Teachers in K-12 education begin their careers underprepared for the complexity and demands of teaching. The current practice of a short span of student teaching and entering classrooms as the sole educator sets teachers up for overwhelm and frustration, which can negatively affect student achievement. New teacher induction programs can support…

Pension legacy costs can restrict the amount of resources available for current public education, potentially making it more difficult to attract and retain high-quality teachers. Oregon provides a useful case study in pension legacy costs because many school districts in the state are now reallocating General Fund expenditures to cover sizeable…

Procuring resources for public school reform can be a powerful focusing incentive. The Portland Schools Foundation (PSF), an independent, community-based organization, has learned how to leverage its funding and relationships to call the question and bring local and national attention to bear on local educational issues. PSF has been diligent…

For five years running, the National Council on Teacher Quality (NCTQ) has tracked states' teacher policies, preparing a detailed and thorough compendium of teacher policy in the United States on topics related to teacher preparation, licensure, evaluation, career advancement, tenure, compensation, pensions and dismissal. The 2011 State Teacher…

This paper presents the Oregon 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 examine…

Student learning must be touchstone by which teachers and teacher educators are gauged. Unfortunately articles in November 1996 "Kappan" on "Quality Teaching for the 21st Century" don't support this statement. In contrast to three national certification initiatives, Oregon's teacher licensure system (Oregon Work Sampling…

The Oregon 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 teacher…