Learning Forward

Principal Networks  The Learning Communities standard documents the role of collaborative learning in helping practitioners reach their individual and collective goals. Read the spring issue of The Learning Principal to see how School Leaders Network brings networks of principals together to identify, reflect on, and accelerate critical leadership skills using […]

Fred Brown, Learning Forward’s director of strategy and development, is passionate about expanding our reach beyond North America. As our unofficial international learning ambassador, he travels widely to share information about Learning Forward and learn how educators in other countries tackle issues related to professional learning. Each time he returns, […]

A Global Perspective:  What professional learning looks like around the world. By Lois Brown Easton A survey of teachers in 24 countries reported that 89% engaged in professional learning in an 18-month period — which means 11% reported no professional learning during that time. Data show us the types of […]

State education leaders should take the lead in efforts to create more coherent, comprehensive, and sustained statewide professional learning systems that help educators meet the promise of the Common Core, according to a new policy brief by Learning Forward. Seizing the Moment: State Lessons for Transforming Professional Learning underscores the […]

The Learning Forward board of trustees is seeking candidates for open positions on the board. If you are interested in becoming a member of the board of trustees or know a Learning Forward member whom you would like to nominate, review the Board Oath of Office on the Learning Forward […]

Growing Into Equity Professional Learning and Personalization in High-Achieving Schools By Sonia Gleason and Nancy Gerzon What makes a Title I school high achieving, and what can we all learn from that experience? Professional learning and leadership that supports personalized instruction make the difference, as captured in the authors’ research. This […]

In That Used to Be Us, Thomas Friedman and Michael Mandelbaum (2011) wrote, “In the span of a decade, people in Boston, Bangkok, and Bangalore, Mumbai, Manhattan, and Moscow, all became virtual next-door neighbors.” This influence of technology and globalization is something we are all experiencing, even though we may […]

The 8th-grade math team at Santa Fe Junior High School in Santa Fe, Texas, is the winner of the Shirley Hord Learning Team Award. This award is given to a team of teachers that demonstrates Learning Forward’s definition of professional learning in action. Ten teams from schools across the United […]

Schools exist to help every child prepare for college, careers, and life. To make this happen, schools must keep the focus on high-quality instruction for every child. Robert Marzano (2003) suggests that, in addition to a planned and viable curriculum, staff collaboration is a leading factor in helping schools succeed. […]

The benefits of team coaching include exponentially increasing the impact of coaching so that more teachers benefit from the coaching provided. In addition, team coaching supports group maturity, more rapid growth and development, innovation, teachers’ confidence, and teacher capacity. With team coaching, group members commit to their own growth and […]