Educators are tasked with providing personalized, engaging, and equitable learning experiences. This Spotlight delves into strategies to empower teachers and equip them with the tools to foster student success, including competency-based learning, equitable tech access, and productive failure. Discover how professional development can enhance…

This applied action research with program evaluation aimed to determine if teacher-led professional development and empowerment initiatives such as the Teacher Leader Collaborative (TLC) contributed to a group of teachers' efficacy and professional growth to reduce teacher turnover of English Language Arts (ELA) teachers at Bernard Williams Middle…

Despite the popularity of teacher leadership since the 1980s, little research examines its effects on student achievement. In this paper, I assess the influence of the New York City Department of Education's Teacher Career Pathways program, a teacher leadership initiative, on student achievement in grades three through eight. Using…

This study explores the characteristics of the teacher evaluation model in Finland. Highlighting the unique qualities of the Finnish case, we also compare these teacher evaluation practices with the increasingly applied value-added model (VAM) for teacher evaluation across the globe. Our analysis revealed that the Finnish Model prioritises teacher…

Instructional coaching has become increasingly important as school districts depend on the coaches' support through continuous, on-site professional development, both general and subject-specific, to increase teacher capacity, thus resulting in student achievement. Research suggests teachers are more successful preparing their students when…

Grounded in the frameworks of action research, Critical Friends Groups (CFGs), and reflective practice, this article presents an overarching action research study connected by individual action research studies to explore what a cohort of preservice elementary Master of Arts in Teaching (MAT) candidates learned from the process of teacher action…

Schools that achieve strong results for black students address racial dynamics directly, empower students to bring their whole selves to school, and teach in ways that leverage students' experiences and cultures. These schools do four things to ensure success with their black students: They direct attention, strategies, and resources to black…

This study evaluated the Science and Literacy Instructional Model aimed at helping primarily Hispanic bilingual/English Learners (ELs) and economically disadvantaged fifth grade students with science achievement as measured by high-stakes standardized science achievement scores. The model combined purposeful planning, innovative academic…

This article discusses factors to consider as we evaluate the professional learning occurring in our schools. The article describes how a committee of six teachers and one administrator at Hershey Middle School in Pennsylvania's Derry Township School District adapted an activity for use in a two-hour professional learning session called "The…

Yosso's community cultural wealth (CCW) shifted conversations about educational inequality from deficit perspectives to those that acknowledge the assets People of Color bring to school. CCW represents the accumulation of students' unique forms of capital, many of which have historically gone unrecognized by schools. This study applies CCW to the…

Students who are newcomers to the United States -- as English Learners (ELs) -- face barriers to learning, and their academic success often lags behind their native-English-speaking peers. Notably, there is paucity in the literature about Middle Eastern and North African (MENA) high school student newcomers' academic challenges as ELs and the…

This study examines the relationship between Hispanic English learners' learning, their parents' involvement, and their teachers' empowerment through professional knowledge. It is believed that Hispanic parents' involvement in their children's school activities is more influential to academic performance and educational attitudes than is teacher…

The Teaching, Empowering, Leading and Learning (TELL) AISD Survey gathers information about school conditions from the educators working in schools. TELL obtains perceptions on a variety of issues related to student achievement and staff retention. In 2016, 5,309 AISD teachers (91%) and 3,092 other campus employees completed the survey. This is…

This paper explores how an Alaskan school district shifted from a traditional K-12 education system to a personalized, performance-based system, embedded in the culture of the community, which led to increased student achievement. Chugach School District (CSD) first implemented competency education over twenty years ago, paving the way in…

Leading Educators works with schools and districts to maximize the leadership development of highly effective teachers. It aims to bolster the talent pipeline by identifying and training strong potential teacher-leaders, and in turn, increasing student achievement and developing teachers on its fellows' teams. The organization's leaders believe…