Teaching matters most : a school leader's guide to improving classroom instruction / Thomas M. McCann, Alan C. Jones, Gail A. Aronoff ; foreword by Deborah Meier.

Includes bibliographical references and index.

Foreword / Deborah Meier -- Preface : Lessons learned from experience. A "new" take in school improvement -- Central theme -- Organization of the book -- What makes this book distinctive -- 1. What are common practices in schools? -- What we found in classrooms -- Truths hidden in plain view -- Transforming accountability -- New direction -- Are there "best practices" in teaching? -- Bringing best practices to scale -- Are some practices better than others? -- The poverty of prescribing best practices -- 2. What distinguishes quality teaching? -- Three classrooms, three practitioners -- A simple truth hidden in plain view -- Disjointed teaching -- Why teachers are frustrated -- What is quality teaching? -- Observing high-quality teaching -- Instructional systems -- The road less traveled -- 3. How do we learn about the quality of our teaching? -- How to make the case for an emphasis on teacher quality -- Three leadership requirements -- Defining quality teaching -- How to engage school personnel in devising a vision of quality instruction -- Some rudiments of quality teaching -- The importance of curriculum coherence -- Learning from students -- The current state of teaching in your school -- How to evaluate the quality of teaching in your school -- 4. What should induction and mentoring look like? -- Basic components of a teacher mentor program -- Facing critical junctures together -- Planning for new teachers' success -- 5. What should professional development look like? -- What we know about professional development -- The disregarded truths of professional development -- The components of a professional learning culture -- Building blocks of professional learning -- Leading professional learning communities -- 6. How can teacher evaluation become more meaningful?. "Drive-by" teacher evaluation -- "Absentee landords" -- Lists and rubrics abound -- 7. How can we sustain a culture of exceptional instruction? -- Ten actions to sustain high-quality teaching -- Systems in place -- Sanctity of the classroom -- Envisioning quality teaching -- Right people in right places -- Balanced leadership -- Clear and timely communication -- Standards for professional conduct -- Collaboration -- Reflection and continuous improvement -- Ongoing professional dialogues -- 8. How do we face our leadership challenges? -- Suppressing distraction -- Building principal's knowledge -- Building trust -- Influencing resistant teachers -- Coping with the pace -- Final thoughts -- Resources. A. How can you spot a really good teacher? -- B. Framework for observing classes -- C. Student forum questions -- D. Teacher interview questions.

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