NCTAF, MetLife Foundation, and WGBH Host Town Hall Meeting on Educator Empowerment to Improve Teaching and Learning

March 22nd Panel Discusses Strategies to Support Student Achievement

BOSTON – March 22, 2007 –Teaching in the 21st century should look different than it did in the 1950s.  The National Commission on Teaching and America’s Future (NCTAF), MetLife Foundation, and WGBH today convened a town hall meeting to discuss strategies to transform schools in ways that meet the needs of today’s students.

According to NCTAF, teachers leave the profession in droves because schools are stuck in an old factory-era model that fails to encourage a collaborative, supportive work environment. Almost half of new teachers leave the profession in five years. The problem is particularly acute in low-income communities, where one in five teachers leave each year.  Principal turnover is just as alarming, with four years or less in one school as the typical stint for many.

“Teacher and principal churn in schools undermines the ability to develop successful learning cultures because there is a constant rebuilding of staff,” said NCTAF’s President Tom Carroll.  “It’s time to focus on strategies that work, especially if we are serious about retaining our best educators and improving student learning.”

The town hall discussion focused on the need to shift teachers from the practice of working in isolation to working collectively in order to keep teachers in the classroom and support student learning.  NCTAF believes this is important to advance the teaching profession and help teachers and students meet the academic and workforce demands of the 21st Century.

“It is time to abandon the factory-era model of teaching and make way for the creative spirit and productive power of teamwork in our schools,” said NCTAF President Tom Carroll. “It is important that we dismiss the assumption that a stand-alone teacher working in isolation can achieve success for all students."

Schools in which educators work in collaborative learning teams consistently deliver the greatest gains among students, according to NCTAF. These schools also typically demonstrate strong leadership, shared responsibility among teachers, ongoing professional development opportunities, and strong parental involvement.

“Supportive relationships are important if we want to retain teachers and better ensure student success,” said Sibyl Jacobson, president of MetLife Foundation.  “NCTAF is well positioned to promote the importance of collaborative learning teams as a way to strengthen our schools.”

Boston’s Richard J. Murphy School was featured at the town hall meeting on the panel and in a WGBH-produced video because of the collaborative model its staff embraces.  The K-8 school was once one of the lowest performing schools in the city, but is now in the top five percent of all Boston Public Schools. 

“We want to shine a light on some of the promising practices in schools to have a viral effect on districts around the country,” said Carroll. “The Richard J. Murphy School is a great example that many educators can learn from – in Boston and beyond.”