recruiting for effectiveness smhc conference| march 2009

Recruiting for EffectivenessSMHC Conference| March 2009

2© The New Teacher Project 2009

Research has shown that effective teachers are the solution to increasing student achievement in our under-resourced schools.

Dallas students who start 2nd grade at about the same level of math achievement…

57

55

0 20 40 60 80 100

Group 2

Group 1

Average Percentile Rank

Beginning of 2nd Grade

27

77

0 20 40 60 80 100

Group 2

Group 1

Average Percentile Rank

End of 5th Grade

After 3 EFFECTIVE Teachers

After 3 INEFFECTIVE

Teachers

…finish 5th grade math at dramatically different levels depending on the quality of their teachers.

Original analysis by the Education Trust.

Source: Heather Jordan, Robert Mendro, and Dash Weerasinghe, The Effects of Teachers on Longitudinal Student Achievement, 1997.

50


Leadership

Rec

ruitm

ent

Trai

ning

Recruitment is critical to an effective human capital system, but it is often misaligned with the goal of an effective teacher in every classroom.

A effective teacher in every

classroom

Market driven by what providers want to offer, not what schools or teachers need.

Not targeted to high-need schools or subjects. Bureaucratic dysfunction deters applicants.

Selectio

n

Minimum requirements, little consideration for quality. Little post-hire selection rigor, such as tenure decisions.

Hiring

Archaic slotting procedures impede creation of effective teams.

Little/no human capital training for principals, lack of high-level leadership to manage human capital.

E

valu

atio

n

Systems fail to evaluate performance, making it difficult to develop high performers or remediate or remove low performers.

Compensation

Teaching largely non-competitive with other top professions. Dollars concentrated at senior end of career.

The foundational systems and institutions that are responsible for generating and maintaining quality teachers are almost universally unaligned with the goal of a effective teacher in every classroom.

R

eten

tion

Highest performing teachers often leave the classroom the soonest.


To realize sustainable improvement, effective teaching must be the guiding concern behind all elements of a district’s human capital system.

Talent PipelineCreate supply of

effective teachers to fill all vacancies.

CORE METRIC

Number and percentage of teachers trained or hired who

demonstrate effectiveness

Effectiveness Management

Optimize effectiveness of teacher workforce.

CORE METRICRetention

rate of top-quartile

teachers:

Retention rate of

bottom-quartile teachers

Recruitment

Selection

Training/Certification

Placement

HiringEvaluation

Compensation

Retention / Dismissal

WorkingConditions

School-Level

Human Cap.Mgmnt.

An effective teacherin every

classroom


The New Teacher

Project (TNTP) is a

national nonprofit

dedicated to closing

the achievement gap

by ensuring that poor

and minority students

get outstanding

teachers.

• Founded by teachers in 1997

• Partners with school districts, state education agencies, and charter schools

• Targets acute teacher quality challenges

• Delivers a range of customized services and solutions on a fee-for-service basis

• Approx. 200 employees, most embedded in school district offices; majority are former teachers

• Past and present clients include:

Districts: Baltimore, Chicago, Denver, Memphis, New Orleans, New York, Oakland, Philadelphia, San Antonio, Washington, DC

States: Alaska, Louisiana, Texas, Virginia


TNTP has addressed both the immediate needs of schools and the systemic human capital challenges facing districts and states.

Teachers trained or hired 33,000

Programs or initiatives established 70+

States in which TNTP has worked 28

Districts with which TNTP has partnered 200+

Students affected by TNTP teachers (est.) 4.8 M

• 3 highly publicized studies of teacher hiring and school staffing policies

• Recommended reforms adopted in New York City, Milwaukee, Washington DC, and California

Documentation and reform of flawed policies

and practices

Thousands of new teachers for high-need

schools

“TNTP’s reports offer a nearly perfect illustration of how research can lead directly to reform.”

--Andrew Rotherham (Achieving Teacher and Principal Excellence: A Guidebook for

Donors)


Teaching Fellows Programs: Dramatically increasing the supply of qualified teachers for high-need schools.

FY2008 Results at a Glance

17 Total programs

4 New programs

21 Cities served

43,449 Applications received

3,214 Teaching Fellows hired

15% Acceptance rate

25%Avg. % of partner district hires who are Fellows

83%Percent of all Fellows who teach high-need subjects

86%Percent of all Fellows who teach in Title-I schools

36%Percent of all Fellows who are people-of-color

3.3 Average undergraduate GPA

94%Percent of principals who say they would hire a Teaching Fellow again

All data are cross-site averages from TNTP cohort programs for the 2008 school year. POC average does not include Phoenix; average percent of district hires does not include Milwaukee, Teach California Charters, TeachNOlA or Texas.


2,464

205

Baltimore

2,552

150

Chicago

1,079

110

DC

861

42

Miami

1,890

128

Oakland

2,189

133

Philadelphia

1,217

86

Prince George’s County

2,339

228

Texas

New York City

19,020

1,698

Number of APPLICANTS

Number of HIRES

High-impact teacher recruitment is one of TNTP’s strengths.

