Research advances in neuroscience and the developmental and learning sciences have provided us with important insights about how people learn and develop. The knowledge we now have points to important transformations in teaching practice, which in turn require transformations in educator development in order to support all educators in developing…

Research shows that professional learning can have a powerful effect on teacher skills and knowledge, and on how well students learn. To be effective, however, professional learning for teachers needs to be conducted in the ways that it is in many high achieving countries--continuously, collaboratively, and with a focus on teaching specific…

Aggressive federal recruitment and training programs for teachers during the 1970s created a brief respite, but those programs ended in the early 1980s. Severe shortages of math and science teachers were rampant again by the 1990s and continue today. Especially in predominantly minority schools, many math and science courses are now taught by…

Improving professional learning for educators is a crucial step in transforming schools and improving academic achievement. To meet federal requirements and public expectations for school and student performance, the nation needs to bolster teacher skills and knowledge to ensure that every teacher is able to teach increasingly diverse learners,…

In this monograph, the authors describe Connecticut's long-term efforts to implement a comprehensive set of teaching quality policies to support improved student learning. The authors begin by describing the 15-year evolution of policies designed to recruit, prepare, and support teachers, while also creating greater accountability for the…

Despite criticisms of teacher education, recent evidence indicates that teachers with the most preparation are the most confident and successful. Teacher education reforms creating more tightly integrated programs with extended clinical preparation interwoven with coursework on learning and teaching produce more effective, resilient teachers.…

Teacher knowledge and skills make a significant difference in student achievement. This paper discusses recommendations by the National Commission on Teaching on how to ensure that every child has access to high quality teaching; superior teaching in other industrialized countries; unqualified U.S. teachers; variations among states; states and…

This book argues that the current process for teacher licensing does not always guarantee competence in the classroom, and it offers advice on how to prepare and evaluate aspiring teachers for the challenges of their profession. It places Minnesota's experience in the context of current reform efforts and suggests that developing and requiring a…

This book describes results of the work by the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards. Section 1, "Introduction," introduces the work of the National Board and discusses educational change and teacher improvement in general. Section 2, "Standard Setting in Teaching," explains that in order to appreciate the effects…

While some proponents of testing rest their hopes for stronger learning on the expectation that tests alone will motivate students to work harder, most posit that better learning will result primarily from better teaching--due to curriculum changes, greater attention to student needs, stronger teacher motivation, or focused investments in…