One district, South Bay Union School District, devises and executes a comprehensive strategy that includes training for district staff, teachers and coaches, including using PLCs and professional development in the implementation of Common Core English language arts standards.

There are at least four key places where the Common Core intersects with current efforts to improve education in the United States--testing, professional development, expectations, and accountability. Understanding them can help educators, parents, and policymakers maximize the chance that the Common Core is helpful to these efforts and, perhaps…

Montgomery County Public Schools (MCPS) in Maryland has made progress on the dual dimensions of excellence and equity for its 140,000 students, about half of whom are black or Hispanic. Beginning in 1999, with the leadership of Supt. Jerry Weast, MCPS managed to boost the achievement of its top quartile of students while the lower quartiles…

Winners and finalists for the annual Broad Prize for Urban Education have consistently outperformed peer districts serving similar student populations. What makes the difference? These districts consistently demonstrate a learning loop that influences the district's ability to learn, which ultimately influences student opportunities to learn.…

This article discusses how standards-based accountability systems challenge American educators to accomplish something that has never been done in the nation's history: teaching all children to master a demanding set of skills. The challenge makes sense today because technological changes and outsourcing have left American workers who lack strong…

Describes professional development standards to improve student learning published by the National Staff Development Council and confirmed by evaluation of the federal Eisenhower professional development program conducted by the American Institutes for Research. Asserts that teachers must also take responsibility for creating their own…

Provides assessment-driven, six-stage professional development model that links adult-learning goals with student-learning outcomes. (PKP)

By separating accountability-driven and growth-oriented teacher evaluation, school systems can remove numerous organizational obstacles to professional development. Teachers are not penalized for failure to meet challenging goals. Personal barriers to change (lack of awareness, disillusionment, distrust, pessimism, and other problems) may be…

Discusses contents of new publication released by the International Technology Education Association: "Advancing Excellence in Technology Literacy: Student Assessment, Professional Development, and Program Standards," intended to provide the means for implementing technology standards published in 2000 ("Standards for Technology…

Teaching can be respected as a genuine profession when teachers are experts in their subject matter and effectively induct students into that expertise. This requires a strong preservice program and rigorous licensing requirements, accompanied by effective induction programs, peer review, intervention programs, ongoing professional development,…

Victoria, Australia's experience with school-based management, curriculum frameworks, and the Victorian Certificate of Education demonstrates the feasibility of fashioning a system of centralized guidance and local initiatives that ensures high standards, supports meaningful assessments, permits curricular and pedagogical variety, and promotes…

The intensive drive to promote national standards and assessments has gathered support from unproven connections between U.S. economic success and the nature of learning in schools. Now that teachers are being challenged to produce a bottom-up sea-change in their own classrooms, Uncle Sam's presence in the back of the room may be a growing problem…

A survey of 28 teachers who participated in the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards certification process showed that most felt they had undergone a strong professional development experience. Unfortunately, teacher participation remains low. Many educators are unfamiliar with the process, lack access to support services, view board…

Describes an EdVisions Cooperative made up of eight small charter schools in Minnesota. EdVisions, funded by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, provides charter schools with guidelines to develop teacher-driven professional accountability systems linked to project-based learning for students. (PKP)

Nothing is more important to America's future than teaching children the skills they need to be successful. Every child must receive a quality education if America is to be a prosperous and hopeful country. The rapidly changing global economy is creating new industries that compete for highly skilled workers from around the world, and young people…