Educator Quality Resources

As school districts and universities across the nation turn to distance learning, how are educator preparation programs responding? This webinar featured preparation program leaders from the Educator Preparation Laboratory network who addressed such topics as licensing and credentialing, social-emotional learning and trauma-informed practices, and meeting the needs of teacher and school leader candidates through virtual learning.

Nearly 1 in 5 principals leave their schools each year, which can have a domino effect that disrupts student learning and contributes to teacher dissatisfaction and turnover. In this webinar, experts discussed Supporting a Strong, Stable Principal Workforce: What Matters and What Can Be Done, a new report from a research initiative between the National Association of Secondary School Principals and LPI.

Teacher and leader preparation programs continue to adapt how they prepare their candidates during the COVID-19 shutdown and in anticipation of a very different future for teaching and learning. As a follow-up to the highly popular April 23 webinar, this sequel dug deeper into the critical topics impacting teacher and leader preparation programs across the nation and address many of the questions raised by participants in the initial webinar.

How are educator preparation programs applying what they learned during the school shutdowns in the spring to adapt to emerging conditions in the fall? In this webinar, panelists shared lessons learned on effective teacher and leader preparation strategies during COVID-19 and addressed how programs are continually reimagining their structures and practices while maintaining a focus on key commitments to deeper learning and equity.

The COVID-19 pandemic has greatly expanded awareness of the deep and long-standing inequities in the U.S. education system. In this webinar, prominent education and civil rights leaders discussed how policymakers, educators, and advocates can seize this moment to reinvent schools around principles of equity, authentic learning, and stronger relationships in order to transform learning experiences and close opportunity and achievement gaps.

A prepared and stable teacher workforce is foundational to California’s ability to achieve equitable student outcomes, close achievement gaps, and mitigate learning loss. But ongoing and deepening teacher shortages remain a major challenge, and emerging signals suggest that shortages may worsen due to the COVID-19 pandemic. This webinar explored the ongoing impacts of teacher shortages and the promise of teacher recruitment and retention strategies.

Effective principals produce better outcomes for their schools. Two comprehensive studies on principal learning, commissioned by The Wallace Foundation, explore the roles universities, states, and districts all play in ensuring that principals get the preparation and ongoing support they need to be successful. Researchers from the Learning Policy Institute and RAND Corporation shared highlights from these studies, followed by a panel discussion on research implications.

Strong school leadership is critical for shaping productive learning environments, supporting teachers, and influencing student outcomes. This webinar, co-sponsored by AASA, explored district policies and practices that can lead to the presence of strong leaders in schools and shared examples of districts that have successfully implemented such practices.

With California’s expansion of transitional kindergarten and the development of a p-3 credential, the state has a pivotal opportunity to build a teacher workforce that has deep expertise in working with its youngest learners and families. Panelists at this webinar explored strategies to transform early childhood teacher preparation in California to ensure p–3 educators are well prepared to provide high-quality learning experiences to students across a range of settings.

This webinar on California’s ECE workforce focused on the current policy climate, emerging initiatives, and funding opportunities. Sponsored by ACSA, CCCECE, California County Superintendents, CCTE, PEACH, and LPI.