Getting the Balance Right:
Federal Policy on Effective Teaching
President Barack Obama and Education Secretary Arne Duncan have made teaching quality a major focus of federal education policy – and rightly so. Teachers are the most powerful school-based influence on student learning. The Race to the Top competitive grant competition and the Administration’s FY2011 federal budget proposal – which represents the beginnings of a blueprint for reauthorizing the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA) – exemplify the current focus on teachers.
Increasingly, the thrust of federal policy proposals is aimed at increasing teacher effectiveness. The NTC’s philosophy on teacher effectiveness rests on an understanding that great teachers are made, not born. We believe that every teacher deserves rich professional support and collaborative opportunities, including focused induction during their initial years in the profession. Efforts to improve teacher effectiveness also must address teacher working conditions— including the critical role of supportive school leadership, opportunities for leadership and collaboration, and customized professional development—that greatly impact teachers’ chances of success.
