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2 Oct 2015
Report

Teacher Effectiveness in Adult Education: The Importance of Teacher Background Qualifications for Student Learning

Michelle Yin, Larry Condelli, Burhan Ogut, and Stephanie M. Cronen

The federal adult education program serves more than two million eligible adults who lack basic literacy and English language skills. Although numerous studies in K–12 have shown that measurable teacher characteristics can be related to student achievement, no such research exists that examines teacher effectiveness in adult education. To explore whether indicators of teacher quality are associated with student achievement in adult education, this second brief in a series examines the relationships between teacher characteristics and student achievement.

Findings indicated that there was no consistent relationship between key teacher demographics and student outcomes across three states included in the study; among full-time teachers, there was a small but positive relationship between some teacher characteristics and their students’ achievement in two states for mathematics and in one state for reading, while the opposite relationship was found in a third state. The mixed findings require further research in other states to understand better what the important factors are for teachers of adult education.

PDF icon Teacher Effectiveness in Adult Education: The Importance of Teacher Background Qualifications for Student Learning (PDF)

Related Centers

Center

Adult Education Research and Technical Assistance Center (AERTAC)

The Adult Education Research and Technical Assistance Center (AERTAC) at AIR conducts research and provides technical assistance to states and local programs to improve the adult education system by promoting teacher quality through better professional development, strengthening accountability, and increasing the use of technology in instruction.

Related Projects

Project

Studying Teacher Effectiveness in Adult Education

Despite the important role that adult education can play in students’ lives, research on teachers of adult education is limited. AIR produced four research briefs to provide descriptive information about the characteristics of teachers in adult education and to explore whether teacher characteristics are associated with student achievement in adult education.

Further Reading

  • Teacher Effectiveness in Adult Education: The Relationship Between Teacher Characteristics and Students’ Transitions Into Postsecondary Education
  • Teachers of Adult Education and the Students They Serve: A Snapshot From Three States
  • Studying Teacher Effectiveness in Adult Education
  • Lessons Learned: Working with Administrative Data in Adult Education
  • Promoting Teacher Effectiveness in Adult Education
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Michelle Yin

Michelle Yin

Principal Economist
Image of Larry Condelli

Larry Condelli

Institute Fellow and Managing Researcher

Topic

Workforce
Adult Learning
Teacher Preparation and Performance

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