Also see our page on curriculum and teaching strategies

Professional Collaboration to Improve Teachers and Student Work
This excellent first newsletter from the "Turning Points" whole-school reform group explores "Professional Collaboration to Improve Teachers and Student Work." Topics include one middle school's student portfolio process; the TP approach to examining student work, and reflections on standards-based classroom assessment. The Turning Points middle school reform model, supported by Boston's Center for Collaborative Education, now serves about 64 schools in 12 states. (This link begins a download of the newsletter in PDF format.)

Free Book on Powerful Professional Development

NSDC executive director Dennis Sparks' on-line book Designing Powerful Professional Development for Teachers and Principals is available as a free download at the National Staff Development Council website. Fourteen chapters. PDF format.

The Collaborative Assessment Conference

The Collaborative Assessment Conference, developed by Harvard's Project Zero, can be used for a variety of purposes: to hone teachers' ability to look closely at and to interpret students' work; to explore the strengths and needs of a particular child; to reflect on the work collected in student portfolios; to foster conversations among faculty about the work students are doing and how to support that work. This page at Annenberg's Looking at Student Work website not only describes the conference process -- it includes a "Virtual Protocol" session where you can follow an actual LASW experience featuring a elementary school writing sample. The participants are mostly members of the National School Reform Faculty. This is the best demonstration of the LASW process we've seen on the Web. And we get around!

Looking at Teacher Work: Standards in Practice

"Students can do no better than the assignments they are given." This is the premise of the new video from Collaborative Communications Group and the Edna McConnell Clark Foundation. "Looking at Teacher Work: Standards in Practice" demonstrates the six steps of SIP -- a powerful, job-embedded professional development model developed by The Education Trust. In the 31-minute, how-to video, middle grades teachers work together to look critically at assignments and student work against standards. It's easy to use and available for a $10 shipping fee.

Looking at Student Work - MiddleWeb Resources
Teachers look at student work every day. But "Looking at Student Work" (sometimes shortened to the acronym 'LASW') refers to a process that helps educators improve teaching and learning by reflecting deeply on teacher lessons and student work products. This new page at MiddleWeb offers a wide selection of resources about the LASW approach to professional development -- with a middle grades spin.

The National Staff Development Council Library
NSDC has assembled much of their published research and articles from various newsletters and the Journal of Staff Development and cross-referenced it under many subject headings. You'll find those headings on this page. It's a great way to quickly search for materials of special interest. Don't miss the Tools for Schools and Results newsletters. They're quick reads with lots of information.

National Board Portfolios -- Middle Grades
We often hear from teacher friends who are "whitewater rafting" through the National Board certification process. Many express a wish to see the completed portfolios of teachers who have successfully navigated the river. This page at the UC-Irvine website includes links to five portfolios in the Early Adolescence areas (English Language Arts; Generalist; Mathematics; Science; Social Studies-History). Scroll down to the appropriate table.

Teaching in the Standards-Based Classroom
This issue of Focus Magazine (Eisenhower National Clearinghouse) features a series of articles aimed at supporting science and math teachers as they use "the standards mandated in your school to improve your practice--to help you teach in your standards-based classroom."

Teaming and Classroom Practice (PDF File)
Can effective interdisciplinary middle grades teaming improve classroom practice and raise student achievement? Researchers from the Center for Prevention Research and Development explore this question, drawing on data from 70 middle schools involved in Michigan Middle Start, an initiative
of the W.K. Kellogg Foundation. "How Teaming Influences Classroom Practices" first appeared in the Middle School Journal (November 2000) and is now downloadable at the CPRD site.

Teacher Book Clubs
Somehow we missed this May 2000 article in Educational Leadership, describing one school system's experience with teacher book clubs. The growing interest in this professional development technique prompts us to backtrack. As the article notes, "Interweaving pleasure and practicality makes a teachers' book club a powerful option for school districts looking for a fresh approach to professional development." In this example, teachers got together to "enjoy literature and the social nature of a book club" while they reflected on and modified classroom practices.

