ML 4.0 Transitional//EN"> y Karnette, and Arthurlene Towner.

Note: Postings on today's topic that appeared on the Web site by 8:00 PM Pacific time are included in this summary.

What are the most important factors in attracting and retaining experienced and qualified teachers? Are the answers different for teachers in low performing schools? What should the state's role be?
- Participants suggested many incentives for attracting and retaining teachers including: sabbaticals, job sharing, team teaching, grants for additional training, reasonable standards for performance, support provider/"teacher-leaders", National Board certification, increased compensation, expense relief programs, teacher tax credit, continuing education, aides, prep periods, reassignments, smaller classes, time to work with other staff, help from health/social service professionals, professional status, and supportive parents, principals and administrations. In more challenging areas, offer more paid time off sooner and bonuses.
- Some intangible incentives include community support, recognition, supportive team staff, teachers and administration.
- Teachers are not paid close to what they deserve for the importance, stress level and intellectual requirements of their work.
- Where burn out is an issue, often in underachieving schools, teachers need to be able to secure change, receive counseling support, or engage in collegial discussions to relieve stress. Administrative support and leadership are also key.
- Teachers must have a say in their professional development and their classrooms without dictates from the state and business. This argues against scripted, state-mandated textbooks and curriculum, and suggests the importance of school and district leadership. One participant questioned whether the state should define learning in detail or outline broad areas of learning.
- Teachers should not be told how to teach. However, the state should tell them what to teach, and what is taught needs to be developmentally appropriate.
- Some participants believe there is a need for teacher career ladders with options for vertical and horizontal movement. The career ladder should promote the idea that there is a professional body of knowledge and skills. Others disagree about the need for a career ladder, believing that advancement can be worked out among professionals.
- It is vital to get away from the notion that to advance, a teacher must move away from teaching. Recognize teachers for providing school site leadership in curriculum and instruction-not administration.
- There's a need to value full-time faculty who have experience in K-12 classrooms and desire to work closely with teachers in the field.
- There's nothing like being in the classroom to understand the issues of the classroom teacher. Perhaps a new model may be half-time professors who also teach in a K-12 classroom.
- Many teachers start in adult education with little teaching experience. They need comprehensive on-the-job support in the best instructional methodologies. Adult educators need funding for comprehensive, paid professional development programs.
- Strengthen retention by formalizing the mentoring process for new teachers. More than ever, veteran teachers are assuming extended professional responsibilities as mentors, coaches, adjunct faculty, professional development providers, and more. We need to identify, recruit, and support these key individuals.
- The state should establish an intern program for new teachers utilizing retired teachers as mentors, perhaps with an orientation program for the retired teachers. Could technology such as video conferencing be used in conjunction with mentoring?
- One participant suggested involving industry where incentives are given to companies that make industry professionals available to teach.
- The current college student population is a potential pool for future teachers, though it might take special efforts to attract their attention a teaching career. Suggestions included a Center on Teaching, a TEACH-MOBILE, minor in Education, Blended Four Year Credential programs, workshops and more. For middle school and high school students, Future Teacher Clubs are an option.
- Bring back an education major that enables a student to receive a teaching credential at the same time as their BA.
- The issue of recruitment needs to be examined on an individual basis (e.g., by geographical area)
- In a recent survey, teachers reported the reasons for taking a job (in descending order) are: proximity to home, assignment, salary, population of students, schools' philosophy, professional learning, and resources. Important implications were drawn from these reasons. Recruitment in "resource rich" and "hard-to-staff" districts are different.
- People want to work where they feel they are making a difference to children, peers, and to the education system; teachers like decisions based on common sense, to work in an environment that is challenging and responsive, and to have fun while learning and performing a very important job.
- Staff development must be long-term, requiring teacher commitments to try strategies/materials, with frequent opportunities for shared feedback and assistance. There is a need for lesson study as well as assignment analysis, long range planning, teacher content knowledge, collaboration on best practices and some real world experience.
- One suggestion was to create an "A Team" of respected, highly paid teachers to go into a school on a temporary basis to tackle challenges and model effective strategies in the most difficult "remedial" classes. The team would not be a "quick fix", but a support mechanism that taps the experience of experienced professionals. Participants raised concerns about such an approach.
- Quality in teaching is an affective issue and comes from creativity and innovation. Good teachers have to feel inspired and invested. Teachers and children alike need the opportunity to be the authors of their learning lives, which involves an element of trust. Participants discussed the need for teachers to have passion and pride in their profession.

How can teaching excellence be assured at postsecondary level? Will the recommendations in the draft Plan help? Are there other essential factors that should be addressed? Is the increasing proportion of temporary faculty an issue in relation to quality teaching and learning? If so, in what ways?

More practitioners need to be involved in educating future professional educators. At postsecondary education programs, it is common to invite recent practitioners to join the faculty on a full-time basis while they are on leave from their districts. Most programs have part-time practitioners serving as adjunct faculty.
There's a need to address the lack of quality teaching in university teaching programs. At the postsecondary level, increase the number of full-time faculty.
Several suggestions were made to review teacher prep programs applicability to the real educational world: review programs by a panel of practicing teachers, require a full year's internship program, require university level faculty to have recent significant, public school classroom experience.
There is a need to help both universities and K-12 classrooms expand the application of technology. Partnerships in which universities provide technology institutes for in-service teachers needs to be encouraged and supported.
The Plan can do a better job of acknowledging the contribution that independent colleges and universities provide in producing qualified public school teachers.
We need to make university promotion and tenure criteria more flexible. One approach is to allow faculty the option of focusing on various combinations of teaching, scholarship, mentoring and service during different phases of their academic careers. Another is to design individualized faculty contracts that meet the needs of a specific department, its students, the university as a whole and the outside community.

While this summary contains the highlights from the many ideas that were offered, far more comprehensive information may be found in the discussion archives. We highly recommend that you read the original postings to discover the full richness of the discussion. We suggest you chose the Thread viewing option.

Background summaries, daily topics, questions and background information are available from the Agenda page. http://www.info-ren.org/network-democracy/camp/pa/agenda.shtml Friday, June 7th will focus on Workforce Preparation and Business Linkages.

I welcome your comments on the summaries.

Sally Hedman
Reporter

Agenda Pages
Background	Student Learning	Emerging Modes
Personnel Development	Workforce Preparation	School Readiness
Facilities & Finance	Governance	Wrap-up