Briefs

This brief summarizes an analysis of the scope of teacher shortages being experienced throughout the country and discusses the causes and consequences of the shortages. Shortages are particularly severe in special education, mathematics, science, and bilingual/English learner education, and in locations with lower wages and poorer working conditions. This brief also provides recommendations of local, state, and federal policies to support the recruitment and retention of a quality teacher workforce.

The nation’s population and students have grown more racially and ethnically diverse, but the teaching workforce has not experienced similar demographic shifts. This brief summarizes the results of a study of the recruitment, employment, and retention of minority k-12 teachers, examining the extent and sources of the minority teacher shortage and offering evidence-based solutions to addressing the low proportion of minority teachers in comparison to the increasing numbers of minority students in the school system.

Fewer young people choosing to enter the teaching profession and high attrition rates are contributing to teacher shortages. School districts throughout the country are having difficulty finding enough qualified teachers to fill open positions, especially in schools serving low-income students and students of color. This brief summarizes research on teacher recruitment and retention, identifies key factors that influence decisions to enter, stay in, or leave the profession, and offers evidence-based recommendations for policymakers.

Read a summary of case studies of high-quality early education programs in four states: Michigan, West Virginia, Washington, and North Carolina. This analysis is based on reviews of policy documents, studies, and data in each state, as well as observations of programs and interviews with policymakers, program administrators, providers, teachers, parents, advocates, and researchers.

This brief summarizes the key findings from a critical review of the relevant research to determine whether teachers, on average, improve in their effectiveness as they gain experience in the teaching profession. A renewed look at this research is warranted due to advances in research methods and data systems that match student data with individual teachers and have allowed researchers to more accurately answer this question.

Loan forgiveness and service scholarships are two promising approaches to attracting and keeping teachers in the profession. This brief looks at existing research on these programs and finds that financial assistance that meaningfully offsets the cost of professional preparation can be effective at recruiting and retaining high-quality professionals into fields and communities where educators are most needed.

When it comes to early childhood education programs, quality is critical. High-quality preschool gives children a strong start on the path that leads to college and career success. This brief summarizes the substantial body of research on programs demonstrating positive results, as well as the professional standards for early education, including identifying important elements of quality.

The new Every Student Succeeds Act offers states flexibility to create new approaches to school accountability and to design appropriate interventions for schools in need of assistance. This brief provides an overview of four commonly used interventions that, when well implemented, have been shown to increase opportunities and improve performance, particularly for historically underserved students. It also identifies the conditions under which they have been effective.

This brief identifies important elements of high-quality early childhood education programs as indicated by research and professional standards, with a focus on factors that contribute to meaningful teacher-child interactions. With California the home to 493,877 preschool-age children living in or near poverty, these findings hold particular interest for the Golden State, as low-income children are most likely to benefit from high-quality pre-k programs.

Recruitment and retention challenges are once again leading to teacher shortages across the nation, especially in urban and rural school districts. This brief looks at the teacher residency model, a promising approach to addressing recruitment and retention challenges in high-needs districts and in shortage subject areas. The teacher residency model creates long-term benefits for districts, for schools, and ultimately and most importantly, for the students they serve.