Japanese-Style Lesson Study for Teachers
Lesson study, relates this story in NSDC's "Results" newsletter (Dec/Jan 2001), "is a century-old idea imported from Japan where it provides the underpinning for that country's student-centered focus for schooling." Teachers work together to create lessons, observe each other as the lessons are tried out in real classrooms, then refine their work. Researchers compare the work to "quality circles" -- a cycle of establishing long term goals, measuring each piece of work against those goals, and then making changes. The story describes the process in a New Jersey middle grades school.

Award-Winning Professional Development
"Professional Development: Learning from the Best" is a toolkit based on experiences of the 20 award-winning schools & districts. Prepared by the North Central Regional Educational Laboratory (NCREL), the toolkit includes detailed "how-to" descriptions and "action planner tools." Former Ed Secretary Richard Riley announced the toolkit along with an ED report, "Does Professional Development Change Teaching Practice?" (Available in PDF format or order on-line.)

Middle Grades Faculty Study Groups
This article from Middle Ground magazine (February 2001), "Improving Instruction Through Collaboration," describes the work of "whole faculty student groups" at Burns Middle School in Mobile, AL. Author Anne Jolly, a former Alabama teacher of the year, includes guidelines for whole faculty study. (Posted at MiddleWeb with permission - links to other resources included.)

Eliminating Barriers to Improving Teaching
Teaching quality, says the US Department of Education, "is the most important in-school factor for improving student achievement. Yet we, as a nation, are far from having a caring & competent teacher in every classroom." ED's new booklet, "Eliminating Barriers to Improving Teaching," is designed to help states and communities find ways to overcome obstacles to better teaching. The booklet examines six challenges: teacher recruitment, preparation, licensing & certification standards, professional development, and teacher retention. (This link leads to ED overview, which has links to download booklet.)

Tale of a Remarkable Teacher
"When most students step into Rafe Esquith's fifth-grade classroom...they take a leap into another world," begins this story at the Education World website. "Many of the students, almost all from low-income, immigrant families, study advanced mathematics, often coming to school at 6:30 a.m. to do so. In class, youngsters read books, including The Autobiography of Malcolm X. They have seen actor Hal Holbrook portray Mark Twain in their classroom. During free periods and after school, they learn to play classical guitar. Esquith's students have performed Shakespearean plays under his direction at the Globe Theatre in London and delivered a recitation on U.S. history at the U.S. Supreme Court." Read the whole story at this link.

A Middle School Teacher's National Board Portfolio
Valerie Henry teaches 7th and 8th grade math in Irvine, California. She has a B.A. in mathematics from the University of California, Davis and has been teaching for fifteen years. Valerie has developed a teacher portfolio as a requirement for the National Board for Professional Teaching certification. She works with the California Math Project and the California Math Renaissance. (Includes a videoclip interview with Valerie Henry about the process and the contents of six "entries" required by NBPTS in HTML format.) Also see: National Board Certification Tips

Eliminating Barriers to Improving Teaching
Teaching quality, says the US Department of Education, "is the most important in-school factor for improving student achievement. Yet we, as a nation, are far from having a caring & competent teacher in every classroom." ED's booklet, "Eliminating Barriers to Improving Teaching," is designed to help states and communities find ways to overcome obstacles to better teaching. The booklet examines six challenges: teacher recruitment, preparation, licensing & certification standards, professional development, and teacher retention.

Looking at Student Work
We agree with the Philadelphia Education Fund that this growing site produced by the Annenberg Institute "sets a high professional tone describing the process of looking at student work." As the Institute notes, the close examination of student assignments is "serious work in a climate of accountability...." The site covers principles, preparation, collection, and examination -- and provides extensive resources from many school reform and teaching organizations. For other leads, visit PEF's page. Also see: A Tuning Protocol for Student Work at the Atlas Communities website. And these facilitation tips at the Annenberg student work site.

Islands of (Professional Development) Hope
A new report from the WestEd education laboratory, "Islands of Hope in a Sea of Dreams," summarizes a study of the eight schools recognized in the National Awards Program for Model Professional Development in 1996 and 1998. Joellen Killion (National Staff Development Council) describes how teachers learn in these schools, how their learning is supported, and the characteristics of the school that allow teachers to excel. Available in HTML and PDF formats.

