Many educators consider racial equity crucial but feel unsure what initial steps to take to start making positive change in their school. The interconnectedness of all elements of equity work makes taking action on one element difficult, Gutierrez notes--but we shouldn't let that reality lead to inaction or solutions that only involve adults…

When we feel like we matter, we can do our jobs better and feel more fulfilled. For educators, this can make the difference between staying in teaching or leaving. Researchers Shelly Wilfong and Ryan Donlan look at eight elements of the concept of mattering and how they can enhance a teacher's sense of efficacy.

The status quo is no longer an option. School leaders need to model care, courage, and open communication. Superintendent Jennifer Gallagher reflects on three important components of adaptive and effective leadership--communication, care, and courage--that she found helpful in navigating her district through the challenges of the pandemic.

School leaders often neglect a key mechanism for empowerment: The school-improvement plan. In this article, researchers Coby Meyers and Bryan VanGronigen discuss five fundamentals of improvement planning that school leaders can use to ensure their plans are useful, effective, and on-track.

Increasing student agency doesn't mean having students choose among preselected options in their learning experience. Understanding what it means to have agency and the power of using one's voice are life skills that should start being developed in the classroom. Tanji Reed Marshall, director of P-12 practice at The Education Trust, explains why…

Many school leaders see teacher buy-in as a prerequisite for implementing meaningful change. But professor of educational leadership, Robert Feirsen, argues that the emphasis on buy-in overshadows a deeper and more community-driven form of participation among teachers--psychological ownership--that facilitates more effective school improvement…

Through Project I4 (which aims to lift academic discourse in STEM classes), principals and other school leaders who observe faculty use tools to identify, through evidence and clear criteria, what teachers are doing well and less well. The project's tools, including a post-observation Effective Conversation Guide, address aspects of equity (such…

Incremental equity initiatives often just paper over the status quo. How can schools be bolder and more strategic? Educators Paul Gorski, Marceline DuBose, and Katy Swalwell share four steps to seismically shift thinking and action and make significant equity progress.

When there's a revolving door of staff members in a school or district, leaders have three choices: leave, survive, or thrive. District administrator Elizabeth Dampf says it's possible to thrive despite--or even because of--high rates of turnover. If you want more out of this period in education, take a few cues from Dampf's "playbook of…

With the growth of tech-driven instructional possibilities, school systems have an increasingly urgent responsibility for schools to continuously assess and improve student data-protection practices. Attai, a project director for the Consortium for School Networking, outlines a program designed to help education leaders master the fundamentals of…

These three practices can help educators align their school's professed beliefs with its actions. Do your beliefs about social justice align with school policies and student experiences? Are you examining social justice on a systems level and drilling down to the root causes of disparities in student learning and success? Erica Buchanan-Rivera…

Opioid abuse has become an epidemic in America and exposure to the drugs often begins in high school. This article shares some facts about opioid use and some signs and symptoms to look for in students who may be addicted to the drug. The authors also offer tips for educators on how to deal with the legal issues involved in assessing, reporting,…

Principals often have administrative duties that take them away from instructional leadership and other big-picture ideas and changes. And yet, "running a smooth ship" and effectively managing those day-to-day operational tasks might actually make school leaders better. Hochbein looks at 100 years of research about how principals spend…

Authors and education consultants Jane Kise and Ann C. Holm explore how teachers and leaders can treat challenges facing their schools as "polarities" which require regular work and attention to the needs of the entire community, as opposed to quick, one-time fixes. This approach not only provides more effective solutions to ingrained…

College- and career-readiness skills can easily get lost if you don't have a clear school-wide plan for teaching them. While curriculum in schools is primarily meant to ready students for college and career skills, ensuring those skills actually transfer is another story. Andrew Miller lays out a system for teaching and assessing key…