In their full essay for "Reach the Highest Standard in Professional Learning: Resources," the authors note that more rigorous instructional requirements combined with tighter budgets challenge school systems to think more deliberately about where and how they invest in teaching effectiveness. They write that forward-thinking school…

Teacher education and professional development prepare teachers with up-to-date knowledge, skills, and dispositions necessary for effective teaching. To sustain this, however, hinges on continued professional learning within schools. Research shows that establishing long-term conditions that allow teachers to learn continuously from one another…

The major challenge with time is finding it. Current school-day schedules and school-year calendars are leaner than ever because of budget reductions. States and districts have implemented furlough days to balance lean-and-mean budgets that show no sign of improving. Few are willing to take the leap toward reducing instructional time to improve…

In this article, the author discusses content focus and coherence, which are fundamental to professional development that helps teachers boost student learning. Learning Forward's Outcomes standard emphasizes that teacher learning should be focused on subject-matter content and how students learn that content, and consistent with the individual,…

Eight school districts in Rhode Island formed the East Bay Professional Learning Community to launch a joint effort to develop a culture of assessment literacy through ongoing professional learning focused on team-specific action plans tightly aligned to school, district, and state initiatives. To accomplish this, the districts pooled their…

Schools and districts are inundated with data from a variety of sources. As a result, using data to guide instructional planning can be daunting for teachers and schools. While schools and districts are dealing with shrinking budgets and growing demands for high student achievement, an investment in school-based coaching can provide exponential…

Without adequate time and resources, it is impossible for school districts and schools to support professional learning that leads to effective teaching practices, supportive leadership, and improved student results. That's why one of the seven new standards in Learning Forward's Standards for Professional Learning focuses specifically on…

Some schools make significant contributions to a child's growth and development with little to show on a standardized test, while other schools do little, with acceptable results on those same tests. This article describes how Lincoln Elementary School in Madison, Wisconsin, made creative use of resources to promote student achievement and meet…

In today's workplace, the ability to solve complex problems, think critically, and engage in continuous, self-directed learning is essential. Recognizing that providing the kind of education that fosters such abilities necessitated considerable change in its schools, the Archdiocese of Philadelphia's Office of Catholic Education developed a…

Most students attend summer school not because it's their idea of a good time, but because they need to in order to advance to the next grade. To many students--and even some teachers--summer school feels more like punishment than an opportunity to learn and explore. In July 2010, working with a nonprofit organization called Big Thought, officials…

The time-honored children's story "Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day" is a prime example of someone having the kind of day people would like to avoid. Having a bad day can happen to anyone--even a dedicated literacy coach. An important component of coaching is building collaborative working relationships between the coach…

The Highline School District, located roughly 10 miles south of Seattle, Washington, has begun to implement a residency model for professional learning. Like the medical model, current teachers often traveled from other schools to be "in residency" at a previously selected classroom for six half-day sessions during the 2005-06 school year. Some…

Individuals and organizations have an amazing capacity to maintain their current beliefs and practices in the face of massive, well-intentioned efforts to change them. There are two facts that cannot be ignored if teaching and learning are to be improved for the benefit of all students: First, the majority of teachers know more about effective…

Hundreds of instructional coaches are being hired by schools to improve professional practice. Since coaches provide on-site professional learning, they can adapt their approach to meet the unique needs of the teachers and students in the schools where they work. Since coaches can provide professional development that addresses teachers' concerns…

In this article, the author discusses how an instructional leader can overcome organizational inertia and create a genuine systemic change by starting small. To make a successful change, an organization must do the following: (1) Find the right staff and a powerful idea; (2) Provide a sponsor; (3) Start small; (4) Get results; (5) Find a…