Teachers & Education Policy U.S. DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION August 25, 2011

Maryann Woods-Murphy Washington Teaching Ambassador Fellow Spanish Teacher 2010 New Jersey Teacher of the Year. Brad Jupp Senior Program Advisor in the Office of Secretary of Education. Former English Teacher and Union Leader (Denver, Colorado) Chad Aldeman Policy Advisor Office of Planning, Evaluation, and Policy Development

Overarching Goal “By 2020, America will once again have the highest proportion of college graduates in the world.” President Barack Obama, February 24, 2009 “We believe this is the civil rights challenge of our time.” Secretary of Education Arne Duncan

Our Strategy to Meet This Goal Elementary (Grades K-5) Secondary (Grades 6-12) Post- Secondary Early Learning (Birth-grade 3) Goal: All graduates have opportunities for success in the 21 st century economy. Goal: All students graduate high school on time prepared for at least one year of post-secondary. Goal: All students enter middle school with foundational skills to tackle advanced subjects. Goal: All kindergarten students arrive ready to learn and remain on track to 4 th grade. Our Methods to Meet This Goal Only a comprehensive strategy will work -- “cradle to career.” Reauthorization of ESEA is one part of this broader strategy. Tight on goals; loose on means. Foster innovation and reward success. We will have accomplished these reforms with educators, not to them.

The Major Changes from an Educator’s Perspective NCLBOur Proposal Single, pass/fail measure To grade schools Multiple measures To create a culture of continuous improvement More and more schools fail Even where progress is being made Recognize school success Reward and learn from progress & growth Narrowed curriculum Focusing on tests in math and ELA Well-rounded education Allow all subjects, fund better tests Focus on gaps & equity Focus on achievement of all student groups Focus on gaps & equity Maintain focus + appropriate interventions = Are students proficient? Focuses on “bubble kids,” while losing sight of higher and lower performers Are students learning? Focuses all students Highly qualified teachers Minimum professional expectations; looks good on paper. Highly effective teachers High professional expectations; looks good in the classroom

A Complete Education - Principles Support implementation of college and career- ready standards. Focus on a complete and well-rounded education. Improve low-income students’ access to accelerated and college-level coursework.

Support high-quality instruction in high-need districts and schools. Creates renewed respect for the effective effort of all teachers and leaders. Requires multiple measures when considering the efficacy of teachers, leaders and schools. A Complete Education - Principles

College and Career Ready Standards: An Example Figure 3 A campground has a large lawn with a soccer field that measures 100 × 50 meters (Figure 1). The park manager decides to keep the field open at night. Therefore, a decision needs to be made about where to place some light posts. Standard lamp posts are 13 meters high and light a circular region with a radius of 50 meters (see Figure 2). 1.The diagram below (Figure 3) shows the lighting of the field when lights are placed at points D and B. What is the area of the soccer field that is NOT lit when these two light posts are used. Show your work. What might a challenging test question look like? Dutch 8 th grade math examination item by the courtesy of the Freudenthal Institute.

College- and Career-Ready Students - Approach Respond to greatest challenges Provide flexibility for results Recognize & reward success Rethinking the federal accountability system Use growth and progress to measure schools. Focus on closing achievement gaps. Rethinking the federal accountability system Use growth and progress to measure schools. Focus on closing achievement gaps. Similar differentiation at district and state level Schools in bottom 5% Schools in next 5% Achievement gaps Most schools School making greatest gains Schools meeting all performance targets

Four Assurances

American Recovery & Reinvestment Act Historic influx of funding to all states to save jobs, ensure stability, and provide base level of funding to create foundation for reform. SFSF: $48.6b IDEA: $12.2b Title I: $10b Ed Tech: $650m (and other funding streams) Largest one-time federal education investment in history to save jobs and drive reforms. $98.2b Formula Funds Targeted, competitive grants to support states and districts in taking on ambitious reforms. RTT: $4.35b SIG: $3.0b i3: $650m SLDS: $250m (and other funding streams) Competitive Funds

Great Teachers and Great Leaders - Principles Great teaching and school leadership matters. No in-school factor has more influence on improving student learning. Shift focus from qualifications to effectiveness. Invest in teacher and leader preparation and career development.

