Our Research

Other Publications

In addition to Missed Opportunities and Unintended Consequences, The New Teacher Project has been engaged in a number of other research projects and publications.

These include:

 

NEW

Teacher Hiring, Assignment and Transfer in Milwaukee Public Schools

September 2007

In the spring of 2006, The New Teacher Project reviewed the teacher hiring and school staffing policies and practices in Milwaukee Public Schools (MPS) with collaboration from the district and the Milwaukee Teachers Education Association (MTEA). This analysis showed that the district and the union have made great strides in their joint efforts to create a more effective teacher hiring and evaluation model, but that current school staffing and teacher transfer practices continue to cause dissatisfaction among many teachers. These shortcomings hamper Milwaukee’s efforts to build, support, and retain a high-quality teaching force, especially in its highest-need schools. TNTP's primary findings included:

  1. While Milwaukee has made strides by introducing more collaborative teacher staffing rules, a large number of vacancies continue to be filled through assignment by HR, without the consent of teachers or schools.

  2. The transfer option known as an “incompatibility transfer” (also called a Q9 transfer) is not successful, despite best intentions.

  3. MPS does not compete effectively for new teachers.

  4. MPS staffing rules and processes do not allow schools to select the teachers they need.

  5. Milwaukee's Teacher Evaluation and Mentoring (TEAM) process is well regarded but rarely used.

  6. HR must take steps to improve its new teacher hiring and teacher transfer processes.

Downloads:

Full Analysis (PDF - 448K)

Executive Summary (PDF - 108K)

 

Teacher Hiring, Assignment and Transfer in Portland Public Schools

August 2007

Between November 2006 and June 2007, The New Teacher Project engaged in an extensive review of teacher staffing policies and practices in Oregon's Portland Public Schools (PPS). TNTP's analysis concluded that Portland currently operates under staffing rules that hamper the efforts of the district and teachers union to build and maintain the highest quality workforce. Specifically, the analysis illustrates that:

  1. PPS is not competing effectively with peer districts for the best new teachers;

  2. PPS teachers are often forced into positions they do not choose and schools are regularly forced to hire teachers they do not want and who may not be a good fit for the job;

  3. Teachers new to the district are treated as expendable; and

  4. PPS Human Resources faces internal procedural problems that can and should be alleviated in the near term.

Downloads:

Full Analysis (PDF - 262K)

Executive Summary (PDF - 170K)

Teacher Hiring, Assignment and Transfer in Chicago Public Schools

July 2007

In the winter of 2006-2007, with support from the Joyce Foundation, The New Teacher Project conducted an extensive analysis of the current teacher staffing rules and processes in Chicago Public Schools (CPS). TNTP’s research illustrated that Chicago faces many challenges common to urban school districts in its efforts to secure high-quality teachers, but also that the district benefits significantly from an unusually progressive set of school staffing policies and procedures. TNTP’s four primary findings can be summarized as follows:

  1. Chicago is able to attract a large applicant pool of prospective teachers, but loses quality candidates who grow frustrated with a late hiring timeline;

  2. The majority of teachers and principals are satisfied with the current teacher transfer and reassignment processes;

  3. Top-performing teachers are vulnerable to being displaced because of a reassignment policy based on seniority rather than teacher quality or school fit; and

  4. The current CPS teacher performance evaluation system does not distinguish strong performers and is ineffective at identifying poor performers and dismissing them from Chicago schools.

 

Downloads:

Full Analysis (PDF - 479K)

Executive Summary (PDF - 155K)

Improved Principal Hiring: Findings and Recommendations for Urban Schools

September 2006

In 2006, with support from The Broad Foundation, The New Teacher Project investigated the methods that urban school districts use to recruit, select and hire school principals.  This working paper presents the basic findings of that investigation along with recommendations for how urban districts and schools can build model recruitment, screening, selection and hiring processes to obtain quality school leaders. 

Downloads:

Improved Principal Hiring (PDF - 801K)

Urban School Reform: Lessons from San Diego

April 2005

This study, led by Frederick M. Hess, brought together multiple education researchers, including The New Teacher Project, to conduct a comprehensive assessment of the San Diego Unified School District’s reform efforts under former Superintendent Alan Bersin. It was intended to break new ground in understanding urban school improvement and to provide concrete new insights to guide the efforts of urban districts seeking to serve their students and answer the challenge of No Child Left Behind.  TNTP contributed a chapter reviewing the policies and practices of the district’s Human Resources department, focusing on reforms that improved the district’s ability to recruit and hire new teachers.

Click here for more information on Urban School Reform: Lessons from San Diego available from Harvard Education Press.