ERIC Number: ED520725
Record Type: Non-Journal
Publication Date: 2010-Feb
Pages: 28
Abstractor: ERIC
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: N/A
EISSN: N/A
Ensuring the Equitable Distribution of Teachers: Strategies for School, District, and State Leaders. TQ Research & Policy Brief
Behrstock, Ellen; Clifford, Matthew
National Comprehensive Center for Teacher Quality
National and state-level policies recognize the critical role that talented teachers play in ensuring that all students learn and in building capacity for instructional excellence in schools. Teachers influence student learning more than any other factor in the school, and the dividends of effective teaching are cumulative (see "Defining the Terms"). A growing body of research suggests, however, that the distribution of high-quality teachers is not equitable within states, districts, or schools. Although broader social factors also contribute to student performance, public education leaders at all levels of the education system have the opportunity and obligation to improve the distribution of teachers so that minority children and those from families of low socioeconomic status are not systematically denied access to effective teachers and high-quality learning. This TQ Research & Policy Brief discusses how school and district administrators, with the support of state and federal leaders, can influence the equitable distribution of teachers through hiring, placement, working conditions, and compensation policies and practices. The brief contains the following information: (1) An explanation of the problem of inequitable teacher distribution; (2) An overview of school policies and practices that appear to contribute to equitable teacher distribution; (3) Strategies for school leaders to enhance teacher recruitment, hiring, and placement practices as well as improve working conditions; (4) Strategies for district leaders to enhance teacher recruitment, hiring, and placement practices as well as improve teacher compensation policies; (5) Strategies for state and federal leaders to facilitate district policymaking and build district capacity to support the equitable distribution of teachers; and (6) Resources to support leaders in promoting the equitable distribution of teachers. (Contains 2 figures.)
Descriptors: Teacher Salaries, Teacher Distribution, Minority Group Children, Teacher Recruitment, Public Education, Educational Policy, Teacher Effectiveness, Teacher Role, Equal Education, Disadvantaged, Educational Quality, Educational Administration, Teaching Conditions, School Districts
National Comprehensive Center for Teacher Quality. 1000 Thomas Jefferson Street NW, Washington, DC 20007. Tel: 877-322-8700; Fax: 202-223-8939; e-mail: tqcenter@air.org; Web site: http://www.tqsource.org
Publication Type: Reports - Descriptive
Education Level: Elementary Secondary Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: Department of Education (ED)
Authoring Institution: National Comprehensive Center for Teacher Quality
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A