Move away from perfunctory evaluations, and incorporate multiple measures in a fair rigorous way. Ensure that all students have access to effective teachers and leaders. Great Teachers and Great Leaders - Principles

Great Teachers and Great Leaders - Structure Develop teacher and leader effectiveness and ensure that all students have access to great instruction. Invest in ambitious reforms in teacher & leader career development, including placement, compensation and evaluation. Develop & scale up programs that prepare teachers & leaders to be effective where needed most. Effective Teachers & Leaders Teacher & Leader Innovation Fund Teacher & Leader Pathways Meaningful evaluations Equitable distribution Preparation & support Flexibility with results

Teacher Preparation Policy U.S. DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION August 25, 2011

The shape of the teaching profession is changing, raising the stakes on teacher preparation. Teacher experience as share of workforce Mode: 15 years of experience. Mode: 1 year of experience.

We’re not setting a high bar for entry. Only 23% of teachers come from the top third of college graduates –14% in high-need schools. We’re not giving teachers the skills they need to be effective. 62% of education school alumni feel they were not prepared for “classroom realities.” Our system for preparing teachers isn’t doing a good job. This isn’t fair to teachers or to students. 62% 23%

Programs don’t provide teachers with the skills they’ll need in the classroom. …work with parents: …address needs of students from diverse cultural backgrounds: …address needs of students with disabilities: …address needs of students with limited English proficiency: …maintain order and discipline in the classroom: 21% 28% 30% 16% 33% Principals reporting their teachers were prepared to…

Paper-and-pencil licensure tests are easy and lack predictive validity. 99% 98% 97% 96% National pass rates on licensure exams. Pass rate (percentage)

Our teaching force does not reflect the increasing diversity of our students. Percentage who identify as African-American or Hispanic 38% of students 14% of teachers

These challenges persist in part because of a lack of meaningful accountability. 27 states have never identified a low-performing program. 12 states have identified 1-5 low-performing programs. 12 states have identified 6+ low-performing programs. Out of the over 1,400 institutions preparing teachers, only 38 programs were identified by states as low-performing in the most recent year.

But despite this picture, this is a time of incredible opportunity in teacher preparation. Teacher education associations are calling for preparation to be “turned upside down.” Top programs are attracting talent & offering strong models. States are beginning to measure programs based on meaningful data. States & ed. schools are working to raise standards for entry into teaching based on performance. TN LA NC

We’re proposing initiatives that will support this progress and tackle long-standing challenges. Presidential Teaching Fellows A new $185 million program to support rigorous state-level policies and provide scholarships to attend top programs. Augustus F. Hawkins Centers for Excellence $40 million in first-time funding for a program supporting teacher preparation at minority-serving institutions. Together, these initiatives will reward the best programs, improve the middle, and transform or shut down the lowest-performing. 1 2

Presidential Teaching Fellows will support rigorous state-level policies and fund scholarships for teachers. States set-aside to implement performance-based licensure and teacher prep program accountability. Receipt conditioned on removal of barriers to effective alternative route programs. $185 million in formula grants to leverage state reform and provide scholarship aid to top-tier teacher ed programs. Top-tier programs, be they alternative or traditional route, receive subgrants to award $10,000 scholarships to “Presidential Teaching Fellows.” Presidential Teaching Fellows prepare to teach high-need subjects or fields, and teach three years in high-need schools.

