NCTAF Events

NCTAF National Symposia
The National Commission on Teaching and America's Future hosts national meetings that brings together its state coalition network, policymakers, thought leaders, K-12 practitioners, higher education leaders, and researchers to discuss promising practices for improving education.

Team Up for 21st Century Teaching & Learning:
What Research and Practice Reveal about Professional Learning
On June 24, 2010, NCTAF released Team Up for 21st Century Teaching & Learning: What Research and Practice Reveal about Professional Learning, which was published with the support of the Pearson Foundation. This volume contains the latest research on how learning teams can positively affect school culture, teacher retention, teacher effectiveness, and student achievement. This research is supported by three case studies written by practitioners in the field using teamwork to create successful learning cultures. Speakers included: Steve Robinson, White House Office of Domestic Policy; Brad Jupp, Department of Education; Tom Payzant, Harvard Graduate School of Education; Beth Wray, Pearson Learning Teams, Teacher Education and Development Group; and a Practitioner Panel, Hammond High School, Howard County, MD.
View the press release. Please contact Ryan Brookshire for information about how to obtain a copy of the book.

Team Up to Teach for the Future: MetLife Foundation Forum
On March 24, 2010, with support from MetLife Foundation, NCTAF hosted an engaging conversation with education thought-leaders, policymakers, and practitioners at the Hyatt Regency Washington to discuss the findings of the MetLife Survey of the American Teacher, Part 3: Teaching as a Career. Speakers included Senator Jack Reed (D-RI); NCTAF president Tom Carroll; Dana Markow of Harris Interactive; AFT president Randi Weingarten; and NEA vice-president Lily Eskelsen. The forum also featured a panel of NCTAF's NASA STEM Learning Team teachers and National Staff Development Council Learning School Alliance teachers.
View the press release: "Newsweek Is Wrong: To Save American Education, We Need 21st Century Teaching."

Developing a New Teaching Workforce: Report Release
On February 3, 2010 at the Rayburn House Office Building, NCTAF led a discussion of the research findings from the new NCTAF report, "Who Will Teach? Experience Matters." Panelists included Professor Richard Ingersoll (U. Penn); Katy Anthes (Third Mile Group); Judy Wurtzel (U.S. Dept. Ed.); Jane Coggshall (Learning Points); Frederick M. Hess (American Enterprise Institute); and Jack Dale (Superintendent, Fairfax Co. Public Schools).
View the press release:"An Urgent Need & Unprecedented Opportunity to Create 21st Century Teaching Careers."

Coming Tidal Wave of Teacher Retirements: Report Release
On April 7, 2009 NCTAF convened a meeting at the National Press Club to release a new report, "Learning Teams: Creating What's Next." According to new NCTAF research, and a national survey of teachers and principals, the nation stands to lose half of its teachers to retirement over the next decade. The report finds that over 50 percent of the nation's principals and teachers are Baby Boomers. To avoid a potential school staffing crisis, NCTAF recommends the concept of Cross-Generational Learning Teams, in which experienced veterans could stay in teaching longer by working with new teachers, providing mentoring, coaching and instructional assistance that will help to improve student performance and reduce attrition rates for new teachers.
View the press release: "Nation's Schools Facing Largest Teacher Retirement Wave in History; Every State Affected, But 18 States & DC Are Beyond the Tipping Point, Report Reveals."

MetLife Forum Series on The Future of Teaching
Throughout 2008, NCTAF and MetLife Foundation hosted a series of leadership forums to mobilize policymakers in support of 21st century teaching. The forums were held in four cities - Atlanta, Boston, Denver, and Portland, OR. Each conversation was tailored to the teaching quality issues specific to the city/state.

NCTAF and Texas Instruments: Successful Strategies for Preparing Science, Mathematics, Engineering and Technology Teachers (STEM) for 21st Century Teaching

On March 2, 2008, with support from Texas Instruments, NCTAF convened a one-day roundtable discussion on ways to assure that new stem teachers are well prepared for 21st Century Teaching.

Induction of Science and Mathematics Teachers Into Professional Learning Communities Conference

On October 30-November 1, 2007, NCTAF held a Wingspread conference where participants focused on strategies for inducting STEM teachers into professional learning communities to reduce teacher turnover and improve teaching effectiveness.

National Forum: Organizing Schools for Success

On October 24, 2007, NCTAF challenged the nation to transform schools into to 21st century learning organizations. The Oct. 24 event focused on ways to organize schools differently so that great teaching and learning can thrive. NCTAF also announced a Pledge to Organize Schools for Success at the event.

