Could it be possible that, despite ever-increasing staff shortages and vacancies, districts are not working hard enough to transform teaching in their classrooms into a more appealing profession?
When it comes to the nation’s large and urban school systems, only about a third are pursuing “new or imaginative” strategies to make teaching a more desirable job, says a new analysis by the Center on Reinventing Public Education at Arizona State University. The majority of districts continue to lean on redesigned schedules, connections with local colleges to recruit teachers and other traditional approaches. “We’re seeing more of the same old, same old—and it doesn’t appear as though the status quo is a viable long-term solution,” the authors of the analysis write.
“Districts appear to be focused on recruiting more teachers into the profession, but not necessarily on improving the profession itself,” they added.
To help administrators transform teaching, researchers examined eight broad approaches and broke them down into traditional recruitment activities that may not move the needle and reimagined strategies that are showing signs of success in a tight labor market. Note that while the solutions are not ranked, compensation in the last item on the list.
1. Redesigned schedules and workload
- Traditional: Maintaining a uniform schedule and workload across schools and only making adjustments to create additional time for professional learning.
- Reimagined: Allowing all or a subset of schools to flex time, scheduling, and responsibilities.
2. Redefined teacher requirements
- Traditional: Maintaining traditional credentialing for all teachers and offering tuition assistance for teachers pursuing credentials.
- Reimagined: Removing barriers so that a broader range of individuals can staff or support classes.
3. Collaborative teaching
- Traditional: Maintaining the one-teacher, one-classroom model with a set roster of students.
- Reimagined: Redesigning the role of the educator from individual contributor to member of a collaborative teaching team with teachers, paraprofessionals, residents and specialized teachers sharing responsibilities across a larger roster of students.
4. Intentional teacher recruitment
- Traditional: Recruiting through traditional means such as a “pipeline” initiative with a local teacher preparation that is not connected to a broader
instructional vision. - Reimagined: Intentionally recruiting a broad range of teachers, including candidates of color or bilingual candidates, and training educators in new ways of teaching.
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5. New teacher leadership roles
- Traditional: Only offering new roles to teachers through the traditional salary schedule
- Reimagined: Providing system-wide educator leadership opportunities that allow teachers to grow in their careers without leaving instruction.
6. Differentiated and personalized teacher development
- Traditional: Conducting uniform PD activities for all teaching staff.
- Reimagined: Introducing differentiated teacher and educator development opportunities and programs that support leadership development and teachers’ daily work and personal growth.
7. Investment in staff well-being
- Traditional: Providing access to mental and physical health benefits, such as on-demand counseling, but not helping schools to build inclusive or autonomous cultures.
- Reimagined: Supporting school leadership and staff in leading strategies that promote well-being, inclusivity, and autonomy.
8. Compensation
- Traditional: Sticking to a traditional salary schedule with one-off retention bonuses.
- Reimagined: Paying more money to current and new staff in alignment with additional responsibilities or performance that help achieve organizational goals.
