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New Report: "Children of Poverty Deserve Great Teachers"

Oct. 8, 2009—NEA and the Center for Teaching Quality's new report Children of Poverty Deserve Great Teachers: One Union’s Commitment to Changing the Status Quo describes four strategies, supported by research-driven policies, "that can transform every high-poverty school in America into a high-performing school, fully-staffed by effective teachers." According to research, children of poverty and those of color are less likely to have qualified, effective teachers than their more affluent peers.

1. High-poverty schools have a greater likelihood of having vacancies for special education and math teachers, and more out-of-field, inexperienced teachers, according to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES).
2. Qualified teachers in high-poverty schools "are more likely to leave teaching than their less qualified peers" in these schools. Qualified in this context means teachers who are "credentialed, experienced," "teaching in their field… score well on tests of academic and teaching ability."
3. Studies show that National Board Certified teachers and those "associated with high 'value-added' student achievement gains" are "unlikely to be teaching economically disadvantaged and minority students."
4. Providing high-needs schools with "inexperienced, poorly prepared teachers" or "qualified" teachers who leave quickly, undermines "long-term, school-based strategies to improve teaching and learning.

Strategies for combatting the problem include:

1. Recruiting and preparing teachers for work in high-needs schools
2. Taking a comprehensive approach to teacher incentives. "Performance pay makes the most difference when it focuses on 'building a collaborative workplace culture' to improve practices and outcomes"
3. Identifying working conditions that serve students through the work of "effective and accomplished teachers"
4. Defining teacher effectiveness broadly, in terms of student learning, using new measurement processes and evaluation tools

Read highlights from Education Legislative Services.

Read the report.

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