NCTAF/PBS/MetLife Learning Teams Initiative

The Learning Teams Initiative highlights the power of collaborative teaching in schools across the country. In 2007, four forums were held across the country to discuss teaching practices and showcase PBS-produced video on teamwork in schools. The videos and forums are available for each location.

Wingspread Symposium: Scope and Consequences of K12 Science and Mathematics Teacher Turnover

Sponsored by the NSF and the Johnson Foundation, a Wingspread Symposium was held on October 3-5, 2006 to define the magnitude of teacher turnover among science and math teachers and identify the causes and implications for American education.

Teaching for America's Future: Quality Teaching in High-Priority Schools: The 2006 NCTAF Partners' Symposium
The highly successful three-day symposium, July 9-11, 2006 in St. Paul, MN, was attended by 185 policy leaders representing 30 states, including representatives from state departments of education, higher education, K-12 education, governors' education policy advisors, state legislators, and national policymakers.

A Strong Start for Georgia's Teachers

On May 9, 2006, the National Commission on Teaching and America's Future convened a forum to discuss strategies to improve teacher retention rates in Georgia. The forum, held at Georgia Public Broadcasting, was sponsored by the Wachovia Foundation. To view the video from the forum, click on the above link.

NCTAF - MetLife Foundation Announce Urban Teaching Academies
On March 7, 2006, the National Commission on Teaching and America's Future recognized three sites as "NCTAF - MetLife Foundation Urban Teaching Academies". The three sites are California State University in Long Beach, California; Chicago's Academy for Urban School Leadership in Chicago, Illinois; and Montclair State University in Montclair, New Jersey.

NCTAF/MetLife Forums in WA, IL, and NY

The MetLife Foundation and the National Commission on Teaching and America's Future sponsored three forums in Seattle, WA; Chicago, IL; and New York, NY to discuss the supportive school climate that is necessary to sustain principals and teachers as they progress from novices to experienced educators. The forum series is called, "Teaching Alone in a Flat World".

(December 15, 2005 Forum in Seattle; January 11, 2006 Forum in Chicago; January 24, 2006 Forum in New York City.)

Assessment Of Teacher Preparation Effectiveness - Meeting on Sept. 30-Oct. 1, 2005
NCTAF hosted an invitational meeting, Quality Teacher Preparation: Assessment of Teacher Preparation Effectiveness, at Alverno College in Milwaukee, Wisconsin on September 30-October 1, 2005. This meeting was one of two scheduled as follow-up to NCTAF's June 2004 Summit on High Quality Teacher Preparation. (The other follow-up meeting focused on strong academic preparation for teaching and convened in August 2005 at the George Washington University, in Washington, DC.)

Academic Preparation for Teaching - Meeting on August 15-16, 2005
NCTAF hosted an invitational meeting, Quality Teacher Preparation: Strong Academic Preparation for Teaching, at The George Washington University on August 15-16, 2005. This meeting was one of two scheduled as follow-up to NCTAF's June 2004 Summit on High Quality Teacher Preparation. (The second follow-up meeting focused on assessment of teacher preparation programs and convened in September at Alverno College in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.)

Rewarding Career Paths for Teachers: Regional Meeting on November 14-15, 2004
The National Commission on Teaching and America's Future (NCTAF) hosted a six-state (ID, MT, NM, OR, UT, WA) regional meeting to discuss teacher compensation and tiered licensure. The meeting was held on November 14-15, 2004, at the Hotel Monaco in Seattle, Washington.

2004 Summit on High Quality Teacher Preparation
This is summit was held on June 28-30, 2004 at the Barton Creek Resort in Austin, Texas. Through sponsorship by Carnegie Corporation of New York, NCTAF was able to bring representatives from 15 institutions to discuss promising practices for improving teacher preparation.

2003 Summit on Learning Communities
On December 4-6, 2003, NCTAF hosted its second national summit on "Transforming Schools into Strong Learning Communities" at the Wingspread Conference Center in Racine, Wisconsin.

2003 Summit on Rewarding Career Paths
On September 28-30, 2003, NCTAF hosted its first national summit on "The First Three Years of Teaching," at the Wingspread Conference Center in Racine, Wisconsin. This summit, sponsored by Atlantic Philanthropies and the Johnson Foundation, was the first in a series of three summits and it focused on issues important to retaining quality teachers.