ED Publishes Blueprint for RESPECT

The Department of Education has been engaging educators in a national conversation about transforming teaching and leading, called the RESPECT Project, culminating in today's publication of President's Obama's Blueprint for RESPECT. NAESP has been working with the Administration since the inception of the RESPECT initiative, and provided comments on the proposal jointly with NASSP. The document includes an overview of the work done to date, the final version of the vision that teachers crafted, and some of the research used. It also includes policy recommendations and budget information. The Blueprint is available in PDF and e-reader versions on a new RESPECT page, that you can access at www.ed.gov/teaching.

There are a number of great tools that educators can benefit from. Here are a few of the highlights:

• A self-inventory that allows teachers and leaders to evaluate how RESPECTful their school or district is and offers suggestions to address challenges.
• A video of educators sharing their perspectives about the RESPECT initiative and what it means for teaching and leading.
• A way to Trace the Path of the RESPECT conversations, including detailed descriptions of how the vision was crafted by teachers.
• A Power Point presentation called “Making the Case” that can be used to mobilize local support for transforming the profession.