While new teachers bring energy and passion into their classrooms and schools, they can find themselves incredibly challenged as they learn how to plan and implement lessons, collect, and use data to inform their instructional practices, build relationships with students and families, manage classroom behavior, and meet the varying academic,…

In a country with an increasing population of nonwhite students, there are far too few teachers of color. The numbers are particularly distressing when it comes to finding male teachers of color, who are essential role models for black boys. As a result, black and Latino children sitting in classrooms with white teachers, day after day and year…

Nobody goes into teaching to get rich, but that's no excuse not to pay teachers as professionals. Compensation is one of the most important factors in determining who enters the teaching profession and how long they stay--yet 90 percent of all U.S. school districts pay teachers without any regard for their actual performance with students,…

Each year, governors take the stage to highlight accomplishments and outline policy priorities for their states. In an effort to provide up-to-date information on education policy trends, Education Commission of the States tracks all education policy proposals and accomplishments featured by governors in these State of the State addresses. At the…

More than 60 years after the ruling in "Brown v. Board of Education" was handed down, its promise remains unfulfilled. In many respects, America's public schools continue to be "separate and unequal." Indeed, the growing re-segregation of American schools by race and ethnicity, compounded by economic class segregation, has…

This article introduces a conversation with Brett Peiser, named chief executive officer of "Uncommon Schools" in July of 2012, along with the principal of North Star Academy Vailsburg Middle School, a charter school in Newark, New Jersey's West Ward. There is no doubt that "Uncommon Schools" has given thousands of low-income…

Teacher evaluation and dismissal reforms have been in the education policy spotlight in recent years. From The New Teacher Project's "The Widget Effect" to states' Race to the Top applications, educational leaders and advocates have been thinking about how to make evaluation and dismissal more performance-based. These downstream…

One of the competitive priorities of the U.S. Department of Education's Race to the Top applications addressed science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM). States that applied were required to submit plans that addressed rigorous courses of study, cooperative partnerships to prepare and assist teachers in STEM content, and prepare…

The Center for Teaching Quality (CTQ), in partnership with the Aspen Institute and the National Council for the Accreditation of Teacher Education (NCATE), has been investigating the urban teacher residency (UTR) -- an innovative response to the longstanding challenges of how to recruit, prepare, and retain bright and capable teachers for…

The knowledge, skills, and practices of early childhood care providers and teachers are critical factors in their delivery of high-quality developmental and educational experiences to young children. However, studies have found that the majority of professionals that make up the current early childhood workforce are not adequately prepared. Recent…

Although states have maintained a focus on recruiting and retaining teachers, many schools and districts still face daunting challenges in ensuring a qualified and competent teaching corps. It is particularly difficult for schools considered hard to staff-those with high concentrations of low-performing, low-income students; high teacher turnover;…

This paper discusses a variety of incentives that can make a difference in attracting and retaining high quality teachers. These incentives include salaries, retirement benefits, working conditions, quality of life, tenure and seniority rights, and sick leave. The states in the Northeast vary considerably in their ability to attract quality…

This report presents case studies of part-time teachers and how they work in Miami, Florida; Detroit, Michigan; Framingham, Massachusetts; Cedar Falls, Iowa; and Niskayuna, New York. The opening section reviews the highlights of a 1965 survey of part-time teachers in 700 school systems (ED 003 396) and summarizes important findings uncovered in…