Earlier this year, RedefinED Atlanta convened school leaders, educators, and partners alongside TNTP to explore a shared question: What does it really take to build and sustain strong instructional cultures in today’s schools?
That convening marked the launch of a deeper, network-wide commitment to listening to educators, understanding school climate, and translating insight into action. It also kicked off a new blog series exploring how Metro Atlanta schools are strengthening instructional culture through leadership, collaboration, and intentional investment in teaching and learning.
In our first post, we reflected on the powerful conversations and learning that emerged from the TNTP convening — and the collective urgency around supporting teachers and school leaders at a time when expectations for student success have never been higher.
This second post moves from conversation to data.
Here, we’re sharing what we learned from the second cohort of schools participating in the TNTP Instructional Culture Insight Survey, highlighting bright spots across our network, celebrating progress, and naming the opportunities that will shape our work moving forward.
About The Survey
In the spring of 2024, RedefinED Atlanta piloted an initiative using TNTP Instructional Culture Insight Surveys to better understand the climate of the newest schools in our portfolio. A total of 20 schools participated in this pilot. “The TNTP survey provides valuable insights into the instructional and cultural landscapes of our schools,” said Emily Castillo León, Vice President of Schools & Talent. “The data collected gives us all the same launching pad for what is working well and what can be improved. It gives us actionable insights in an easy-to-understand format.”
We are excited to announce the results of our second cohort of participating schools. A total of 25 schools participated, with 5 new to the Insight in Fall 2025 survey.
Bright Spots & Glows
Instructional culture
The goal of the insight survey is to provide school leaders with the clarity to build a school culture that helps both teachers and students succeed. Participating schools receive an index score, a cumulative measure of whether a school articulates a clear vision of success, ensures that vision is shared by all teachers, and has supports in place so teachers can realize that vision.
Among the TNTP-insight participating schools in the RedefinED Atlanta network, the average Instructional Culture Index (ICI) was 7.3, compared to the national average of 7.0, demonstrating what’s possible when schools invest intentionally in leadership, collaboration, and professional learning.
Evaluation
Strong and fair evaluation is one of the most important tools for schools to foster growth and increase overall student success. There were five questions in the insight survey, which demonstrated that teachers in TNTP-insight participating schools have strong clarity and alignment around their school’s evaluation systems.
Many schools scored above the national domain average of 5.0, with scores ranging from 4.0 to 8.4; 82% of teachers knew the criteria being used to evaluate them, and 72% agree with those criteria.
Teacher retention
Of course, retaining strong teachers is also vital for student success. Planned retention data shows that most participating schools report lower intent-to-leave rates than the national average, despite broader national challenges with teacher turnover, highlighting how everyday leadership actions may be contributing to stronger teacher stability in participating schools.
Of those surveyed, 60% reported experiencing two or more retention strategies, including regular feedback, access to instructional resources, and recognition of accomplishments.
Family and community engagement
Engaging with families is also vital, as it ensures they are partners in student success by providing the tools and understanding necessary to continue learning at home. This includes consulting families on new policies and practices, establishing clear expectations with teachers, and establishing easy and consistent pathways for communication between families and the school.
Participating schools exceed the national benchmark, averaging a score of 5.9 compared to the national average of 5.0, with consistently high agreement on core practices, including 80% of teachers saying families regularly receive useful updates about student progress, 76% reporting having clear systems for communicating with families, and 72% saying their school helps families support learning at home.
Opportunities
While we are excited to see so many of our Metro Atlanta schools outperforming their peers, this insights survey also represents a chance to learn more about what can be strengthened. Two areas for growth identified in the data include: instructional planning, with a need for more regular review of student work to guide instruction, and academic expectations, with teachers feeling that many of their students start behind and need something different than what is outlined in the standards, resulting in the feeling that students won’t be able to master grade-level standards by the end of the year.
These findings underscore the power of sustained partnerships between educators, school systems, local communities, and national support networks. By investing in initiatives that create the conditions for each student to thrive, such as coaching for school leaders, communities of practice, and a growing suite of educator resources, we demonstrate our commitment to walking alongside Metro Atlanta educators as they deliver trajectory-changing educational experiences.