More teacher learning, school improvement
My advice to the next president is that it is time to take teacher learning and school improvement seriously. It is time to move beyond separating the teacher from the school and for a two-pronged approach that seeks to improve teaching quality through meaningful, school-focused professional development that also focuses on continuous school improvement. All places on the political spectrum agree on one point: there is nothing more important to the education of students than the quality of the teacher and her/his teaching. That is, the more teachers know about the subjects they teach, how students learn those subjects, and how they organize instruction so that all children will profit from instruction are what really matters. But that is where we stop as a nation and as local communities: we invest in the individual teacher at the expense of the school in which the teacher teaches. Schools are communities, and they work better when people in them feel they are part of a common mission, and that is something that has to be nurtured and developed over time.
As you take office, it would be in the nation’s interest to pursue legislative and executive actions that would make sure every child has access to teachers who are knowledgeable in the content, highly-skilled in teaching that content so that children learn in rich and meaningful ways, and who are disposed never to give up on a student. What is learned in a teacher education program provides only a solid foundation for growth. But we could do more. Teachers need to be learners and education reformers, and school districts should be encouraged to devote significant resources to develop their own teachers to achieve their school’s goals. Right now, most teacher professional development is left to each teacher to purchase individually. Some do and some don’t, and even if they do the quality, and therefore the value, varies widely and is focused on developing the teacher and not the school. Teacher development should encourage teachers to become better at the art and science of teaching, but even more importantly, to become the agents of change who improve the quality of the school for the children in their collective charge.
This post was submitted by Gary Galluzzo.
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