Truly changing one’s own practice takes a focused commitment, and the support of a coach can significantly increase the likelihood of success. That’s one of the big takeaways from Learning Forward’s experience facilitating 33 Academy cohorts. As we reviewed the survey data from our most recent Academy graduates, we were pleased to read that close to 90% of them reported their practice becoming more effective as a result of the Academy experience.

The TeachStrong campaign has rallied leading education groups around nine key principles to draw more attention to the national imperative to invest in teaching and teachers. The principle we most embrace is the imperative to provide teachers with the time, tools, and support needed for success.

What’s the biggest change we can make to improve student learning? A new study provides useful insights to illustrate specific practices that answer this question.

Overall, we are satisfied with the definition that is included in Every Student Succeeds Act, though we believe that effective professional learning requires more than what the bill describes.

When we think about what hooks us to popular reality television shows, it’s often the characters that pull us in each week. Is it the odd or eccentric idiosyncrasies that leave us baffled and intrigued about what they might do next? Do we find ourselves trying to predict their behaviors and how others around them might respond? Trying to decipher the needs and behaviors of others is a critical skill that helps make leaders effective.

Stephanie Hirsh examines how two recent reports from researcher John Hattie relate to the Learning Communities standard, which states that effective professional learning leads to improved student learning when all educators learn collaboratively as they commit to collective responsibility and continuous improvement.

Learning Forward’s definition of professional learning is included in the Every Student Succeeds Act.

People who know Deborah Jackson, Learning Forward board of trustees president, know how passionate she is about education. In this post, she reflects on how her path has not always been predictable and shares a few of the more surprising moments in her life as a learning leader.

Learning Forward and Corwin announce the Instructional Leadership Team from Braulio Alonso School in Tampa, Florida, as the winner of the 2015 Shirley Hord Learning Team Award. This award is given annually to a team of teachers that demonstrates Learning Forward’s definition of professional learning in action.