NCTAF, MetLife Foundation and MA Secretary of Education Paul Reville Address Need for 21st Century Teaching Profession in Massachusetts

Forum Discusses Strategies to Transform Teaching and Improve Student Learning

BOSTON – November 12, 2008 – The expectations and challenges for teachers have grown as the demand to develop students who can be successful in the 21st century has increased. 

As pressure is continually placed on teachers to meet this goal alone, the National Commission on Teaching and America’s Future (NCTAF) today convened an education leadership forum, “The Future of Teaching in Massachusetts,” to discuss how transforming teaching can meet the learning needs of 21st century students.

This forum, sponsored by MetLife Foundation, is the third in a series of conversations that NCTAF is holding across the country to call attention to the fact that quality teaching should not be looked at as an individual accomplishment.  Instead, there is a need to bring the spirit and power of teamwork to schools – teamwork that builds the capacity to improve performance, increase teaching effectiveness, and close achievement gaps. 

“I’m mindful of how much we are asking of our educators. We want them to help our children achieve world-class proficiency in all subject areas and develop characteristics that make them exemplary citizens, workers, and lifelong learners,” said Paul Reville, the Massachusetts Secretary of Education. “The trouble is, we ask our teachers to accomplish all this with a school schedule better suited to the 19th century,” he added.

In order for students to be successful participants in today’s flat world, schools must be transformed into strong learning communities where principals, teachers, students, and parents receive the support they need to collectively engage in a common effort to improve learning..  

“Too often teachers are generally left to sink or swim while struggling to be all things to all students,” said Tom Carroll, NCTAF’s president.  “It is important that we dismiss the assumption that stand-alone teachers working in isolation can achieve success for every student.”

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.

The 2004-05 MetLife Survey of the American Teacher: Transitions and the Role of Supportive Relationships paints a detailed picture of the supportive school climate that is necessary to sustain principals and teachers as they progress from novices to experienced educators.

“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 collaboration as a way to strengthen our schools.”

At the forum, two panels addressed existing challenges and highlighted initiatives and strategies that offer better support for teachers.  According to NCTAF, a huge part of successful schools hinges on how we recruit, prepare, and retain teachers, as well as collaborative learning environments.

The forum featured several promising practices that can serve as models for the Commonwealth of Massachusetts.  One such model is the Boston Teacher Residency (BTR) program, which provided an example of an alternative preparation program that closely links preparation and practice. Through this model teacher candidates, or residents, are trained in ways that prepare them for the realities of the classroom. Residents work in cohorts and they regularly collaborate with mentors in Boston’s public schools and take a specialized curriculum developed and led by local educators and community leaders.  The BTR has become an integral part of Boston’s strategy to improve instruction for every child.

Another example is the University Park Campus School (UPCS).  UPCS is a 7-12 public school, located on the campus of Clark University, and the educators there have created a learning environment where collaboration and academic success are core to the culture. Through a successful partnership with Clark University, the school has developed instructional techniques that have led to universal college readiness at UPCS.   The small size of the 231-student body, looping by teachers, and collaborative culture of the faculty ensure that no student can slip through the cracks. Personal relationships between students and teachers flourish.  Since 1997, over 95% of UPCS graduates have attended college.

Other panelists covered a range of topics, including 21st century teaching, extended learning time, developing teacher leaders, community involvement, rethinking teacher preparation, higher education/K-12 partnerships, strong principal leadership, and the business community’s role in education.

Pat Haddad, Massachusetts State Representative and Chairperson for the Joint Committee on Education, moderated both panels.  The first panel included: Mitchell Chester, Commissioner of Elementary and Secondary Education; Nicholas Donohue, Nellie Mae Education Foundation; Jackie L. Jenkins-Scott, Wheelock College; Linda Noonan, MA Business Alliance for Education. The second panel included: Claudia Alfaro, Citizen Schools; Susan Ambrozavitch, Danvers Public Schools; Tom Del Prete, Jacob Hiatt Center for Urban Education at Clark University; Theresa Oakes, Smith Elementary School; and Jesse Solomon, Boston Teacher Residency.

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The National Commission on Teaching and America's Future (NCTAF) is a non-profit, non-partisan advocacy organization based in Washington, D.C. NCTAF is dedicated to providing every child with competent, caring, qualified teaching in schools organized for success. With a network of 25 partner states and links to professional educational organizations across the nation, NCTAF provides leadership on innovation and improvement in teaching and learning in America’s schools. For more information, visit NCTAF’s website: www.nctaf.org.

MetLife Foundation supports programs that increase opportunities for young people to succeed, give students and teachers a voice in improving education, create connections between schools and communities and develop leadership. The Foundation works with national nonprofit organizations to develop a variety of programs, many of which address issues raised each year in The MetLife Survey of the American Teacher. For more information about MetLife Foundation, please visit www.metlife.org.