Report: Make Improving Teacher Working Conditions a Priority
To boost teacher retention and student achievement at high-poverty schools, states and districts must first look to improve working conditions for teachers, concludes a new report by The Education Trust, a Washington-based nonprofit group. The report profiles five school districts that have focused efforts on bettering teacher support and development—specifically by strengthening leadership and encouraging professional collaboration—and have shown promising or positive gains as a result.
The report follows on the heels of the recent annual MetLife Survey of the American Teacher, which found that teacher satisfaction has dipped to its lowest point since 1989. That annual survey suggested that education budget cuts were to cause, at least in part, for declining morale. It also stated that teachers with high job satisfaction were more likely to say that their school or district provided adequate time for professional development and collaboration than were those with low satisfaction.
The Ed Trust report, entitled "Building and Sustaining Talent: Creating Conditions in High-Poverty Schools That Support Effective Teaching and Learning," looks at three districts that implemented long-term programs in high-poverty schools to improve support for teachers and