This resource was prepared in response to a request for information about what States with Race to the Top -- Early Learning Challenge (RTT-ELC) grants are doing to support coaching as a professional development strategy. This information will be helpful to other States as they explore ways to support early childhood educators in improving their…

Traditional professional development related to teaching is offered on a short-term basis and at the individual level. Recent experiences and research studies have led to an organizational level model in which the educational developer forms a sustained partnership with administrators, faculty, staff, and students in a department, offering…

The role of the public school principal has expanded dramatically in recent decades. The expanded role means they are now significant multipliers of effective teaching and have a real opportunity to affect student achievement. Most states have spent recent years working to improve teacher effectiveness, recognizing its importance in improving…

Preparing pre-service teachers to address the disparities in educational attainment that occur in settings with complex demographics such as high poverty and super diversity (Vertovec, 2007) require a theoretically driven contextual and spacial (Soja, 1996) understanding of disadvantage. This understanding highlights the structural and systemic…

In this commentary, the Dean of the Kansas State University College of Education states that the job of a school leader is more complex and more demanding than ever before. As institutions of higher education contemplate the question "Who is the Building Leader?," defining the roles and responsibilities of the school building leader is…

Rescuing large animals from emergency situations can be fraught with dangers not only to the animals but also to the rescuers. People involved at the scene of such an emergency are most likely to include first responders, horse owners, and veterinarians. These groups need to be aware of how they can best work together to effect a safe and…

In their full essay for "Reach the Highest Standard in Professional Learning: Resources," the authors note that more rigorous instructional requirements combined with tighter budgets challenge school systems to think more deliberately about where and how they invest in teaching effectiveness. They write that forward-thinking school…

In her years of experience studying, working with, and writing about new teachers, induction programs, and mentoring, Annette Breaux has learned that successful mentoring boils down to 10 factors. In this article, Breaux highlights those features and provides actionable takeaways for school districts and educators. She recommends embedding…

The development of fundamental movement skills is essential in quality physical education. It has become widely accepted that school-age children who fail to reach the automatic phase in fundamental movement-skill development may choose physically inactive and unhealthy lifestyles. Therefore, physical educators must continue to discover ways to…

In 2008, we established the Integrated Graduate Program in Physical and Engineering Biology (IGPPEB) at Yale University. Our goal was to create a comprehensive graduate program to train a new generation of scientists who possess a sophisticated understanding of biology and who are capable of applying physical and quantitative methodologies to…

In addition to regular job duties, such as tree care, mulching, irrigation, and pesticide management, urban park workers have faced environmental changes due to drought, wildfires, and West Nile virus. They simultaneously have endured expectations to manage growing, diversifying park usage and limitations on career development. An integrated…

It is critical that preservice teachers (PSTs) in PE learn strategies to help them advocate for the importance of their subject in and around school settings. This article describes curricular and extracurricular activities that teacher educators can draw upon in preparing PSTs to advocate for their subject.

This article describes an instructional coaching program that includes high-quality data displays to engage teachers in conversation about instruction. A descriptive, nonjudgmental data display that captures a teacher's practice around an identified focus provides the foundation for a productive collaborative coaching conversation. The data…

Coaches lacking a formal background in sport psychology may shy away from teaching these skills in favor of teaching physical skills with which they are more familiar. Other coaches may assume that athletes will learn sport psychology skills as a byproduct of their coaching pedagogy. Regardless, high school coaches are responsible for teaching…

Today's science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) graduate students and postdoctoral fellows are tomorrow's new faculty members; but these junior academicians often receive limited pedagogical training. We describe four iterations of an entry-level program with a low time commitment, Mentored Discussions of Teaching (MDT). The…