating... Read more »
Jun 29 | Renee A. Moore, Mississippi Delta Community College,
During my tenure as our state Teacher of the Year, one of my duties was to help recruit teachers. Because I live in the impoverished Delta region of Mississippi, I took a special interest in encouraging new teachers to come to our area. Unfortunately, the combination of poor working and living conditions in many Delta towns makes attracting and keeping teachers very difficult. This frustrating... Read more »
Jun 29 | Jane Coggshall, GTL Center Content Lead
Welcome to the inaugural post to the Great Teachers and Leaders for All Learners blog from the Center on Great Teachers and Leaders! In the coming weeks and months, we will be using this space to explore the actions that states and others can take to ensure equitable access to effective educators.
We are launching Great Teachers and Leaders for All Learners for the following reasons:... Read more »
Jun 29 | Jane Coggshall
One way to get high-performing teachers to work in hard-to-staff schools, many believe and some are doing, is to offer them recruitment and retention incentives. But is this approach affordable? And what happens to the students in the schools that the most effective teachers leave? And are teachers really interchangeable?
First, consider the cost. Teachers in the main don’t like to change... Read more »
Jun 29 | Alex Berg-Jacobson, AIR Technical Assistance Associate, and Cheryl Pruce, AIR Researcher,
Earlier this month in San Diego, state education agency (SEA) leads from 42 states and 26 equitable access experts gathered together to address what Janice Poda, senior advisor to the executive director of the Council of Chief State School Officers (CCSSO), called a “moral imperative.” Hosted by CCSSO and the Center on Great Teachers and Leaders (GTL Center), this convening catalyzed the... Read more »
Jun 29 | Angela Minnici, Ph.D., GTL Center Director,
Both new and longstanding debates over reforming teacher preparation took center stage on February 27, 2014, at a joint hearing, “Exploring Efforts to Strengthen the Teaching Profession,” held by the Subcommittee on Early Childhood, Elementary, and Secondary Education and the Subcommittee on Higher Education and Workforce Training. At the heart of the conversation is the quality of teacher... Read more »
Jun 29 | Jennifer Sullivan, Consultant Teacher, North Syracuse (New York) Central School District,
Think back to your first work experience. Do you remember what it was like to be the “newbie”? What were you feeling the first time you walked into your new place of employment? With the numerous expectations from employers and co-workers, the first years of a new job are filled with highs and lows. Who did you turn to for support, guidance, and encouragement in those... Read more »
Jun 29 | David Osher, Ph.D., Vice President, American Institutes for Research
I have studied schools where teachers broke down in class, smoldered as they burned out in the teachers’ lounge, or quit. I also have seen these teachers’ behaviors turn around—along with student behaviors and academics. Examples:
A school in the South Bronx, New York, where student behavior and achievement improved, and teachers—instead of leaving—recruited their friends.
A school... Read more »
Jun 29 | Joel Knudson, Researcher, AIR,
A new case study of California’s Garden Grove Unified School District tells the complicated but important story of a comprehensive approach to improving teaching. The case study, published by the California Collaborative on District Reform, found that the district’s relentless focus on supporting teachers from recruitment through retirement to ensure good outcomes for its diverse students pays... Read more »
Jun 29 | Matthew Clifford, Ph.D., GTL Center Staff,
While the U.S. Department of Education works to develop a 50-state strategy addressing equitable access to effective teachers, school leaders are making staffing decisions for the 2014–15 school year. Principals and superintendents can’t wait for national policy to address the inequities in teacher effectiveness across states, districts, and schools. They need to take the lead on equitable access... Read more »
Jun 29 | Jiye Grace Han, consultant at Public Impact and GTL Center team member, and Sharon Kebschull Barrett, senior editor, Public Impact
In late 2011, Denise Watts, a superintendent at Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools, was looking for help meeting her goals as executive director for the new Project L.I.F.T. (Leadership and Investment for Transformation), a $55 million public-private partnership to improve academics at historically low-performing, high-need schools in western Charlotte, N.C.
High-need schools typically have trouble... Read more »
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