PIC OF THE WEEK

My Principal, My "CFO"

Principal Ambassador Fellow Jill Levine led a session with principals of National Blue Ribbon Schools last week. During the session, she asked principals to work in groups to list all of the roles they play in the school. This snapshot of what some of them said provides real insights into challenges of this multifaceted work, when one minute a principal is an instructional leader, a social worker, a custodian...or a CFO. Learn more about the National Blue Ribbon Schools celebration.

Submit Ideas for the Denver Regional Teacher Leadership Summit

We are now accepting ideas for consideration for the regional Denver Teacher Leadership Summit on January 10-11, 2015. All educators are welcome to submit ideas as individuals or as a team (teachers, principals, administrators, school board members etc.). There is no cost for summit registration or lodging. The deadline for idea submissions for the Denver Summit is December 9, 2014. Submit an idea for possible inclusion in the summit. Learn more.

SAVING TEACHERS FROM BURNING OUT OR DROPPING OUT. While better teacher preparation is a crucial element to solving our teacher quality and retention issues, it’s only half the challenge. In this article, Jonas Chartock and Ross Wiener talk about the importance of developing teacher leadership to keep truly great teachers engaged and effective as they settle in to their careers. Read the story (Hechinger Report).

TEACHER LEADERSHIP IN ACTION. Check out the latest teacher leadership stories posted on Teach to Lead.

• Making an Algebra Scope and Sequence that Makes Sense. As a teacher leader in Washington, D.C., John Mahoney partnered with other district math teachers to map out a scope and sequence for Algebra I that aligned with the Common Core State Standards and to teach the sequence to teachers.
  
• Building the Capacity of Beginning Teachers. To improve the capacity and skills of beginning teachers in Montana, teacher leader Anna Baldwin worked with a team to create professional learning to improve the teaching skills of beginning teachers in the district.
  

EDUCATION & THE ECONOMY

Closing the Gap

If the United States were able to close the educational achievement gaps between native-born white children and black and Hispanic children, the U.S. economy would be 5.8 percent—or nearly $2.3 trillion—larger in 2050. The cumulative increase in GDP from 2014 to 2050 would amount to $20.4 trillion, or an average of $551 billion per year.

(From The Economic Benefits of Closing the Achievement Gap, by Robert Lynch and Patrick Oakford, published by the Center for American Progress. The report estimates the increases in U.S. economic growth that would occur if racial and ethnic achievement gaps were closed and the educational playing field were leveled. Download the complete report.)

In Six Buckets, the Skinny Version of Standards

After working with the Common Core Standards for the past few years, Sarah Brown Wessling, a high school English teacher in Iowa and the 2010 National Teacher of the Year, noticed a trend in her work: “I’ve been engaging in exercises that actually make them bigger. I’ve unpacked, re-worded, aligned, and explained.” 

So she set out to see if there was another way. Could she “skinny” the standards and make them truly accessible on a day-to-day basis for both her students and herself? Could this process help her shift the ownership of learning to the students? See in this video how her students use six buckets of learning in a lesson with the book, The Hunger Games. Then read about the steps that Sarah took to get there in her Teaching Channel blog.

INNOVATION LABS

Personalized Learning Case Studies

Four Race to the Top-District (RTT-D) program grantees are the subject of a new research study from ED’s Office of Innovation and Improvement.  In keeping with their role as innovation laboratories, they share their initial experiences with the adoption of personalized learning approaches to prepare their students to succeed in the 21st century global economy. Personalized Learning in Progress: Case Studies of Four Race to the Top-District Grantees’ Early Implementation contains insights from the four diverse school districts — Iredell-Statesville Schools (N.C.), Miami-Dade County Public Schools (Fla.), New Haven Unified School District (Calif.), and Metropolitan School District of Warren Township (Ind.) — that were among 16 districts to receive RTT-D grants in 2012. 

The report shares the thinking, planning, and actions taken by each district in response to three questions: What are the grantees’ approaches to personalized learning? What actions did they take in the early stages of implementation? What realities did they encounter as they implemented their ideas and plans? Four common strategies are also explored, including shifts in teachers’ roles as they support student-centered learning. 

UNLOCKING POTENTIAL

One-to-One Computing

Learn more about a new technology initiative in Florida’s Citrus County School District that is taking a step-by-step approach to transform teaching and learning through a one-to-one computing initiative. Although many districts are giving students laptop computers, Citrus County gets high marks for ensuring that the technology is transforming both teaching and learning. “We didn’t want these to simply be used for things like note taking or as a place to go for electronic worksheets,” said Kathy Androski, a media specialist at Citrus Springs Middle School who coaches her fellow teachers on how to use the technology. “We wanted the students using technology to really ratchet up their learning experience.” Learn more in the new post up on PROGRESS!