Hawkins Centers for Excellence will help prepare the next generation of effective minority teachers. Minority-serving institutions receive competitive grants to reform and expand their teacher preparation programs. The President’s budget proposes $40 million in first-time funding for this already-authorized program. Improvement activities to include: * Heightened entry or exit standards; * Course redesign so that programs are clinically-based; * Training of all candidates in evidence-based methods of reading instruction; and * Partnerships with local school districts or non-profits with demonstrated effectiveness in preparing and placing minority candidates in high need schools.

Teacher Loan Forgiveness Individuals must teach full-time for 5 consecutive years in high-need subjects and low-income K-12 schools. Can have up to $17,500 in principal and interest forgiven. Income-based repayment for all borrowers. Teachers eligible for full Public Service Loan Forgiveness after 10 years.

The Role of Teachers in Policymaking

Teaching Ambassador Fellows Goal: to facilitate communication between the classroom and the Department of Education (ED) 16 Fellows selected based on leadership, teaching ability, and potential for contribution to ED and the field – 5 Fellows spend a year at ED in Washington – 11 Fellows remain in their classrooms and work part time on projects and with policy liaisons – All Fellows serve as federal employees while also sharing their classroom teacher perspectives 28

What do Fellows do? Learn about ED Provide ED with the teachers’ voice and perspective on policy Serve in a listening capacity to teachers in the field Bring the concerns, triumphs and every day challenges of teachers back to ED

How does policy effect your classroom? 30AssessmentsAssessments Administrative Processes Teacher Quality & Certification Requirements Money/ResourcesMoney/Resources Parent / Community Input StandardsStandardsCurriculumCurriculum Your Classroom

Classroom Fellows Kareen Borders, Gig Harbor, WA Juan Govea, Salinas, CA Sharla Steever, Hill City, SD Leah Lechleiter-Luke, New Lisbon, WI Dexter Cheney, Chicago, IL Bruce Wellman, Olathe, KS Madonna Ramp, Austin, TX Maryann Woods-Murphy Allendale, NJ Bruce Taterka, Mendham NJ Angela McClary-Rush, Andrews, SC Gamal Sherif, Philadelphia, PA Robert Baroz, Boston, MA Washington Fellows Claire Jellinek, Albuquerque, NM Gregory Mullenholz, Rockville, MD Shakera Walker, Boston, MA Genevieve DeBose, NYC

Examples of Fellows’ work Laurie Calvert Teacher outreach via ED website, blogging, creation of informational materials Nick Greer Worked on teacher quality and recruitment, RTT technical assistance, and STEM Leah Raphael Middle-school strategy and Race to the Top Technical Assistance. Linda Yaron Worked on union/district partnerships, community outreach, especially with youth voice and international affairs Edit Khachatryan Worked on worked on Career and Technical Education & secondary schools strategy, teacher quality and evaluations, and RTT technical assistance

Public Comment Forum The U.S. Department of Education must respond to each comment Forums listed in the Federal Register available to receive public feedbackhttp:// National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) Development Teachers write and edit these exams NAEP has a significant impact on policy 33 Teachers and Federal Policy Examples

What else can I do? -Participate in school committees -Learn about your union’s education initiatives -Ask for more involvement from school, district & state level -Read and discuss big questions -Join local professional organizations

Seek -Communication & outreach -Partnerships -Local events -Collaboration with your colleagues

Our Strategy to Meet This Goal Elementary (Grades K-5) Secondary (Grades 6-12) Post- Secondary Early Learning (Birth-grade 3) Goal: All graduates have opportunities for success in the 21 st century economy. Goal: All students graduate high school on time prepared for at least one year of post-secondary. Goal: All students enter middle school with foundational skills to tackle advanced subjects. Goal: All kindergarten students arrive ready to learn and remain on track to 4 th grade. Our Methods to Meet This Goal Only a comprehensive strategy will work -- “cradle to career.” Reauthorization of ESEA is one part of this broader strategy. Tight on goals; loose on means. Foster innovation and reward success. We will have accomplished these reforms with educators, not to them.

Questions? U.S. DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION August 25, 2011