Educators have the right and responsibility to advocate for what is best for students, families, and communities using opportunities under the Every Student Succeeds Act.
The Every Student Succeeds Act is a major improvement over previous one-size-fits-all approaches to educating students, ensuring that educators’ voices are part of decision-making at every level.
Key Provisions
Decision-making: Moves decision-making to the people who know the names of the students they educate, while ensuring ZIP codes do not determine the quality of education.
Support and intervention: Incentivizes supports and interventions that are tailored to local needs while preserving the federal government’s historic role in protecting the most vulnerable: children in poverty, students with disabilities, and English-language learners.
Collaboration: Calls for committees of practitioners where educators, parents, and community members work together to improve their schools. Requires consultation with organizations representing educators to ensure that teachers and their local unions have a say in decision-making.
Diversity: Offers grants that could be used to support initiatives to increase diversity in the teaching workforce.
Professional Development: Provides a definition of professional development embedded in research based on standards developed by teachers. Allows the use of district funds to enhance collaboration and teacher-led professional development aligned with students’ learning needs.
Evaluations: Prohibits the federal government from mandating teacher evaluations or defining teacher effectiveness.
Collective bargaining: Expands collective bargaining to cover:
- Targeted school supports and improvements in Title I
- Professional development, pay based on professional growth, the Teacher and School Leader Incentive Program, and all other contract provisions impacted by Title II
- Community schools in Title IV
Suggested Further Reading
Learn More
Are you an affiliate?
