This article explores a fundamental indicator missing from current assessments of preservice teacher effectiveness, namely the importance of competencies central to professionalism and to impact on student learning. Drawing from her classroom experiences and relevant research, the author makes the case that evaluation of English teacher…

School principals in Illinois face an ethical dilemma when evaluating tenured teachers. Giving an unsatisfactory rating and placing a tenured teacher under a remediation plan opens the door to a time-consuming process filled with legal and financial issues that will strain relationships in the school. However, giving a less than honest rating…

Research supports the importance of teacher quality on effective student learning. School districts recognize this fact and focus extensively on hiring quality teachers and improving teaching skills through professional development programs. Amazingly, despite common sense and a vast amount of research that reflects that employee performance is a…

This quantitative study investigated the relationship between teacher dispositions, subject content knowledge, pedagogical content knowledge, and reasons that school principals recommend non-renewal of teachers' contracts. Nearly 2,000 school principals in 13 states completed an emailed survey. In deciding whether to non-renew a teacher contract,…

Early childhood teachers are rightly concerned with implementing a system that was, at least in the initial stages, designed with a different set of teachers in mind--teachers of older students who have standardized achievement data. In most states, policy, practices, and guidance for early childhood teachers are just now being developed or…

This article reports on a study of Illinois school board presidents' perspectives on teacher tenure. It begins with an historical overview of the development of teacher tenure from its roots in the 1880s civil service legislation through the establishment of teacher tenure in the United States to an examination of current teacher tenure laws and…

This report presents the Illinois edition of the National Council on Teacher Quality's 2008 "State Teacher Policy Yearbook." The 2008 "Yearbook" focuses on how state policies impact the retention of effective new teachers. This policy evaluation is broken down into three areas that encompass 15 goals. Broadly, these goals…

This Illinois' edition of the National Council on Teacher Quality's (NCTQ's) 2009 "State Teacher Policy Yearbook" is the third annual look at state policies impacting the teaching profession. It is hoped that this report will help focus attention on areas where state policymakers can make changes that will have a positive impact on…

An advisory committee oversaw and guided an investigation of credentialing adult education instructors in Illinois. At its direction, a series of focus group inquiries were conducted into issues surrounding the development of a system of professional credentialing. Requirements varied widely in 13 states found to have some form of mandatory…

Illinois, in partnership with the National Commission on Teaching and America's Future, is transforming its teacher preparation and training sequence into a strong teacher development system that will result in improved teacher recruitment, preparation, induction, certification, professional development, and retirement. This paper outlines the…