In 2012, things were not looking good for Grant Beacon Middle School in Denver, Colorado. Enrollment numbers were declining, students were not reaching required academic levels, and the Denver Public Schools district designated the school as on watch. By implementing a plan that emphasized expanded learning opportunities--adding five hours to the…

Past educational reforms have failed because they didn't meet teachers where they were. They expected major changes in practices that may have been unrealistic for many teachers even under ideal professional learning conditions. Instead of promoting broad scale changes, improvement may be more likely if they are composed of small yet powerful…

Arthur Reynolds describes the significance, development, and effects of preschool to 3rd grade approaches. This school reform strategy integrates services and supports transitions, thereby increasing achievement, sustaining gains, and realistically reducing achievement gaps. Evidence from the Child-Parent Center (CPC) program is reviewed to…

Everybody complains about a lack of time in school, but few are prepared to do anything about it. Laying the foundation before making such a shift is essential to the success of the change. Once a broad-based team has been chosen to do the work, they can follow a process explained in four steps with the apt acronym of T.I.M.E.: Taking stock,…

The COVID-19 pandemic has exacerbated the long-standing problem of teacher attrition. Some teachers have reported that they have considered leaving the profession because of a lack of advancement opportunities. Jennifer Wu-Pope explains how research-practice partnerships can play a role in retaining these teachers while leveraging their expertise…

Well-designed leadership development is essential in school systems that desire high-quality teaching and learning for all students in all classrooms. Significant change throughout the system requires that leaders first change their own beliefs, understanding, and actions. "Real time" professional learning for leaders is very different from the…

Under the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA), federal education mandates will be decreasing, which means states will have more flexibility and authority than they've had in decades. State education agency (SEA) leaders are confronting great change and great opportunity as many agencies move away from a focus on compliance with federal regulations,…

Grading and reporting are foundational elements in nearly every educational system. Grading represents teachers' evaluations, formative or summative, of students' performance. Reporting is how the results of those evaluations are communicated to students, parents, or others. Because of their fundamental nature, educators must ensure that grading…

The authors, two high school teachers, endorse the Common Core State Standards saying they will improve teaching and learning. The Common Core, they say, not only help students acquire the skills for success in life after high school, but they offer consistency in a student's educational journey and let employers know what to expect.…

Districts are struggling to accelerate students' learning, support their health and wellness, and close the achievement gap. Labeled "worst" in 1987, by 2017 Chicago Public Schools was among the nation's most improved school systems. Chicago's story embeds many lessons about system change. Sharon Greenberg and Anthony S. Bryk illustrate…

Today's accountability paradigm has led many teachers to take on too much work in the push to raise test scores. Teachers don't need to do more; rather, they need to approach instruction differently. To improve results, teachers must require that students assume more responsibility for their own learning. Three key ways in which students and…

Leadership gurus often put creating a "shared vision" at the top of their pyramid of what successful leaders do. These visions are best when they are an anchor or a North Star -- unwavering goals that the district works toward. Author Jon Saphier proposes this North Star for districts: Make every school an engine for continuous…

Committed to being a charter school with a professional learning community that empowers teachers, New Mexico's South Valley Academy (SVA) staff transformed its state evaluation process into a practitioner action research process (Anderson, Herr, & Nihlen, 2007). While teachers self-diagnose growth needs and play active roles in improving…

While the demands of teaching continue to escalate, teacher development has changed relatively little over time, leaving many of today's teachers feeling underprepared, overwhelmed, or demoralized with few opportunities to make real change. Teacher leadership holds promise for both addressing challenges within schools and empowering teachers.…

The variety of teacher preparation programs in the United States provides an opportunity to develop better ways of preparing teachers. There are three key areas in which teacher preparation must improve, including the content teachers will teach, the curriculum of practice essential for beginning teaching, and the approaches and settings best…