Among international competitors, the U.S. is an economic leader but trails in many aspects of teacher preparation, investment, and continuous improvement. To change this situation requires a multi-part and comprehensive strategy. The good news is that examples of encouraging reforms exist in many places, and strong evidence shows that these…

In the wake of the Common Core State Standards and teacher evaluation reform, school leaders increasingly look to district leaders for support, coaching, and leadership. District leaders--superintendents, assistant or area superintendents, specialists, principal supervisors, and school business administrators--can hold varying and multiple roles…

Recent New Leaders' research found principals are critical to teacher success in three ways: (1) developing teachers--working with teachers to improve skill and classroom practice; (2) managing talent--hiring, placing teachers, and monitoring performance; and (3) creating a great place to work--shaping schools into places where teachers want to…

During the 2010, 2011, and 2012 legislative sessions, a combination of federal policy incentives and newly elected governors and legislative majorities in many states following the 2010 elections sparked a wave of legislation addressing teacher effectiveness. More than 20 states passed legislation designed to address educator effectiveness by…

The Department of Education (Education) created Race to The Top (RTT) under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 to provide incentives for states to reform K-12 education in areas such as improving the lowest performing schools and developing effective teachers and leaders. In 2010, Education awarded 12 states nearly $4 billion in…

Several Race to the Top grantees are considering the development of video libraries as one element of their larger teacher and leader effectiveness reforms. Video libraries promise to offer "real world" examples of teaching practice that can be used for a wide range of purposes: providing teachers with concrete evidence of excellent…

This latest brief updates education leaders on the key policies the 13 (Arkansas, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, Mississippi, North Carolina, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Tennessee and Virginia) Southern Regional Education Board (SREB) states plan to implement under federal waivers to No Child Left Behind. It details,…

Studies ways that teachers and principals in South Carolina can influence (fudge) personnel evaluation programs. Discusses the shared nature of power in school organization that permits such practices. (FMW)

Evaluation of personnel is an essential means of ensuring quality in education. However, evaluations of teachers and administrators have often been divisive and counterproductive. This book is the product of a collaborative effort by 14 professional associations as a guide for assessing or developing systems for evaluating education personnel at…

Legal provisions and regulations relating to the hiring and evaluation of certified staff are reviewed by the Academic Senate for California Community Colleges (ASCCC) to assist local academic senates in developing or updating policies in these areas. After an introduction to the objectives of this report, sections of Article 2 of the California…

Designed to help school administrators and board members promote instructional excellence, this publication reports survey results involving over 35 school districts in Northern California, Utah, and Nevada engaged in instructional improvement efforts. Specifically, the report describes alternative strategies used to organize and manage three…

This is the first of three technical reports that focus on the hiring and evaluation of educational personnel in Illinois. It summarizes the findings of a survey conducted in the spring of 1982 to obtain information about the recruitment, selection, retention, an evaluation of prospective teachers in Illinois public schools. A questionnaire was…

School administrators need to study and analyze the pros and cons of issues before making decisions. Ultimately, decisions need to be made by administrators as to which philosophies of education to implement in resolving conflicting points of view. More research studies would lead to an increased number of syntheses of the pros and cons of certain…

The general purpose of the Arizona career ladder pilot project is to establish a social intervention program which will result in improvement of the professional development and effectiveness of teachers and enhance student learning. This document is a comprehensive report to the Arizona state legislature on the development and progress to date of…

The process of teacher appraisal is illustrated in this examination of the experiences of two British schools for children with disabilities. Issues discussed include: use of a triadic model involving teacher, support teacher, and appraiser; job descriptions; secretarial requirements; time demands; multidisciplinary approach; and appraisal of…