To amend title II of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 to authorize State educational agencies and local educational agencies to carry out teacher exchanges.

Summary: Teacher Exchange Act of 2011 - Amends the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (ESEA) to authorize states to use their grant under part A (Teacher and Principal Training and Recruiting Fund) of title II of the ESEA to carry out a teacher exchange sending highly qualified teachers with at least three years of teaching experience to another state in a different region for a school year.

Requires: (1) at least one of the states involved in an exchange to serve a high-need local educational agency (LEA), or (2) the states to be exchanging teachers in subjects that have a high need for qualified teachers.

Requires states to maintain the employment terms of teachers participating in the exchange, cover their expenses, and provide them with training.

Requires the teachers to return to their state following their participation in the exchange.

Authorizes LEAs to use their subgrant under part A of title II of the ESEA to carry out a teacher exchange (regardless of whether or not their states are participating in the exchange) sending highly qualified teachers with at least three years of teaching experience to another LEA in a different region for a school year.

Requires: (1) at least one of the LEAs involved in an exchange to be a high-need LEA, or (2) the LEAs to be exchanging teachers in subjects that have a high need for qualified teachers.

Requires LEAs to maintain the employment terms of teachers participating in the exchange, cover their expenses, and provide them with training.

Requires the teachers to return to their LEA following their participation in the exchange.

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Teacher Exchange Act of 2011''.

SEC. 2. TEACHER EXCHANGES.

    (a) State Use of Funds.--Section 2113(c) of the Elementary and 
Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 6613(c)) is amended by 
adding at the end the following:
            ``(19) Carrying out a teacher exchange under which the 
        State educational agency--
                    ``(A) sends highly qualified teachers with at least 
                3 years of teaching experience to another State 
                educational agency located in a different geographic 
                region for a school year (in this paragraph referred to 
                as the `receiving State educational agency'), provided 
                that--
                            ``(i) 1 of the State educational agencies 
                        involved serves a high-need local educational 
                        agency; or
                            ``(ii) the State educational agencies 
                        involved will be exchanging teachers in 
                        science, math, English as a second language, 
                        special education, or other subject areas that 
                        have a high need for qualified teachers, as 
                        determined by the Secretary;
                    ``(B) ensures that the teachers remain subject to 
                the terms and conditions of employment that would have 
                applied if the teachers had remained at the State 
                educational agency;
                    ``(C) provides such teachers with payment of 
                certain housing, travel, and other expenses incurred by 
                such teachers during participation in the exchange;
                    ``(D) requires such teachers to return to the State 
                educational agency for a period of time following such 
                teachers' participation in the exchange; and
                    ``(E) develops and implements a plan to provide 
                participating teachers with activities designed to 
                promote professional development, which may include--
                            ``(i) an orientation session or courses to 
                        prepare such teachers for--
                                    ``(I) the exchange experience;
                                    ``(II) the community in which the 
                                receiving State educational agency is 
                                located and the schools in such agency; 
                                and
                                    ``(III) the particular grade level 
                                and curriculum assigned to the 
                                participating teacher by the receiving 
                                State educational agency;
                            ``(ii) a mentoring program through which 
                        each such teacher is paired with a mentor (who 
                        is not also a participating teacher) employed 
                        by the receiving State educational agency who 
                        teaches in the same grade level or subject area 
                        that the participating teacher has been 
                        assigned to teach under the exchange;
                            ``(iii) a forum for participating teachers, 
                        led by an administrator or teacher at the 
                        receiving State educational agency, to engage 
                        in ongoing professional development focused on 
                        improving classroom instruction to result in 
                        improved student outcomes, including reading 
                        educational research, reviewing student work, 
                        creating and reviewing formative and summative 
                        assessments, analyzing data from student 
                        assessments, and tracking student progress; and
                            ``(iv) content-specific programs designed 
                        to support participating teachers in teaching 
                        the specific curriculum in place at the 
                        receiving State educational agency and at the 
                        grade level to which each such teacher is 
                        assigned.''.
    (b) Local Use of Funds.--Section 2123(a) of such Act (20 U.S.C. 
6623(a)) is amended by adding at the end the following:
            ``(11) Carrying out a teacher exchange (regardless of 
        whether the State educational agency serving the local 
        educational agency participates in such exchange) under which 
        the local educational agency--
                    ``(A) sends highly qualified teachers with at least 
                3 years of teaching experience to another local 
                educational agency located in a different geographic 
                region (in this paragraph referred to as the `receiving 
                local educational agency') for a school year 
                (regardless of whether the State educational agency 
                serving such local educational agency participates in 
                such exchange), provided that--
                            ``(i) 1 of the local educational agencies 
                        involved is a high-need local educational 
                        agency; or
                            ``(ii) the local educational agencies 
                        involved will be exchanging teachers in 
                        science, math, English as a second language, 
                        special education, or other subject areas that 
                        have a high need for qualified teachers, as 
                        determined by the Secretary;
                    ``(B) ensures that the teachers remain subject to 
                the terms and conditions of employment that would have 
                applied if the teachers had remained at the local 
                educational agency;
                    ``(C) provides such teachers with payment of 
                certain housing, travel, and other expenses incurred by 
                such teachers during participation in the exchange;
                    ``(D) requires such teachers to return to the local 
                educational agency for a period of time following such 
                teachers' participation in the exchange; and
                    ``(E) develops and implements a plan to provide 
                participating teachers with activities designed to 
                promote professional development, which may include--
                            ``(i) an orientation session or courses to 
                        prepare such teachers for--
                                    ``(I) the exchange experience;
                                    ``(II) the community in which the 
                                receiving local educational agency is 
                                located and the schools in such agency; 
                                and
                                    ``(III) the particular grade level 
                                and curriculum assigned to the 
                                participating teacher by the receiving 
                                local educational agency;
                            ``(ii) a mentoring program through which 
                        each such teacher is paired with a mentor (who 
                        is not also a participating teacher) employed 
                        by the receiving local educational agency who 
                        teaches in the same grade level or subject area 
                        that the participating teacher has been 
                        assigned to teach under the exchange;
                            ``(iii) a forum for participating teachers, 
                        led by an administrator or teacher at the 
                        receiving local educational agency, to engage 
                        in ongoing professional development focused on 
                        improving classroom instruction to result in 
                        improved student outcomes, including reading 
                        educational research, reviewing student work, 
                        creating and reviewing formative and summative 
                        assessments, analyzing data from student 
                        assessments, and tracking student progress; and
                            ``(iv) content-specific programs designed 
                        to support participating teachers in teaching 
                        the specific curriculum in place at the 
                        receiving local educational agency and at the 
                        grade level to which each such teacher is 
                        assigned.''.