Number of Applications and Number of Hires, by Program (2008)

40

Memphis

890

74

Indianapolis

836

102

NOLA

2,442

636

56

Denver

CA Charters

3,266

59

34

Milwaukee

482

41

St. Paul

638

28

Phoenix

470


TNTP utilizes a toolbox of recruitment strategies to attract high-quality teacher candidates.

Internet Paid Advertisements

Mail / Email Campaigns Teacher Recruiters

Outreach / Grassroots Referrals

Signs / Flyers Ed Schools / On-Campus

Public Relations Career Fairs

H E L L O


Clear, compelling messages are effective for attracting candidates.


TNTP’s recruitment campaigns use high-quality, interactive websites.


• Often have personal experience with friends or family members with special needs

• Rely more on word-of-mouth and personal interactions/referrals

• Use the internet more than any other group.

• Want the opportunity to share their subject knowledge with students

• Want to be aggressively recruited

• Want to give back to a community that may reflect one that they grew up in

• Are driven by the opportunity to address inequalities in education and to work with children

• Utilize existing district websites and referrals from district staff

Craft unique messages for each high-need candidate group.

People of Color

Math /Sci

SpecialEd


Track data on recruitment sources to ensure cost-effectiveness.

Sample: Tracking Sources of High-Need Applicants

More Cost-Effective Strategies

Internet - $17 / app

Classified Ads – $55 / app

Maximizing Referrals

On-Campus recruitment

Mail/Email Campaigns

Less Cost-Effective Strategies

Radio/TV Ads - $189/app

Display Ads – $200+/app

Paid Publicity


What is “cultivation?”• High-quality, meaningful, and

targeted contact with teacher candidates

• Helps ensure that candidates complete the application process despite other competing districts or any difficulties

Who do you target?• Prospective candidates who

have requested more information

• Candidates in the application process

• Candidates who have been accepted but who have not yet committed

• Any prospective teacher for critical shortage subject areas.

• We have found that most urban districts do not have problems attracting applicants, their problems are with keeping applicants.

• Experience shows that strategic, prioritized cultivation of interested contacts helps to increase the number of them who remain in the process and begin teaching.

• Our research has shown that it is often the highest-quality candidates who respond to continual, active encouragement to remain in the process without a firm commitment or placement offer.

Actively cultivate high-need candidates to complete an application.


With aggressive recruitment, teachers apply to urban districts in large numbers; however, urban districts often hire too late to capitalize.

4,000

Applicants

Teacher Applicants vs. Vacancies

in Four Urban Districts, 2002

Vacancies (Hires)

4,500

End of May: Over 600 prescreened candidates ready for principal interview and placement

Aug. 12: First new teacher hired

Eastern District Hiring Timeline

Sep. 9:School opens with vacancies after 177 teachers hired

May Jun Jul Aug Sep

No outside hires


TNTP’s Missed Opportunities report found that urban districts may lose 30-60% of all applicants due to hiring delays.

69%

42%

31%

58%

0%

20%

40%

60%

80%

100%

Midwest 1Eastern

Note: The withdrawal data for the Eastern District and Midwestern District 1 are the attrition rates of the “pre-screened” applicants – those the districts had already interviewed, decided were the best candidates, and chosen for principal interviewing. We do not have the total percentage of withdrawers for Midwestern District 2.Source: Telephone, written, and e-mail surveys, Applicant tracking databases (2002).

Hired or another status

Withdrawal Rate of Pre-screened Candidates in Eastern and Midwestern 1

Districts

Withdrew by the end of Aug.

66%69%

57%

50%

0%

20%

40%

60%

80%

100%

Eastern Southwestern Midwest 1 Midwest 2

Percent of Withdrawers for whom Late Timelines Were a Factor in Their Decision to

Leave


In San Francisco, the hiring timeline is the primary reason why applicants withdraw and decline offers.

of teachers who declined an offer or withdrew from the application process

cited the interviewing and hiring timeline as

important or very important to their decision.

Importance of the interviewing and hiring timeline in applicants’

decisions to:

Withdraw Decline an offer

Very Important

Important

Somewhat important

Not important

Source: SFUSD HR data; TNTP survey of 1,440 recent applicants, conducted June/July 2008. Withdrawers n=67; Decliners n=93.

65%


Teachers that are lost to hiring delays are often more qualified than those eventually hired.

Hired by SFUSDNot Hired by SFUSD

Bachelors degree in Interdisciplinary Studies of Health Science from U of Texas - Arlington, with

no advanced degree, applied August, now

teaching Special Education.

Philosophy graduate from Florida International, with

graduate degrees in Digital Media and

Buddhist Studies, applied August, now teaching Math and Chemistry.

Credentialed in Math and Mandarin, Masters degree,

3.8 undergrad GPA. Applied April, would “probably” have accepted a timely offer with

SFUSD, but became “frustrated” with the process.

