Instructional Soul
We are a community of educators in search of solutions.
We seek to know more about how students learn. We dig into the research.
We like to learn from each other. We like to nerd-out on high-impact strategies.
We believe in the enduring promise of children, and in the brilliance of great teachers. We invite you to join the conversation. Your opinions and expertise are welcome here.
Monthly newsletter. Sent to your email. Free to all educators. Subscribe below.
Ideas and Inspiration
Teacher retention is made easier when we invest in our teachers and giving them voice and agency over their own work. Imagine that!
We know the importance of collective efficacy, and that cannot arise from top-down management and suffocating policies that undermine teacher expertise.
Distributed leadership is shaped and promoted in our most successful schools. Teachers lead major initiatives, including professional development, and teacher voice in decision making is encouraged and valued.
In the end, sustainable student achievement is only possible in schools where staff retention is strong and teacher agency is cultivated.
Let's admit that we don’t know it all…and so let’s be sure to share ideas on how to make this happen. There is too much at stake for us to get this wrong.
About Instructional Soul
This is a free newsletter and discussion forum for educators. We ask anyone to join us who is interested in a highly collegial and supportive community of top-notch teachers, instructional coaches, and industry thought-leaders. We invite you to journey with us in our ongoing quest to identify what works in our schools with real teachers and real kids.
We seek to understand the most powerful techniques that help all students learn. That’s why we lean on the expertise of teachers and principals who have impacted student achievement. They help us isolate the key levers that impact learning for those hard-to-reach students, and to design lessons that build academic confidence and creative purpose.
The newsletter is produced by Dan Evans, Ed.D., a former Chief Academic Officer and Principal of the Year. His new book Remarkable Learning: A Guidebook for Building Creative and Confident Kids (Bloomsbury, London) is scheduled for release in 2026.
Check out Dan’s author-consultant website @danevansauthor.com
