Teacher Quality, Distribution, and Turnover in El Paso Ed Fuller The University of Texas at Austin El Paso, Tx June28, 2006

2 Do teachers influence student achievement? Is teacher quality equitably distributed across schools and classrooms? Which teachers are most likely to quit or move? Where do teachers go when they leave a district? How much do districts spend on replacing teachers? Why do teachers quit or move? What can districts do?

3 Teacher Quality Matters A growing body of research has found that teacher quality is THE most important education factor associated with school achievement. Students assigned to effective teachers make greater gains in student achievement than students assigned to ineffective teachers.

4 Students Who Start 3 rd Grade at About the Same Level of Reading Achievement… Source: Heather Jordan, Robert Mendro, and Dash Weerasinghe, The Effects of Teachers on Longitudinal Student Achievement, 1997.

5 …Finish 5 th Grade at Dramatically Different Levels Depending on the Quality of Their Teachers 24 Source: Heather Jordan, Robert Mendro, and Dash Weerasinghe, The Effects of Teachers on Longitudinal Student Achievement, 1997.

6 Low-Achieving Students Become High- Achieving When Assigned to Effective Teachers Source: Sitha Babu and Robert Mendro, Teacher Accountability: HLM-Based Teacher Effectiveness Indices in the Investigation of Teacher Effects on Student Achievement in a State Assessment Program, AERA Annual Meeting, 2003.

7 “…having a high quality teacher throughout elementary school can substantially offset or even eliminate the disadvantage of low socio-economic background.” John Kain, Eric Hanushek, and Steven Rivkin Source: Steven G. Rivkin, Eric A. Hanushek, and John F. Kain, Teachers, Schools and Academic Achievement, Univeristy of Texas-Dallas Schools Project, 2002.

8 Inequitable Distribution of Teachers Students who need effective teachers the most are the LEAST likely to have access to such teachers. Schools serving high percentages of poor and/or minority students are LESS likely to have well-qualified teachers than schools serving low percentages of such students. Schools with LOW LEVELS of achievement have LOWER percentages of well-qualified and effective teachers. Within schools, poor and/or minority students are LESS likely to be taught by a well-qualified or effective teacher. Within schools, low-achieving students are LESS likely to be assigned to a well-qualified or effective teacher.

9 Teacher Quality Measures in El Paso County by School Achievement

10 How do these inequalities arise? Are the inequitable distributions from hiring practices? Do the inequitable distributions from teacher turnover?

11 Some evidence suggests that district hiring policies contribute to these inequalities: Hiring teachers late in the summer Placing teachers in positions for which they are not prepared Hiring under-qualified teachers Other evidence suggests that the inequalities are initially small, but grow over time: The novice teacher quality is fairly equal across schools Teacher transfers and attrition results in growing inequities across schools

12 Initial Distribution of Novice Teachers in El Paso County by School Achievement (2003)

13 Teacher Retention by Elementary Pedagogy Certification Test Score (Class of 2000)

14 Five Year Retention Rate for Novice Teachers by Elementary ExCET Pedagogy Score (El Paso)

15 Novice Teachers Never Failing the ExCET Pedagogy Test Moving Schools by Student Achievement (El Paso)

16 Three-Year Average of the Percentage of Teacher FTEs Moving to Other Schools by the Quintiles of 2003 TAKS Performance

17 Teacher Retention by School Level (Class of 2000)

18 Five Year Retention Rate for Novice Teachers by School Level

19 Retention Rate by Certification Area (Elementary Class of 2000)

20 Retention Rate by Certification Area (Secondary Class of 2000)

21 Teacher Retention by Secondary Pedagogy Certification Test Score (Class of 2000)

22 Non-White Teacher Retention by Secondary Pedagogy Certification Test Score (Class of 2000)

23 Five Year Retention Rate for Novice Teachers by Secondary ExCET Pedagogy Score (El Paso)

24 Teacher Retention by Race/Ethnicity (Class of 2000)

25 Five-Year Teacher Attrition and Mobility by Years of Teaching Experience

26 El Paso Teachers: Stayers, Movers, and Leavers (2001 to 2005) Stayed: remained in the same district. Moved: Transferred to another district. Quit: Left the TX public school system.

27 El Paso Novice Teachers: Stayers, Movers, and Leavers (2001 to 2005) Stayed: remained in the same district. Moved: Transferred to another district. Quit: Left the TX public school system.

28 Number and Percentage of Teachers Moving to Locations

29 Receiving El Paso County Districts

30 Recruitment and Hiring Costs Incurred by Due to Teacher Attrition (excludes mobility) Based on assumption of $15,000 to replace a teacher

31 Percentage of Teachers Stating that Mentoring/Induction Influenced Their Decision to Stay at Their School 2006 North Carolina Teacher Working Conditions Survey, Center for Teaching Quality

32 Percentage of Teachers Stating Their Intention to Stay at the Same School by Degree of Help in Selected Mentoring Activities

33 Most Important Factors in Influencing Teachers’ Future Intentions

34 Leadership Behavior that Affects Teachers’ Future Intentions 2006 North Carolina Teacher Working Conditions Survey, Center for Teaching Quality

35 What can districts do to improve student achievement? Ensure EVERY child has access to a well-qualified teacher, but focus on the lowest achieving students. How? By recruiting and retaining the most qualified and effective teachers. Implement effective hiring practices. Invest in an effective and research-based mentoring and induction program. Provide monetary incentives to teach in hard-to-staff schools (e.g., hiring stipends, retention stipends) Ensure effective principals are placed and retained in the schools that need them the most. Increase pay for those teachers in shortage areas. Focus on teacher working conditions.

36 Research and Evaluation Policies Develop an on-line data collection system for: Collecting data on teachers’ reasons for staying and leaving Collecting data on teacher working conditions Create a consortium of districts and preparation programs to focus on research: Tracking individuals from high school through college and into teaching Investigating the relationship between teacher characteristics, teacher behaviors, and preparation program practices and student achievement. Investigating the relationship between administrator characteristics, administrator behaviors, and preparation program practices and teacher turnover.

37 Contact Information: Ed Fuller (512)