The Midwest Comprehensive Center (MWCC) at AIR, funded through a U.S. Department of Education grant from October 2012 to September 2019, provides technical assistance for the state education agencies of Illinois, Iowa, Minnesota, and Wisconsin.

In this section, SEAs that intend to use funds under one or more of the included programs for certification and licensure systems, educator preparation program strategies, or educator growth and development systems, must provide a description with the necessary information.

Promoting and ensuring a positive educator environment is one approach to retaining highly effective educators.

As district leaders search for the best ways to improve student learning with the Common Core State Standards, some early implementers are giving us an opportunity to learn from their experience.

Career and Technical Education (CTE) teachers are uniquely positioned to improve college and career readiness for all students, and yet major federal and state education reforms, such as the Common Core State Standards, teacher evaluation and ESEA flexibility have paid insufficient attention to d

This CALDER Center paper examines the value of strategically assigning disproportionately larger classes to the strongest teachers in order to optimize student learning in the face of differential teacher effectiveness.

The strike in Chicago, the nation's third-largest school district, raises questions about teachers unions nationwide. Jane Hannaway, a vice president of AIR, and Andrew Rotherham, co-founder of Bellwether Education, explain how different teachers unions work.

Not all student growth measures are alike, nor are they designed to be. But when student growth measures are used for educator evaluation, fairness and comparability become critical.

This paper addresses the teachers’ use of educational research to improve their instructional practice. Based on two qualitative, exploratory studies AIR conducted in the Chicago metropolitan area between 2008 and 2011, researchers found that teachers do appreciate and use research when there is a pressing need.

The Good Behavior Game (GBG) is a team-based classroom behavior management strategy that helps young children master the role of student while developing the discipline needed to sit still, pay attention and complete their school work. AIR works with school districts and communities on all aspects of GBG implementation.

This report, authored by AIR and funded by the HOPE Foundation, introduces the school reform model, describes the study methodology, presents findings for each of the three research questions explored, and discusses the implications for the intervention and additional research.

Generation Y public school teachers—those born between 1977 and 1995—have been serving students for nearly a decade now, represent an increasingly large proportion of the teaching workforce. Five key insights about Gen Y require workplaces that ensure teachers receive regular feedback on their effectiveness; support peer learning and shared practice; recognize (and reward) high performance; have fair, rigorous, and meaningful evaluation systems; and leverage technology intelligently to enhance performance.

Between 2009 and 2010, seven Midwestern states—Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Michigan, Minnesota, Ohio, and Wisconsin—passed significant legislation addressing teacher preparation, licensure, and evaluation. AIR conducted a review of this legislation, analyzing each state’s system for developing, recruiting, and retaining effective teachers and leaders.

This report examines state methods of promoting charter and innovative schools, as mentioned in the Race to the Top applications.

As Baby Boom teachers begin to retire, a new generation of teachers is taking on the classroom. Generation Y teachers—those born between 1977 and 1995—are young, technologically savvy, and interested in global outcomes.

This research synthesis provides practical guidance for evaluating teacher effectiveness that extends beyond teachers' contribution to student achievement gains.

Effective school leaders may be the linchpin of a successful school system. Research has identified school leadership quality as second only to teacher quality in its influence on student achievement.

This report finds that teachers who receive substantial professional development—an average of 49 hours in the nine studies—can boost their students’ achievement by about 21 percentile points.

This report delivers an overview of the site visit component of the TTT evaluation. Specifically, it describes the process that was used to select the eight sites and provides a snapshot of each; discusses major themes that emerged from the data and relates them to the literature on alternative certification programs; and presents case studies of the sites that highlight the distinctive approaches used across the United States.

This qualitative, comparative case study examines how school stakeholders understood comprehensive school reform (CSR) implementation, and how contextual factors influenced the process of CSR model implementation.

This communication framework was developed to promote effective dialogue about the measurement of teacher quality and effectiveness. It facilitates communication about policies regarding teacher effectiveness by helping to build a shared understanding of the terminology used in the discussion.

Teachers' use of education technology in their classrooms and schools report examines the availability of this technology in their classrooms and schools, their training and preparation for using it, and the barriers to technology use they encounter.