Teacher Development That Makes Sense
Based on a presentation by Linda Darling-Hammond, this policy brief from the WestEd education lab underscores the direct relationship of teacher knowledge and skill to student achievement. Arguing that no efforts or resources are better spent than on ensuring high quality teaching, Hammond calls for a standards-based teacher development system that encompasses the full span of a teaching career -- from recruitment and preparation, through certification and induction, and on through a teacher's worklife.

Teachers Get Help From a "Guide on the Side"
In an effort to get more teachers on board the "standards train," the Long Beach (CA) Unified School District sent a cadre of teacher coaches into the field during the 1998-99 school year. The talented teachers -- and the district -- learned a lot from the first year of this promising but challenging program. (from Changing Schools in Long Beach, Fall 1999). Also see these related features: Sandy's Coaching Journal and Shelley's Coaching Journal.

A Package of Mentoring Articles and Resources
The Fall 1999 issue of "Edutopia" -- an on-line magazine published by the George Lucas Education Foundation -- explores mentoring "as a key professional relationship." This link leads to the table of contents. Several articles of interest to middle grades educators are included. And see MiddleWeb's collection of mentoring resources here.

Shhhhhhhh, the Dragon Is Asleep
In her article, "Shhhhhh, The Dragon Is Asleep and Its Name Is Resistance," Monica Janas recommends a proactive approach to managing resistance to educational change. Her scenarios illustrate how resistance can undermine progress, and her ideas for positive action include encouraging all stakeholders to vent concerns, create a shared agenda, and deal with emotions by acknowledging how the changes will affect personal and professional lives. An extensive reference list is included. (Reproduced from the Journal of Staff Development)

A Middle School Teacher Tries Action Research
"Voices from the Field," a new online periodical produced by the Northeast and Islands Regional Educational Laboratory, presents issues "from the perspectives of teachers experiencing change, challenges, and growth as education reform takes shape." The magazine solicits articles and feedback from teachers. The first issue features middle grades teacher Julie Nora, who describes how she discovered the practical applications of action research "as a tool to help teachers ask questions about their everyday work (and) a chance to study my own practices and the proficiencies of my students." Excellent resources included. (Fall 1999)

Action Research sources
This university-supported site has an Australian flavor (it's based in Brisbane) and lots of information about action research. There's also the opportunity to participate in a free, 14-week introductory course, sponsored by Southern Cross University. And a selection of links.

Changing Direction Through Assessment
A principal of Strong Middle School in Durham, Conn., writes about how classroom assessment was improved by better analysis of student work and expanded feedback with students and colleagues. ("Schools in the Middle" magazine.)

Six Great Teacher Tips Sites -- Compiled by the Education World website.

Long Beach, CA's comprehensive approach to professional development reform
This two-part series published in an Orange County magazine describes the evolution of professional development and standards-based reform in the Long Beach Unified School District.

Best Teaching Practice in the Middle Grades
The Maryland State Department of Education has developed a series of webpages where teachers can link to resources about best teaching practice. This section focuses on the "middle learning years" includes brief materials on homework, abstract concepts, praise and rewards, student accountability, organizing and presenting instruction, goals and purposes, monitoring student success, meaningful school and community participation, rules and rountines, managing disruptive behavior, learning skills, student team learning, setting high expectations, and more.

Standards Based Teaching "Opens Up Possibilities"
In this interview with the Focused Reporting Project, sixth grade language arts teacher Margaret Lawrence describes her transition to a standards-based classroom at Louisville's Meyzeek Middle School.

High-Interest, Standards-Based Middle Grades Science
Hands-on, performance-based science helps eighth graders get ready for high school, says 8th grade science teacher Janet Seibert, whose students at Noe Middle School in Louisville, KY never know how they're going to learn something -- only that it will be interesting! This story describes how Seibert developed her standards-based approach to science teaching. (From "Changing Schools in Louisville," Spring 1999)

What Research Says about Professional Development
A brief summary of current research on the professional development of teachers. Includes a link (at the bottom of the page) to many quotes from professional development researchers. From the TERC Alliance.

