What the teaching profession can learn from Netflix

What the teaching profession can learn from Netflix

What can the education field learn from Netflix? How to revolutionize staffing to better meet the needs of those you...

Not so fast! Why emergency teacher licenses fall short

Not so fast! Why emergency teacher licenses fall short

In the past four years, almost every state has lowered its standards for entry into teaching. I know this all...

Saving our best teachers: The urgency of retention amid layoffs

Saving our best teachers: The urgency of retention amid layoffs

As districts face impending fiscal cuts and teacher layoffs, states and districts should take this opportunity to reexamine their approaches...

More than words: 7 approaches to monitoring implementation of reading laws

More than words: 7 approaches to monitoring implementation of reading laws

Since 2019, policymakers have enacted more than 220 literacy-related bills nationwide. The distance from the statehouse to the classroom is...

Raising a red flag: LIFO policies harm teacher diversity, teacher quality, and student learning

Raising a red flag: LIFO policies harm teacher diversity, teacher quality, and student learning

As ESSER funding depletes and teacher layoffs set in, school districts should consider teacher performance and other alternatives to last-in-first-out.

What training for a marathon can teach us about clinical practice for teachers

What training for a marathon can teach us about clinical practice for teachers

Teacher preparation isn't a sprint; it's a marathon. And just like preparing for a long race, it requires well-planned practice,...

Teacher Apprenticeships: Long on possibility, short on details (for now)

Teacher Apprenticeships: Long on possibility, short on details (for now)

Apprenticeships offer a promising model to help expand and diversify the teacher workforce. But NCTQ President Heather Peske cautions: We're...

No need to beg, borrow, and steal: A road map for how states can implement and sustain reading policies

No need to beg, borrow, and steal: A road map for how states can implement and sustain reading policies

State education leaders shouldn't work alone to enact teacher-focused reading policies, writes NCTQ President Heather Peske. Instead, they can look...

Are we setting up English learners for reading success?

Are we setting up English learners for reading success?

Every year, countless English learning students pass through our education system without getting the help they need. And for each...

 Connect the Dots: States’ priorities, policies, and practices impact student outcomes

Connect the Dots: States’ priorities, policies, and practices impact student outcomes

Do state leaders suffer from a lack of strategy? To really connect the dots and make an impact, states need...

Scrambling to hire teachers doesn’t have to be a recurring rat race

Scrambling to hire teachers doesn’t have to be a recurring rat race

Filling those hard-to-staff teacher vacancies doesn't have to be so hard. Making a few straightforward adjustments to compensation, incentives, and...

Give teachers what they want (and students what they need): Effective teacher prep

Give teachers what they want (and students what they need): Effective teacher prep

Teachers demand better training on how to teach reading. Teacher prep programs ought to do more

Gambling with children’s futures—and no one’s tracking whether we win or lose

Gambling with children’s futures—and no one’s tracking whether we win or lose

Almost no one is tracking the impact recent policy decisions have on student learning and how they perpetuate educational inequity.

What increasing seat belt use can teach us about strengthening math instruction

What increasing seat belt use can teach us about strengthening math instruction

What if states applied the "seat belt" policy approach to solving our current mathematics education crisis?

Teacher prep matters; let’s start acting like it

Teacher prep matters; let’s start acting like it

Policymakers are overlooking teacher prep as a critical force in promoting teacher quality and better outcomes for students.

What do NASA scientists, historians, and strong readers have in common? Content knowledge

What do NASA scientists, historians, and strong readers have in common? Content knowledge

I was recently reading a NASA article with my 12-year-old child about the dynamics of flight and was struck by...

Teaching reading is brain science

Teaching reading is brain science

What many still don't recognize is that teachers' reading instruction changes the wiring in children's brains.

A call to action from dismal NAEP scores: Support teachers to engage with parents

A call to action from dismal NAEP scores: Support teachers to engage with parents

Parents and families must be part of the partnership to help students gain back their academic footing.

Eight ways states can act now to retain an effective, diverse teacher workforce

Eight ways states can act now to retain an effective, diverse teacher workforce

A focus on teacher recruitment without appropriate attention to retention is like trying to collect water in a sieve.

We wouldn’t lower standards for pilot licenses—so why teachers?

We wouldn’t lower standards for pilot licenses—so why teachers?

Who wants someone who has not demonstrated their knowledge and skills to be trusted with landing the plane? Teaching is...

Reflections on the pandemic and the power of teachers

Reflections on the pandemic and the power of teachers

Now is the moment to chart a new path forward.

We must do better

We must do better

We must join together to ensure that our nation keeps children and teachers safe.