Professional Development
Learning Port
Across states, national organizations and technical assistance investments, an extensive amount of professional development material is available. This library of over 700 professional development resources provides local educators with easy access to an array of resources that can be used or customized to meet their needs.Instruction Resources
Guide to Teacher Evaluation Products
Accurately measuring a teacher's effectiveness is a complex and difficult task. Like building a puzzle, developing a teacher evaluation system requires multiple pieces that must be placed together in a purposeful way to create a holistic evaluation system.
This guide can be used by states and districts to explore various evaluation methods and tools that represent the "puzzle pieces" of an evaluation system.
The guide includes detailed descriptions of more than 75 teacher evaluation tools that are currently implemented and tested in.....
Using ARRA Funds to Improve Teacher Effectiveness and Equitable Distribution: An Interactive Mapping Tool
This is an interactive mapping tool modeled on a subway map. It will help users explore the strategic use of ARRA-funded programs to improve teacher effectiveness and equitable distribution.
Key Components:
1. Recruitment
2. Hiring
3. Preparation
4. Induction
5. Performance Management
6. Professional Development
7. Leadership Development
8. Compensation and Incentives
School Turnaround Teachers: Competencies for Success
This guide aims to help schools attempting turnarounds understand the underlying characteristics of teachers likely to succeed in this unique context, based on the best available research to date. Interestingly, the characteristics identified by early research on star teachers in high-poverty schools are remarkably similar to the competencies exhibited by turnaround leaders across sectors. This is not surprising given the similarities of the roles, explained further within this guide. As more schools attempt turnarounds, increasingly accurate,.....
Literacy Instruction in the Content Areas: Getting to the Core of Middle and High School Improvement
This report from the Alliance for Excellent Education contends that content teachers at the middle and secondary levels should engage their students in literacy training through integrated reading and writing activities that teach students how to recognize the particular conventions specific to the different subjects. The report concludes with practical policy goals to foster a greater integration of literacy training and content matter.
TQ Resource Library (Publications Database) (National Comprehensive Center for Teacher Quality)
In the last several years alone, hundreds of books and articles about teacher quality and leadership quality issues have been written. Using standardized criteria to evaluate many of these publications, Learning Point Associates has assembled a database with detailed information about many of the most significant teacher quality publications of the past 20 years.
The TQ Source publications database houses information for publications in the following issue areas: preparation, recruitment and retention, certification and licensure,.....
Technical Assistance Toolbox from National Center for Teacher Quality
In this Technical Assistance Toolbox you will find examples of technical assistance available from the National Comprehensive Center for Teacher Quality Center, answers to Frequently asked questions, and descriptions of how to use our large collection of content-rich resources to assist in your efforts to improve teacher quality in your region and state.
Effective Strategies That Boost Reading Comprehension
This multimedia overview highlights key research findings and specific practice implications for comprehension strategy instruction. (5:26 min)
Explicit vocabulary instruction and strategies that help students become independent vocabulary learners
Teachers should provide explicit vocabulary instruction both as part of reading and language arts classes and as part of content area classes such as science and social studies. Learning specialized vocabularies contributes to the success of reading among adolescent students. By giving students explicit instruction in vocabulary, content area teachers help them learn the meaning of new words and strengthen their independent skills in constructing the meaning of text.
Big Ideas in Beginning Reading
This website is designed to provide information, technology, and resources to teachers, administrators, and parents across the country.
Big Ideas in Beginning Reading focuses on the five BIG IDEAS of early literacy:
* Phonemic Awareness
* Alphabetic Principle
* Accuracy and Fluency with text
* Vocabulary
* Comprehension
The website includes definitions and descriptions of the research and theories behind each of the big ideas, describes how to assess the big ideas, and provides information on how to teach the.....
RTI – an IRIS Center resource that includes four modules
RTI (includes Early Intervening) – an IRIS Center resource that includes four modules: An Overview, Assessment, Reading Instruction and Putting it All Together. It is recommended that you start with Part 1 and go through modules in order. You can click on the following link: http://iris.peabody.vanderbilt.edu/resources.html then click on RTI, then Modules to access each module and to see a description of each module or you can click on the links below to access each part individually.
Part 1:.....
Engaging Learners the SMARTboard Way - Using the Smartboard in the Classroom
Interactive whiteboards are gaining in popularity in schools. SMART technology is one of the most popular interactive whiteboard options. This workshop explores ideas for using interactive whiteboards in the classroom, adapting existing Notebook projects, and integrating resources for each subject area.
Alternating Worked Examples With Practice
This multimedia overview explains how alternating worked examples with opportunities for problem solving improves student learning. (3:53 min)
Teaching Spatial Skills to Girls
This overview describes some of the gender differences in test performance; ways in which spatial skills are used in school, careers, and normal life; and approaches to teaching spatial skills. (5:00 min)
Teaching Literacy in English to K-5 English Learners
Use this multimedia overview to learn the importance of teaching English learners to read in English while they are developing oral proficiency, and how this helps them increase vocabulary, speak in English, and learn other subject-matter content. See how the five recommended practices fit together to create a full research-based solution for schools, teachers, and students. (6:05 min)
How to Organize Your Teaching
Research in cognitive psychology suggests several ways teachers can organize instruction to improve their students' learning. Use this multimedia overview to learn about research-based strategies to improve students' memory, strengthen problem-solving skills, and build conceptual understanding.
National Comprehensive Center for Teacher Quality
The National Comprehensive Center for Teacher Quality (TQ Center) is a national resource to which the regional comprehensive centers, states, and other education stakeholders turn for strengthening the quality of teaching—especially in high-poverty, low-performing, and hard-to-staff schools—and for finding guidance in addressing specific needs, thereby ensuring highly qualified teachers are serving students with special needs.