What Works in the Middle: Results-Based Staff Development
"What Works in the Middle: Results-Based Staff Development" identifies 26 programs in English, math, science, social studies and interdisciplinary studies that have led to measurable learning gains. The product of a two-year study led by the National Staff Development Council (NSDC) with participation of national content area and secondary school groups -- and supported by the Edna McConnell Clark Foundation. Complete report on-line. (Acrobat file). Also see the press release and the introduction at the MiddleWeb site.

Managing Change Through Staff Development
In this chapter from the book "Staff Development: A Handbook of Effective Practices," Susan Loucks-Horsley describes key ideas for staff developers in their roles as managers of change. She defines characteristics of successfully implemented new practices, explains how mandates can become positives in the change process, and emphasizes the need for teacher support during all phases of reform. Includes a checklist for assessing staff development programs and staff developer competencies.

Emerging Themes about Professional Development from the Eisenhower Project
The Eisenhower Professional Development Program is the U.S.Department of Education's largest investment dedicated solely to developing teachers' knowledge and skills. This report, the first from a three-year evaluation of Part B of the Eisenhower program, presents "emerging themes" about the program from exploratory case studies, conducted in spring 1997, of six school districts. PDF file.

The National Faculty: Strengthening Teacher Content Knowledge
The National Faculty (TNF) puts teachers together with college faculty for collegial study in the humanities, arts, mathematics, and sciences. This brief article at the Annenberg/CPB site offers an overview of The National Faculty's work in school districts nationwide, and provides links to the TNF website.

What Works in Professional Development
This two-pager from the Consortium for Policy Research in Education summarizes findings from a California study of professional development in mathematics and reinforces a growing body or research suggesting that the most effective staff development focuses on content and content-specific teaching strategies. PDF file. Many CPRE papers are now on line.

Reflection is at the Heart of Practice
"The ordinary experiences of our teaching days are the essence of our practice," say the authors of this article in the May 1999 issue of Educational Leadership, which focuses on support for new teachers. "Using a guide to reflect on these experiences--either individually or with colleagues--is an entry to improving our teaching." Includes a 'guided reflection protocol.' Also see these suggestions on how to use the protocol with colleagues.

How to Examine Student Work Collaboratively
Two years ago, the Coalition of Essential Schools published an issue of "Horace" titled: "Looking Collaboratively at Student Work: An Essential Toolkit." CES has now posted this issue on their website and it's a must for anyone interested in promoting serious teacher discussions around standards, classroom assessment, and the examination of student work. Includes examples of group protocols. Also: read a description of a collaborative teacher group.

ALPS: Active Learning Practices for Schools
This remarkable website demonstrates active teaching and learning on the Internet at an unprecedented level -- at least in our experience. Most exciting, perhaps, is that it's a "beta" site, still under development. ALPS allows teachers and teacher support staff to collaborate with educational researchers and curriculum designers working at Harvard University's Graduate School of Education and Harvard's Project Zero. The site includes model lesson plans and activities; curriculum design tools; online educational publications; and interactive forums, workshops and conferences and teacher journals refecting on practice. The site is built around three themes: Teaching for Understanding; The Thinking Classroom; and Education with New Technologies.

Getting Staff "Buy-In" for School Reform
Researchers, program developers, policy analysts and educators have all noted that one of the most important ways to achieve the benefits of a well-designed program is to make sure that those who will use it are fully committed, says this policy/research brief at the American Federation of Teachers website. The article focuses on implementation of "proven programs" and underscores findings by RAND researchers that "schools that were forced (by the district) to implement a design showed lower levels of implementation."

Teachers' Meeting
Middle school teachers can participate in a live chat session on the 3rd Wednesday of each month at the Teachers.Net website. Also check out the archives, which feature earlier chats with authors and also recount discussions about special topics like "inclusion" and "motivating the struggling reader." Free, no registration.

