Education Week

Edweek.org invites you to be the first to review the 2008 edition of Quality Counts: Tapping Into Teaching beginning today, January 9. That is a full day before the print version is available! The entire report is FREE online at edweek.org. In this issue you'll examine strategies that states can use to unlock the full potential of the teaching profession.

Some things you shouldn't miss in this issue of Quality Counts:

• Feature stories, commentaries, and analyses such as:
• Human Resources a Weak Spot – by Lynn Olson

“Although student achievement is linked to good teachers, there's no system for attracting, training, and supporting the best people for the job.”

• Advancing Pay for Performance – by Vaishali Honawar & Lynn Olson

“States may be able to play a strong role in rethinking teacher compensation systems, including basing rewards, in part, on student gains.”

• Working Conditions Trump Pay – Debra Viadero

“When it comes to retaining teachers, studies show that the circumstances of their jobs may matter even more than their salaries.”

• State Highlights Reports, which include state-specific indicators on Chance-for-Success and K-12 Achievement
• NEW! A Grading Calculator, which lets you calculate grades for states based on weighting schemes of your choice
• And much more!

In addition, a new commenting feature has been added to all articles to allow you to share your thoughts with your colleagues in K-12 education. It is easy to begin a dialogue: just type in your comments at the end of the article. You will only need a display name for commenting, which you can add by clicking on My Account any time you are logged in.

Check out Quality Counts 2008: Tapping Into Teaching during this sneak preview. This annual report is free to our registered guests and subscribers. Then come back to edweek.org on January 15 for the first open house of the year. You won't want to miss it. Everything on the site will be FREE for two weeks!

Come take a look around -- and pass along the invitation to your colleagues!
Best regards,
Virginia B. Edwards
Editor and Publisher