Overview

The New Teacher Center (NTC) has established a policy division as part of its core mission to become the nation’s premier resource for policymakers and educators interested in the policy components of establishing and funding high-quality induction programs for educators. The division works closely with government agencies, advocacy organizations, teacher unions, research groups, individual policy makers, universities and other key education stakeholders to inform and support robust policies focused on supporting novice teachers and school leaders.. Where appropriate, additional support is provided to help policy makers address school issues closely related to induction, such as teacher evaluation, teacher compensation, and leadership development.

• consulting with state policymakers in designing pilot and statewide programs for teacher and principal induction;
• hosting a multi-state policy summit to inform, support, and mobilize regional leadership around induction;
• contributing to a national joint statement and white paper informing federal policy makers on the critical need for high-quality induction;
• facilitating school district management-labor discussions to re-design teacher evaluation;
• supporting school districts and states in designing and implementing evaluation programs to shape future professional development initiatives;
• convening statewide and regional groups to pursue grants to support new initiatives in teacher and principal development;
• convening cross-stakeholder groups, such as IHE’s and school districts, with the goal of improving collaboration in the interests of teacher and principal development.

Race to the Top

Through the U.S. Department of Education’s Race to the Top (RTTT) competitive grant program, states are asked to advance education reforms in four areas: (1) Adopting standards and assessments that prepare students to succeed in college and the workplace and to compete in the global economy; (2) Building data systems that measure student growth and success, and inform teachers and principals about how they can improve instruction; (3) Recruiting, developing, rewarding, and retaining effective teachers and principals, especially where they are needed most; and (4) Turning around our lowest-achieving schools.

NTC Reviews RTTT Phase Two Finalists

All of the 19 Race to the Top (RTTT) finalists propose more support for new teachers, in the form of new teacher induction and/or a proposed survey of teaching and learning conditions. The NTC’s policy team just released an analysis of these finalists, focusing on ways new teachers will be supported and how teaching and learning conditions will be addressed.

• NTC Policy Brief (8/05/2010)

RTTT Phase One

Two states – Delaware and Tennessee – were awarded grants in Phase One of the RTTT competition. Forty states and the District of Columbia submitted applications to the U.S. Department of Education during the first round of Race to the Top grant competition. The NTC reviewed the teacher and principal induction provisions in the state applications.

• Summary of Phase One, RTTT Proposals Related to New Teacher Induction and Principal Coaching (5/28/2010)

RTTT Final Guidelines

NTC was instrumental in shaping the final criteria that governs the RTTT program. For more information, please see our recommendations below.

• General Guidance and Recommendations (8/21/2009)
• Specific Recommendations (8/27/2009)

ESEA Reauthorization

On April 15, NTC CEO Ellen Moir testified before the U.S. Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions to discuss the importance of induction programs for all new teachers. Ellen made three recommendations for inclusion in the ESEA reauthorization regarding induction and mentoring programs. Read the written testimony.

Teachers are the most powerful school-based influence on student learning. Learn more about the current Federal policy efforts underway, NTC’s perspective, and the challenges of ensuring that these meet the political needs of policymakers and the professional needs of individual teachers.

• Getting the Balance Right -- February 2010

Teacher And Principal Improvement Act

U.S. Senator Jack Reed of Rhode Island has introduced an important piece of legislation that would strengthen educator quality in high-need American schools and districts and would create an important funding stream to support high-quality induction, mentoring and professional development. The Teacher and Principal Improvement Act, developed in consultation with NTC, would amend Title II of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act to provide $1 billion in targeted assistance to schools and districts to develop and support effective teachers, principals, and school leaders through implementation of the following proven, research-based strategies:

• Comprehensive Multi-Year Induction and Mentoring for New Teachers, Principals, and School Leaders
• Team-Based, Job-Embedded, Data-Driven Professional Development for All Teachers
• High-Quality Support and Professional Development for Principals and School Leaders
• Redesigned Teacher and Principal Evaluation Systems
• Increased Teacher Leadership Opportunities and Compensation
• Full Population Surveys of Teaching and Learning Conditions in Schools and Districts

• Read More

Blueprint for Reform

The Obama Administration over the weekend released a thoughtful and innovative ‘Blueprint for Reform’ to guide the reauthorization of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act. The New Teacher Center (NTC) looks forward to seeing more specific details about the proposed policy changes, and we are pleased by the new direction taken by the Administration, including a strong focus on quality teaching and principal leadership, a more reasonable approach to school accountability and unprecedented funding to support states.

NTC is delighted to see that the Administration will require states and districts to collect teacher survey data on available professional support and working conditions in schools and report the results biennially. NTC’s nationally recognized and extensive work on Teaching and Learning Conditions Surveys has shown the importance of using this type of information to ensure that all students are getting the effective teaching they deserve.

NTC applauds the focus on the professional needs of teachers, especially collaborative opportunities to increase teacher effectiveness through effective, job-embedded professional development. This will continue to be vitally important to the needs of our newest educators who disproportionately serve America’s most disadvantaged students in some of our most challenged and under-resourced schools. High-quality, comprehensive educator induction and mentoring programs — which provide formative instructional assistance from highly-skilled, carefully selected, trained mentors — expedite beginning teacher effectiveness and raise student achievement.

To read more about the New Teacher Center’s views on recent federal policy, read “Getting the Balance Right: Federal Policy on Effective Teaching” on our website.

To learn more about the New Teacher Center’s instructionally intensive approach to supporting new teacher development, read “Principles of High Quality Mentoring” in a recent edition of the Harvard Education Letter. (March 17, 2010)

NTC State Induction Policy Review

View the results of NTC’s State Induction Policy Review that provides a snapshot of current induction policies of participating states.

For more information on policy initiatives, visit our national, state, and local policy pages, or contact via email.