Busy educators who want to ask advice, offer opinions, and engage in discussions with colleagues increasingly turn to professional learning networks (PLNs)--online communities that allow the sharing of lesson plans, teaching strategies, and student work, as well as collaboration across grade levels and departments. As budget cuts limit…

Teachers often complain about the professional development opportunities. And it is not uncommon for absenteeism to increase among teachers and staff during in-service days. The biggest problem that professional development has encountered is that it is usually developed as an isolated requirement, with no real connection to daily teaching and…

With a majority of English learners born in the U.S. and the proportion of EL students within the overall student population growing dramatically, providing the best possible education for English learners has become an issue of increasing urgency. Aida Walqui, director of West-Ed's Teacher Professional Development Program, makes the point more…

In Japan, "jugyou kenkyuu"--or lesson study--is the most common form of professional development among elementary school and lower-secondary school teachers. While in the United States it is best known as a means of improving math instruction, in Japan, lesson study is practiced in all subjects, from language studies to physical…

The first days of any teacher's career leave indelible memories of trials and errors, successes and failures, and efforts to get to know one's students. No matter how many years one teaches, those first students in those first classes stand apart in a teacher's mind. In this article, the author shares his insights and realizations regarding his…

The number of minority students in the schools is rapidly increasing. Simultaneously, the number of minority teachers is decreasing. Achievement gaps by minority students exists across the nation. Due to the lack of culturally responsive pedagogy and practice in their preparation programs, teachers have resorted to less effective measures in…

In this article, the authors discuss the plight of three very bright students, who have poor or limited English. The authors discuss how promising practices used to develop content-area reading, writing, and thinking can go a long way toward helping English language learners (ELLs) improve their literacy and learning. They discuss five sets of…