The No Child Left Behind (NCLB) teacher quality provisions recognize both the importance of teacher quality for improving student achievement and the unequal distribution of teachers across districts and schools. But the question of how to achieve the goal of a high quality teacher in every classroom is complicated because of the challenges of…

Examined prospective Tanzanian teachers' reasons for choosing teaching as a career, perceptions of the job, and future aspirations. Data from student surveys indicated that few respondents considered teaching their chosen career. However, although many of the respondents initially regarded teaching as a last resort, low-status, low-paying job, the…

This article discusses problems of beginning teachers and suggests two categories of solutions: increased support during the initial year and increased involvement of principals in the preservice preparation program. Several responsibilities for principals in relation to student teaching are recommended. (IAH)

Administrative data from North Carolina are used to explore the extent to which that state's relatively sophisticated school-based accountability system has exacerbated the challenges that schools serving low-performing students face in retaining and attracting high-quality teachers. Most clear are the adverse effects on retention rates, and hence…

This report describes workplace conditions that support effective instruction and professional growth according to recent research. Key workplace conditions include: fair teaching assignments; opportunities for teachers to collaborate with colleagues; extra induction support, ongoing professional development, and expanded career opportunities;…

The Task Force on Teaching was asked to gather research, review literature, and collect testimony on improving teaching. Two papers are presented: (1) "Attracting and Retaining Talented Teachers" (Cindy K. Currence); and (2) "Building State Strategies to Attract and to Retain Talented Teachers" (Robert Palaich). This report…

Under the leadership of State Superintendent of Education Inez Tenenbaum, with the support of the South Carolina Department of Education's Division of Teaching Quality (DTQ) and the South Carolina Center for Educator Recruitment, Retention and Advancement (CERRA), South Carolina became only the second state in the nation to study teacher…

The Teaching Fellows program in New York City was designed to attract individuals interested in an alternative certification process. The present investigation is an exploratory study of Teaching Fellows in a public graduate elementary education program. The department of education placed these alternatively certified teachers in teaching…

Establishing and sustaining quality teaching is equally dependent on the capacity of organizations and networks at regional, district and school levels to productively engage in improvement efforts that are realized in the classroom. The "teacher workforce" evokes military and industrial images, huge numbers of workers who must be trained,…

The National Comprehensive Center for Teacher Quality (NCCTQ) was launched in 2005 as part of a comprehensive system of content-based technical assistance to support states in implementing the priorities of the No Child Left Behind (NCLB) Act. NCCTQ's mission is to support Regional Comprehensive Centers (RCCs), states, and other education…

Data in this report reveals that collectively bargaining agreements are not the source of the teacher quality problem in urban school districts. The data shows that collective bargaining agreements are associated with reduced teacher transfer activity, especially in high-poverty schools, and less reliance on first-year teachers to staff…

Teach for America (TFA) is a national teacher corps of outstanding individuals who commit themselves to teach for 2 years in urban and rural areas that are experiencing persistent teacher shortages. TFA selects corps members through an intensive application process, operates inservice institutes to prepare them to enter the classroom, clusters…

This study was designed to ascertain whether differences existed between the academic, affective, and personal characteristics of teacher education persisters and nonpersisters. The subjects were comprised of a longitudinal sample of approximately 550 teacher candidates entering teacher training at one institution (Bowling Green State University,…

According to recent research findings, the average teacher age continues to rise, with middle-aged teachers now dominating school staff. Although the literature deals with teacher evaluation, managing incompetent teachers, and documenting teachers for dismissal, there is little information about teachers who are reluctant to learn and grow. This…

The paper, originally given at a 1986 Ethnic and Multicultural Symposium, describes the findings of a study of Black special education teachers and the factors influential in their selection and continued participation in the profession. The study surveyed 101 Black special education teachers in 64 Mississippi school districts. Subjects were among…