Tools for Students

FUTURE BUSINESS LEADERS, ECONOMISTS, STATISTICIANS. The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) offers resources for students and teachers. Students can tap into resources and tools, such as occupational outlooks, reference materials, career search tools, and games. Teacher resources include inflation calculator, graphing exercises for price changes, and activities using real world examples, such as the latest statistics on employment, prices, and wages.

Good Stuff for Eduwonks

UNDERSTANDING THE COHORT GRADUATION RATE. This is the third year that all states used a common, rigorous measure to indicate how many students receive diplomas, and the latest state-by-state graduation rates demonstrate our continued progress. The new data, for the 2012-13 school year, indicate that 18 states have graduation rates at or above 85 percent, up from 16 states in the 2011-12 school year and nine in 2010-2011. This progress is a tribute to the tireless efforts of teachers, principals, parents, and other educators and staff, and of the students themselves. Read more.

EXTEND ESEA FLEX. A Fact Sheet to help states understand the process and what they need to know about extending ESEA flexibility waivers is now available. States that are interested may apply before their current waiver expires at the end of the current school year. Flexibility has allowed states and districts to develop creative solutions tailored to their individual cultures, with major benefits for all students, regardless of background. The guidance for renewal requests can be found here.

Teachers' Notes

• DEEP THOUGHTS ON DEEPER LEARNING. This interesting piece examines the concept of deeper learning. The author contrasts examples of authentic deeper learning with surface examples that often pass for deep learning. Read the article (Bellanca, Learning First Alliance).

• VOTE FOR A $100,000 PROPOSAL. The Dream Big Teacher Challenge is now open for voting. Back in May, teachers were invited to propose ideas for a $100,000 grant. Read the innovative proposals of the 15 finalists, watch their inspiring videos, and then vote for one (or more) of these visionary educators. Five of them (one from each region) will win a $100,000 grant from Farmers Insurance University of Farmers Education Foundation to implement their proposal.  

• PLAYGROUND SWEEPSTAKES. Could your school use a new playground? Enter the Together Counts Healthy Playground Makeover Sweepstakes to win $30,000 in prizes for your school’s wellness program or a new playground from Playworld Systems, Inc. Anyone can enter on behalf of your school. Submissions close on March 19, 2015.

• PUBLIC EDUCATOR 101. Read one principal's response to Time Magazine about what it really means to be a public educator. Read the related Washington Post article (Strauss).

• WHY SCHOOLS NEED LIBRARIANS. This is a re-post from last week's Teachers Edition with corrected information: the video was produced by the California School Library Association (CSLA), not the California Library Association. This video produced by the California School Library Association offers insights into the important work of school librarians, who teach students to be smart about using information. Teacher librarian Connie Williams compares her work teaching information literacy to a crossing guard teaching students to be safe looking both ways before crossing a street. On the Internet, she says, "looking both ways includes looking at the source, looking at the credibility, looking at the accuracy and looking at the reliability."

INDEPENDENT REVIEWERS

Consumer Reports for Textbooks

Check out this exciting initiative to provide free Consumer Reports—style reviews of instructional materials focused on alignment to Common Core and other indicators of high quality. Current classroom teachers review the materials for high quality indicators, including usability, teacher support, and differentiation. EdReports, the new independent nonprofit behind this bold move, offers a refreshing perspective on how to navigate the curriculum market and provides those responsible for purchasing materials, detailed information for making more informed choices. The first set of reviews of K-8 mathematics materials will be released in the spring. "One thing we're trying to do is put pressure on the publishers to do better" noted Melissa Hurt, a reviewer for EdReports and a curriculum coordinator in Shelby County, Tenn., in a recent EdWeek article.

What we love about this organization: it takes teacher leadership to a whole new level with teachers recognized as the experts in this process. EdReports is seeking educators to become content reviewers for future reviews.

Recommended Reading

• LOVE NINJA. The teachers at ED love this story about how an elementary teacher worked systematically to both stop bullying and to look out for the loneliest kids in her class. She calls her technique the "Love Ninja" strategy. Her approach is well worth reading (Melton, Reader's Digest).

Top 5 Quotes

Wisdom from educators heard by ED

5. "At some point we've tipped the scales and because we are testing so much we don't know what's good data and what's not." (Principal, Ala.)

4. Reflecting on the summative test her state was using before the Common Core assessments: "It's almost like the test in the past was an injustice to our student's capabilities." (Teacher, Ark.)

3. “I have the privilege of having many young teachers who got their credentials with the Common Core as the basis …so for me as a professional, the increased standards means that we’re all using the same measuring stick. We have the same high expectations across the country. It’s going to help us calibrate good instruction and equalize resources for children.” (Principal, Los Angeles, Calif.)

2. Describing changes to teaching since the advent of the Common Core: “The shift is more of a focus on how students learn and less on how to teach.” (Teacher, Los Angeles, Calif.)

1. “The only thing that made me successful was education – and not every teacher – the really good ones. I wanted to be one of those teachers for kids like me.” (Teacher, Los Angeles, Calif.)