Why Can't We Get It Right?

Designing High-Quality Professional Development for Standards-Based Schools

This thoroughly revised and updated edition of Why Can't We Get It Right? includes more tools, a stronger focus on implementation strategies, key points and open-ended scenarios for reflection. Speck and Knipe explain how school leaders can plan collaborative professional development that is standards based.

This book will deepen teachers' collective understanding about how to create professional development opportunities and practices. Well-designed professional development programs foster a learner-centered environment, and research has shown that improving teachers' knowledge and skills is a prerequisite to raising student performance. Speck and Knipe provide professional development designs and practices that make a difference for teachers and students, resulting in dramatically improved schools.

In order for our schools to leave no child behind, teachers need access to the most current information, strategies, research, and professional learning opportunities. This unique and indispensable guide links professional development tightly to academic standards to raise student achievement.

Each chapter contains:

- brief scenario to ground readers

- essential questions to provoke deeper thought about each topic

- tables, figures, and other visuals to illustrate key concepts,

- surveys, teacher professional development plans, planning worksheets, standards-based adaptable frameworks, evaluation guides, and other tools to help readers try out ideas

It is written for teachers, headteachers and LEA staff, but it will also be of interest to governors and professors of educational leadership.