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| CCSSO Releases Report on Strengthening Teacher Quality in High-Need Schools: Policy and Practice |
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Washington, DC, July 27, 2007 – The Council of Chief State School Officers (CCSSO) announces the publication of a newly created report, Strengthening Teacher Quality in High-Need Schools: Policy and Practice. Designed for state policymakers, teachers, teacher mentors, professors and deans at teacher preparation programs, and other stakeholders, this resource focuses on four challenges presented to teachers in high-need settings. It also provides state and district examples for addressing these challenges and offers suggestions on state policies that can remove obstacles and facilitate solutions. The report covers the following topics in four chapters:
- Recognizing and Enhancing Teacher Effectiveness: In this chapter, Professor Linda Darling Hammond of Stanford University discusses the research movement surrounding the search for a solid methodology to evaluate and recognize teacher effectiveness. There are several goals—licensing, hiring, granting tenure, providing professional development, and identifying expert teachers who can be recognized and rewarded. Also addressed is the difference between effective teachers and effective teaching.
- Strengthening Mathematics and Science Teacher Quality: Attracting and retaining more mathematics and science teachers remains at the top of the policy agenda for federal and state lawmakers. Yet schools with the lowest levels of student achievement and the highest concentrations of poor and minority students are most likely to employ teachers who are inexperienced, uncertified, and teaching courses that they are not fully qualified to teach. This chapter by Cindy Prince addresses the many state and local initiatives designed to address this issue.
- Innovations to Provide Specialized Knowledge and Skills Needed to Teach Diverse Learners: The proportion of children in poverty and the proportion of students with special learning needs have risen dramatically. This chapter by Cindy Prince looks at what specialized knowledge and skills teachers need to be effective with the populations of students typically served in high-poverty, low-performing schools; what kinds of instructional practices have shown to be effective with diverse learners; and more.
- The Role of Leadership on Teacher Attrition in High-Need Schools: The quality of school leadership can be one of the most important factors that teachers consider in deciding whether to stay at a particular school. Because leadership matters so much to teachers, policymakers are hopeful that the opportunity to work with an outstanding principal might just be powerful enough to outweigh teacher reluctance to work in particularly challenging schools. This chapter, written by Cindy Prince, addresses these and other leadership issues that impact teacher recruitment and retention in high-need schools.
This publication was produced with support from The Joyce Foundation. The Joyce Foundation Education Programs work to close the achievement gap by improving the quality of teachers in schools that serve low-income and minority children, expanding early childhood education, and promoting innovations such as charter schools and small schools. To learn more about The Joyce Foundation and its work in education and other fields, please click here.
Please click here to access Strengthening Teacher Quality in High-Need Schools: Policy and Practice; click here to access the executive summary for Strengthening Teacher Quality in High-Need Schools: Policy and Practice; and click here to search related CCSSO publications.
The Council of Chief State School Officers (CCSSO) is a nationwide, nonprofit organization of public officials who head departments of elementary and secondary education in the states, the District of Columbia, the Department of Defense Education Activity, and five U.S. extra-state jurisdictions. CCSSO provides leadership, advocacy, and technical assistance on major educational issues. The Council seeks members’ consensus on major educational issues and expresses their views to civic and professional organizations, federal agencies, Congress, and the public. |
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document last updated 7/27/2007
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