Staff Development That Benefits Student Learning
"Staff development is like learning in the sense that it occurs whether or not it is organized and planned," middle grades reformer Hayes Mizell told the first joint meeting of Staff Development Leadership Council, "but high quality staff development, like high quality learning, only occurs when people... are explicit about the results they are seeking to achieve, and when they can subsequently produce evidence. . . ." (December 1998) Also see Mizell's talk: "School Staff Development: A Small Brave Band."

Staff Development and Student Achievement
Do differences in the ways schools provide staff development account for some variation in student achievement? The Georgia Council for School Performance chose a sample of higher and lower achieving schools, across the full range of socio-economic status, and found clear differences. The executive summary is posted at this page, where you'll also find a download link for the full report.

Professional Development for Technology
The CEO Forum on Education and Technology report, "Professional Development: A Link to Better Learning," finds that although the number of schools with computers and internet connections has increased over the last year, there are still too many teachers unprepared to integrate technology into their classrooms. The report also highlights schools and programs that are models in the use and integration of technology -- and recommendations for improving professional development. Link leads to complete report (PDF file) and ordering information.

Quality staff development can produce supply of well-balanced middle school teachers
"More than perhaps any other area of education, the challenge of educating early adolescents requires caring, well-versed teachers who will balance standards of excellence with the provision of supportive surroundings," say Joellen Killion and Stephanie Hirsh in "Crack in the Middle," an Education Week commentary. "Yet for reasons ranging from collegiate preparation to personal preferences, these middle school specialists are still in short supply. The most effective and efficient way to increase their numbers is through high-quality, comprehensive staff development geared specifically to middle-grades instruction."

Approach to staff development makes a large difference, major study says
In a major study of the way professional development funds are spent in Georgia schools, the Georgia Council for School Performance concluded there are clear differences in staff development between lower and higher-achieving schools. In the higher-achieving schools, staff development "included more collaboration on decisions about staff development, greater focus on students, a greater focus on the classroom, more use of effective training processesses, and move support from leadership." Executive summary and full report available on-line.

AT&T Learning Network Virtual Academy
Teachers can take on-line classes at accredited colleges and universities and discuss the latest teaching and technology trends with colleagues. Read a press release here. Site has a marketing aspect -- schools can earn "Learning Points" by banking ATT long-distance calls.

The Best Teachers Are Better Than Ever
When "teaching" is defined as something connected to "learning," and when "learning" is defined as grappling with new ways of thinking about one's tasks, one's world and one's self, and then acting according to that thinking, then it is fair to say that in certain classrooms, in the hands of certain teachers, students today are learning in ways that would be the envy of any generation. So says Ronald Thorpe, a former teacher and school administrator, who is vice president for program at the Rhode Island Foundation.

Teacher Renewal
Horace, the newsletter of the Coalition of Essential Schools, explores ways in which teachers might renew themselves and rededicate themselves to the teaching profession in difficult and stressful times. Some teachers "speak of emerging from the isolation of their classrooms into partnerships, teams, and networks marked by collaboration among peers. Such initiatives have their tensions and costs, they acknowledge; and at every stage of their careers teachers require explicit supports to carry them out. But they also yield intellectual and personal rewards, which often renew their energy and commitment to continuing in a profession under siege." Valuable insights for any teacher.

Exemplary Teacher Development Programs
These school and school district programs were recognized by the U.S. Department of Education in this press release. The programs are summarized at the end of the release.

Principal Talk
A group of Louisville middle school principals examine samples of student work and discuss the pros and cons of using collaborative teacher discussions around student work to help drive improvements in teaching and learning. Includes work samples and rubric.

Beyond the Buffet
Jefferson County (KY) public school leaders believe better professional development can help teachers rasie standards and expectations for themselves and their students. But can they find the time -- and change traditional "cafeteria line" thinking about teacher training?

Teacher Talk
Eavesdrop as a group of 7th grade teachers at Williams Middle School in Louisville, KY explore the collaborative examination of student work for the first time.

