Teacher Preparation and Performance

Teacher training other teachers

A strong education system is built upon effective teachers. Effective teachers must be supported by effective policies and practices across their entire career, beginning with preparation and recruitment, continuing through professional growth, evaluation, environment, and compensation through teacher leadership.

Related Topics

Principal Preparation and Performance

Our Work

AIR works in a number of areas to develop effective educators. We work to achieve solutions to complex policy and practice problems and to support effective approaches that help teachers thrive:

Teacher Preparation

Preparation programs provide teachers with the skills and experiences needed to be effective educators from the beginning of their career. Learn more

Recruitment, Supply and Demand, and Teacher Shortages

Teacher quality is impacted when there are shortage areas and job supply does not match the demand. Learn more

Professional Development, Growth, and Learning

Effective professional learning can improve teacher practice. Learn more

Teacher Evaluation

A well-designed evaluation system can serve to identify highly effective teachers, generate meaningful data and feedback, and improve teaching and learning. Learn more

Teacher Compensation and Incentives

An effective compensation system should directly support district recruitment, hiring, and retention goals by recognizing and rewarding effective teachers and teacher candidates. Learn more

Teacher Leadership and Career Pathways

Teachers shouldn’t have to leave the classroom and become administrators to advance in their career. Effective teachers need opportunities to grow in their role across their entire career. Learn more

Educator Environment

Teachers are more satisfied and excel when they teach in a supportive school environment. Learn more

Latest Work

26 Oct 2018
Report

Beyond Accountability: Improving the Use of Information to Support Teaching and Learning Through Continuous Improvement Cycles

States and school districts have made significant investments in systems to measure teacher performance, with the ultimate goal of improving student learning. In this report, AIR experts share their findings from the two-year Beyond Accountability project, in which four school districts identified a specific problem of practice and used plan-do-study-act cycles, an iterative process, to develop, test, and revise their strategies to address that challenge.
24 Sep 2018
Brief

Strategies for Implementing the Teacher Leadership and Compensation Program in Iowa School Districts

The Iowa Teacher Leadership and Compensation (TLC) system was designed to provide career pathways and compensation structures to attract, retain, and reward effective teachers; to promote continuous improvement in Iowa’s teaching workforce; and to increase student academic achievement. As part of an independent evaluation, AIR conducted these case studies of six Iowa school districts to identify promising local strategies for implementing TLC.
Image of report cover
22 Jun 2018
Report

Improving Teaching Effectiveness: Final Report

The Intensive Partnerships for Effective Teaching initiative was a multiyear effort to dramatically improve student outcomes by increasing students' access to effective teaching. This final report is the result of a six-year evaluation of the initiative conducted by AIR and RAND Corporation.
Image of teacher at chalkboard smiling at student raising hand
12 Jun 2018
In the Field

Better Data May Equal Better Prepared Teachers

The lack of easy data sharing between K–12 systems and teacher preparation may be costly, in terms of the quality of instruction by new teachers. In this report from the field, Jenny DeMonte describes the efforts of some states to actively share data.
Image of teacher and student
7 May 2018
Blog Post

Tracking Teacher Effectiveness Gaps Between Charter Schools and Traditional Public Schools

Are teachers working in charter schools more effective in improving student outcomes compared to teachers working in traditional public schools? In this blog post, Umut Özek, a principal researcher at AIR, describes a new study in which he and his fellow authors examined the disparities in teacher effectiveness between charter schools and traditional public schools in Florida.
12 Apr 2018 | 3:00 PM - 4:30 PM
Event

Coaching to Support the Conditions for a Well-Rounded Education

Learning conditions that support a well-rounded education for all students are key ingredients within state’s ESSA plans. At times, creating a positive school climate and supporting student social and emotional development can be daunting challenges. In this webinar, AIR staff introduce the Leadership Competency Self-Reflection Tool and a coaching toolkit that administrators and instructional coaches can use to support teacher implementation of social and emotional learning practices.
Image of teacher and students in BARR classroom
30 Mar 2018
Video

Improving Student Outcomes and Building Positive Relationships through the BARR Model

Building Assets, Reducing Risks (BARR) is an evidence-based strategy that uses research and real-time data to increase teacher effectiveness and improve student outcomes. Hans Bos explains the methodology behind an AIR evaluation that found the model leads to better academic performance, fewer course failures, more courses attained, and better relationships.
Image of smiling African American teacher with student
21 Mar 2018
Brief

Promoting Educator Effectiveness: The Effect of Two Key Strategies

Having a more effective teacher or principal can substantially improve students’ academic outcomes. This brief examines the effects of using research-based performance measures to evaluate educators and provide them with feedback, and of offering them bonuses based on their performance ratings.
20 Mar 2018
Report

Teacher Professional Learning Through Teacher Network Programs

Despite large investments and efforts, schools and districts have long struggled to provide ongoing, effective, and sustained support for teachers’ professional development. This study examined the experiences of teachers in six schools participating in one of three teacher network programs during the 2016–17 school year.
7 Mar 2018
Report

New Collaborations, New Approaches: Research for Improvement in Teacher Preparation

Although there is a growing body of evidence designed to facilitate understanding of teacher preparation, the study outcomes emerge long after teacher candidates have left preparation programs. AIR brought together 35 researchers, teacher preparation providers, and school leaders to discuss what kind of research designs would help teacher preparation providers improve their programs; this report shares the results of this effort.
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