On July 24, 2023, the Office of Special Education Programs (OSEP) of the U.S. Department of Education (US ED) released a Dear Colleague letter (DCL) and lengthy guidance related to the responsibilities states have to oversee the education of students with disabilities in their schools and to ensure that those students are afforded all of their…

A collaborative program between a state university and local school districts addresses teacher shortages by providing three levels of support for student teachers.

This case was written for practitioners and researchers to help educators engage in the important work of providing culturally responsive instructional supervision within the U.S. education system. Through the intersection of culturally responsive teaching and culturally responsive school leadership, formative feedback about instruction can focus…

Partnerships among professionals within urban school districts and teacher preparation programs are necessary to address teacher shortages through innovative and sustained professional learning from initial clinical experiences through induction (Yendol-Hoppey & Hoppey, 2018). A collaborative model of teacher preparation was envisioned and…

Some schools use results from the MAP® Growth™ interim assessments from the Northwest Evaluation Association (NWEA®) in a number of high-stakes ways. These include as a component of their teacher evaluation systems; to determine whether a student advances to the next grade; or as an indicator for student readiness for certain programs or…

This article describes a statewide online alternative teacher preparation program in early childhood special education. The history and evolution of the program is explained along with the programmatic changes that resulted from working with noncertified teachers with a wide variety of backgrounds in both rural and urban districts. Challenges and…

In response to the study and recommendations presented in the article "I Didn't See it as a Cultural Thing," written by Linda Griffin, Dyan Watson and Tonda Liggett, we explore three interrelated topics. First, we seek to problematize some of the assumptions in the study. We review some of the authors' approaches and assertions that seem…

In November 2011, the National Association of School Psychologists (NASP) created the Personnel Assessment Task Force comprising national and state leaders with knowledge of effective personnel evaluation systems. Task force participants included school psychologist supervisors, university professors, NASP leadership, and staff. The primary…

Every school district is feeling the pressure to ensure higher academic achievement for all students. A focus on professional learning for an administrative team not only improves student learning and achievement, but also assists in developing a systemic approach for continued success. This is how the Fox Chapel Area School District in…

School psychologists are expected by parents, students, and their profession to maintain their competency to ensure the appropriate delivery of psychological services. Supervision by a school psychologist is a prime method for maintaining skill levels and updating professional services. Unfortunately, many school districts do not understand the…

Considering the vital role the superintendent plays in the overall functioning and well-being of any school district, the filling of the top leadership post with a permanent appointment never should be done in haste. The process of advertising, reviewing applications, conducting background checks, interviewing candidates, negotiating contracts,…

Principals serve as both instructional and administrative leaders in their schools. Their roles and responsibilities vary from managing school compliance issues to facilitating and assisting teachers with their instructional duties. In order to support principals in public schools, district leaders and others are working to build the kinds of…

Peer review of teachers is controversial for several reasons. Some say peer reviewers encroach on the rightful domain of the principal as instructional leader. Others argue that, because peer evaluators are fellow teachers, they may be biased or unwilling to make hard decisions. Many teachers find the prospect of peer evaluation unsettling because…

In this paper, we address the shortage of behavior analysts serving rural communities and outline a model of service delivery for rural students with autism spectrum disorders. The model involves the use of pre-service behavior analysts to provide behavioral intervention to students with ASD in exchange for district-supported training and…

This article represents an example of how supervision of instruction can be an integral part of a coherent plan for district-wide reform. The author argues that instructional changes can be most effective if introduced in a system that has first put in place the personnel and structures needed to support them. The article highlights the role of…