Reforming Teaching Through Staff Development: A Conversation
If teachers are going to make changes in their classrooms, they must experience what they teach in new ways themselves, professional development expert Susan Loucks-Horsley tells NSDC executive director Dennis Sparks in this in-depth interview. (Journal of Staff Development, Fall 1997).

Examining Student Work
The history team at Hoover Middle School in Long Beach, California meets weekly to scrutinize student work and their own lessons -- a process that team leader Mary Massich describes as "the most powerful experience in my professional life." Read a story about the Hoover team's work, listen in on an actual "critical friends" session, examine the student work yourself, and review the Hoover teachers' tips for other teachers who want to start their own collaborative groups.

Getting to Know - Teacher Content Knowledge
Students will not meet higher academic standards without teachers who have a deep understanding of their subjects -- and many do not. But in Long Beach, good professional development programs and a "seamless" community partnership are beginning to make a difference.

"Teacher cadre" leaders will help spearhead middle school reform
The Louisville schools are encouraging middle grades teachers to redesign their lessons around state and district academic standards and use "authentic assessments" linked to those goals to analyze individual student progress throughout the school year. To implement this strategy, the middle grades leadership team is creating a "teacher leadership cadre" -- a pair of teachers from each middle school who will be expected to develop and spread expert knowledge about standards and assessment in their own buildings. (Spring 1997) A story in the Winter 1998 issue of "Changing Schools in Louisville" describes the limited success of the Teacher Cadre model.

Clark Fellows add their expertise to JCPS's middle school reform mix
Five master middle school teachers help lead Louisville's standards-based reform efforts.

Ordinary People.
"If someone wanted to trace the link between staff development and improvements in student performance, it would be nearly impossible to do so, not only because the link is weak or non-existent, but because enhancing student performance was never a serious goal of staff development." Remarks by Hayes Mizell of the Edna M. Clark Foundation.

Mastering the Art of Teaching Well
Can high-quality coaching and collegial discussion help good teachers teach even better? Beverly Bimes-Michalak thinks so.

Components of a Comprehensive Staff Development Plan
Clark Foundation director Hayes Mizell offers his overview of what an effective staff development plan might look like. You can also read a response from a district administrator to Mizell's ideas -- and offer further ideas of your own.

Action Research and Reflective Practice -- "I'm trying to use action research to promote more thoughtful, reflective teaching practice, more dialogue and collaborative action among teachers, more passion and commitment as a teacher," writes one member of the Appalachian Educational Laboratory's action research listserve. "The focus is the classroom. I see action research as reflective practice -- you think about what you're doing and what's happening, try to make sense of it and see how things might be improved." Sign up for listserve and search the list's archives. View an impressive list of action research abstracts from the Madison, WI schools, including many middle school projects. Also see the Action Research on the Web site.

The National Board of Professional Teaching Standards
The National Board for Professional Teaching Standards works to strengthen the teaching profession and to improve student learning in America's schools. "We are establishing high standards for what accomplished teachers should know and be able to do, and we are developing a new system of advanced, voluntary certification for teachers. Our aim is to certify all teachers who meet the standards."

Teachers Taking Charge
Continuous teacher learning is the key to helping students achieve higher standards, says the National Foundation for the Improvement of Education in a recent report, "Teachers Take Charge of Their Learning: Transforming Professional Development for Student Success."

Standards-Based Staff Development
Efforts to reform schools through curriculum standards will fail unless teachers have "unprecedented amounts of support" to learn how to use standards in their everyday teaching, says Dennis Sparks, executive director of the National Staff Development Council.

Tapped In
The Teacher Professional Development Institute offers collaborative teacher professional development over the Internet in a "multi-user virtual environment."

Principles of High-Quality Professional Development, U.S. Department of Education .

Transforming Professional Development Consortium for Policy Research in Education.

Howard Gardner -- Short questions and answers from a series of professional development videos offer insights into Gardner's theories.

Federal Professional Development Resources, U. S. Department of Education.

Best Practice: New Standards for Teaching and Learning in America's Schools is illuminated by stories and concrete examples from real schools. The publisher describes a "detailed treatment of progressive school reform in America." Check the publisher's website for ordering information.