Now teaching in Lafayette.

Engineering degree (3.8 GPA), Math credential, Masters degree. “Very satisfied” with SFUSD

student teaching, applied February, but hiring timeline

was “very important” in decision to withdraw. Now teaching in Ravenswood.

Source: SFUSD HR data; TNTP survey of 1,440 recent applicants, conducted June/July 2008


New York City is leveraging high-quality alternate routes to certification to diversify its new teacher supply and meet critical needs.

150,000

Applicants to NYCTF since 2000

9,000 Active Teaching Fellows in NYC

1,100 Schools with Teaching Fellows

3.3 Average undergraduate GPA

15%

Average acceptance rate in 2008

30%

Portion of the 2007 class at NYC’s Leadership Academy who started as Teaching Fellows

84% Percentage of 2008 Fellows who teach high-need subjects

73% Percentage of 2008 Fellows working in Title-I schools

11%Percentage of all NYC teachers who are Teaching Fellows

25%Percentage of all NYC math teachers who are Teaching Fellows

>50%

Percentage of New York City’s annual new hires in math and special education from NYCTF

High Quality

High Numbers High Needs

High Impact


New York City’s long-term partnerships with groups like TNTP and TFA have enable it to narrow the teacher quality gap dramatically.

The growth of the NYC Teaching Fellows program, which recruits and trains Fellows to work in high-need schools…

… has coincided with a dramatic decrease in the percentage of teachers in the highest poverty schools who fail New York’s standard teaching exam.

Source: Boyd, D., Lankford, H., Loeb, S., Rockoff, J. and Wyckoff, J. (2007). The Narrowing Gap in Teacher Qualifications and its Implications for Student Achievement. National Center for Analysis of Longitudinal Data in Education Research (CALDER).


In Chicago, similar partnerships and best-in-class staffing policies are enabling schools to focus sharply on teacher quality.

10,746 17% 36% 3.3 72%Avg. number of applications

per year, 2004-06

Avg. annual hiring rate,

2004-06

Percent of applicants with

a Master’s degree

Avg. GPA of teacher

applicants, 2004-06

Percent of principals

satisfied with the QUALITY of 76% or more of

new CPS teachers

Percent of CPS applicants hired by

year

18%16%

12%

2004 2005 2006

Total applicant pool vs.

applicants hired

14%

29%

17%

40%

High need subjects Candidates of color

Total pool Hired


Chicago’s mutual consent staffing policies allows schools to build effective instructional teams and ensures fluidity in the teacher workforce.

How much do you agree with the following statement: "It was important to me when

interviewing that principals wanted me to move to their school"?

50%

34%

11%1%1%

3%

Strongly

Agree

Agree Somewhat

Agree

Somewhat

Disagree

Disagree Strongly

Disagree

95% Agree

Source: TNTP survey conducted in March 2007 of 1,446 CPS teachers.

90% of transferring teachers agree that the

process resulted in a match that both they and their new principals feel

good about.

90%


Chicago’s success at improving the teacher pipeline has not yet been matched by effectiveness management.

61%

32%

7% 0.3%

Superior Excellent Satisfactory Unsatisfactory

Distribution of CPS efficiency ratings, 2003-2006

Source: TNTP analysis of more than 36,000 efficiency ratings issued from 2003-2006. Our data include all centrally recorded ratings. Not all schools reported ratings to HR.

Only 3 out of 1000 teachers

rated unsatisfacto

ry


Failure to manage effectiveness on the job has real consequences for schools and students.

Case study:

A PreK-8 school with about 500 students is almost 90% low-income and 100% African-American. The percentage of students scoring at or above the national average on the ITBS math section has gone from 45% to 27% since 2003, and the percent scoring at the national average on the reading section has gone from 33% to 18%. Of the school’s 51 ratings, not a single one was unsatisfactory. But this particular school also did not issue any satisfactory ratings. All 51 ratings were superior or excellent. The breakdown was 78% Superior, 22% Excellent.


We conclude where we began – all elements in the continuum must be leveraged if we want good instruction in every classroom, every day.

Talent PipelineCreate supply of

effective teachers to fill all vacancies.

CORE METRIC

Number and percentage of teachers trained or hired who

demonstrate effectiveness

Effectiveness Management

Optimize effectiveness of teacher workforce.

CORE METRICRetention

rate of top-quartile

teachers:

Retention rate of

bottom-quartile teachers

Recruitment

Selection

Training/Certification

Placement

HiringEvaluation

Compensation

Retention / Dismissal

WorkingConditions

School-Level

Human Cap.Mgmnt.

An effective teacherin every

classroom


Questions?

For more information, please visit our website:www.tntp.org

recruiting for effectiveness smhc conference| march 2009

Documents

quality teachers

quartile teachers

new teacher project

effects of teachers

outstanding teachers

percentage of teachers

new york

effective teachersafter