Leader

This report provides a comprehensive and research-based framework outlining the conditions necessary for school leaders to succeed and details the conditions that effective school systems have in place. A separate toolkit offers principals a means of assessing their current conditions and provides recommendations on ways to improve those conditions with the overall goal of increasing student achievement. 

This report considers teacher effectiveness reforms over the last 10 years and addresses changes in practices and policy that resulted from these reforms. The report describes how policymakers’ perception of teachers changed from viewing teachers as “interchangeable parts” 10 years ago to “the single most important in-school factor for student learning today,” and proposes that, moving forward, policymakers should focus on five main areas: meaningful evaluation of teacher performance, professional development, teacher preparation, productivity, and political strategy.

Based on the premise that teacher attendance is directly related to student outcomes, this report examines teacher absenteeism in schools across the United States and calculates how costly absenteeism can be for schools and districts. The report explores whether high-poverty schools experience more absenteeism than low-poverty schools, and proposes some simple and creative ways for school leaders to create a climate that encourages high teacher attendance. 

This special report from Education Week, directed to school leaders, maps the current educational technology marketplace and takes a look at the fastest growing categories in the sector, including increasing use of online testing and virtual education. The report gives school leaders tips and advice on how to narrow down their choices and make wise decisions in the fast-growing world of ed-tech products and services. 

This report examines how educators working together can improve student outcomes. Through surveys of teachers and principals, this report examines the views of teachers, teacher leaders, and students on what collaboration looks like in schools and the impact it can have. It also assesses the importance of building time into the school schedule to accommodate collaboration among in-school educators. 

Based on Wallace Foundation research on what effective school principals do well, these five Web-based video learning guides use excerpts from The Principal Story, a documentary produced by PBS, to illustrate five key practices of effective principals. A facilitator guide is available on the website and offers ideas for using the tools, as well as links to supporting resources produced by The Wallace Foundation.

Produced by the District Management Journal, this series of 10 briefs summarizes 10 key opportunities for districts to realign resources and free up funds for other district priorities. This “Top 10” list takes into account both theory and practice, using real-life lessons from districts that implemented similar initiatives. Briefs cover topics including professional development for teachers, extending the reach of effective teachers, and scheduling services equitably using data.

Published by the Center for American Progress, the report focuses on the need to build a more racially and ethnically diversified teaching workforce. The study looks at the obstacles that limit the supply of highly effective teachers of color and the difficulties in retaining teachers of color. The impact that the disproportionate number of teachers of color has on the growing body students of color in the United States is addressed. The report contains recommendations aimed at increasing the teachers-of-color pipeline at the federal, state, and district levels.  

This report, published by Gallup, includes data from 5th- to 12th-grade students, together with material gathered over several decades from studies focusing on the key qualities of high-performing teachers and principals. With an end goal of improving student engagement and achievement, the report looks at how principals can create high-quality learning environments within their schools and includes sections on attracting, engaging, and retaining highly effective teachers.