In this project, the REL worked with NJDOE to create the programming and data infrastructure that allowed NJDOE to build off these analyses and create data reports for the state and for each of the approximately 600 individual districts that capture the proportions of students taught by teachers by specific demographics, including student and teacher race and ethnicity; student EL, IEP, and economically disadvantaged statuses; and proxies for teacher quality and effectiveness, such as teacher licensures, certifications, out-of-field teaching assignments, years of experience, and performance data. For example, NJDOE and districts could explore if most teachers are teaching in their field, using data on licensures, certifications, and teaching assignments. NJDOE also wants to measure their progress at diversifying the teacher workforce to ensure that students are experiencing at least some elementary and secondary teachers of their same race and/or ethnicity.

The Pennsylvania Department of Education (PDE) requested REL Mid-Atlantic's assistance to conduct an evaluation of the programs funded through its Innovative Teacher and Principal Residency Programs grants. The evaluation examined how well the funded grant programs are addressing shortages, improving diversity and cultural responsiveness, and preparing teachers and principals for Pennsylvania's highest need schools; and explored ways the programs can be improved.

The REL worked with the District of Columbia Public Schools (DCPS) to conduct analyses to enhance its School Leader IMPACT system. One of these recommendations was to consider incorporating an additional measure of principal performance based on perceptions of school staff. This study will provide DCPS timely information about whether and how staff input could be incorporated into the School Leader IMPACT measures.

Understanding Teacher Turnover: Insights from the School District of Philadelphia (504 KB)
This infographic provides insights on understanding teacher turnover in the School District of Philadelphia.

Teacher Turnover and Access to Effective Teachers in the School District of Philadelphia (894 KB)
Teacher turnover can be expensive and disruptive to schools and students and can reduce access to effective teachers. A new REL Mid-Atlantic report examines access to effective teachers, factors related to teacher turnover, and the role of turnover in the equitable distribution of effective teachers in the School District of Philadelphia. The study examined teachers who taught kindergarten through grade 12 in school years 2010/11 through 2016/17.

Memo: Feasibility of a Cross-State Teacher Mobility Study in the Mid-Atlantic Region
This project assessed the feasibility of obtaining teacher data from the state education agencies in the region, linking those data across states, and using the data to answer stakeholders' questions about teacher mobility. The feasibility assessment helped stakeholders understand which questions about regional teacher mobility can and cannot be answered using existing administrative data.

REL Mid-Atlantic will conduct a two-part workshop to help PPS district and school leaders better understand prospects for using teacher surveys in school leader evaluations.

Teacher turnover can be expensive and disruptive to schools and students and can reduce access to effective teachers. The School District of Philadelphia (SDP) prioritized understanding the characteristics, effectiveness, mobility, and retention of its teachers using its data. This study informed SDP's strategic human capital policies by providing insights on recruitment and retention.

The REL created an automated version of the teacher diversity tool so states with a larger number of districts can more easily produce teacher diversity district profiles. See the tool here.

The Pennsylvania Department of Education (PDE) sought REL assistance in developing an evaluation plan for the teacher and principal residency programs funded through its Innovative Teacher and Principal Residency Programs grants. The REL provided coaching to PDE staff and co-developed an evaluation plan. The coaching built PDE staff members’ capacity to plan this evaluation and similar evaluations in the future.

Infographic on the Promising Practices and Approaches to Support Remote Learning (532 KB)
Remote learning takes on added importance as schools are forced to shutter their doors due to COVID-19. The REL developed an infographic that reviews promising practices to support remote learning during school closures.

This tool generates district reports helps state education agency staff support districts in understanding the diversity of their teacher workforce. The tool generates district reports that provide the racial/ethnic make-up of a district's student and teacher populations and its three- and five-year teacher retention rates by race and ethnicity. See the tool here.

This workshop helped stakeholders in the mid-Atlantic region better understand the problem of teacher attrition, learn about evidence-backed solutions already underway, discuss their experiences with counterparts from other LEAs, and develop concrete action plans for addressing teacher attrition. This workshop marked the start of an ongoing effort in each district to think about how they can make changes to combat issues with teacher attrition and the REL will provide a framework for planning this.

Stakeholders in the mid-Atlantic region are increasingly discussing culturally responsive practice as a strategy for improving education outcomes for students from historically marginalized communities. To build stakeholder capacity to implement culturally responsive practice, this workshop series: (1) presented a framework for understanding educational equity, defining culturally responsive pedagogy (CRP), and describing how CRP can be embedded in broader efforts to effect systemic change; (2) provided participants with background research on CRP and information on how to implement it throughout the education system; (3) discussed existing efforts to implement CRP in pre-service training programs for teachers and administrators; and (4) reviewed existing efforts to implement CRP in schools. Participants were encouraged to develop an action plan that will guide the implementation of CRP in their respective districts or educator preparation programs. View the webinar series here.

The REL worked with DCPS to conduct an analysis of its school leader IMPACT data. The findings will inform future revisions to the school leader IMPACT guidelines.

The REL conducted a two-part workshop to help Pittsburgh Public Schools’ district and school leaders better understand prospects for using teacher surveys in school leader evaluations. The workshops informed district leaders and principals about (1) teacher survey instruments that other districts and states use as input for principal evaluations and (2) notable research on the characteristics, use, and effects of those instruments.

Culturally Responsive Pedagogy Fact Sheet (592 KB)
The REL developed a fact sheet about how culturally responsive pedagogy is defined, what practices are considered culturally responsive, and considerations for implementing these practices.

Teacher Diversity Infographic (538 KB)
The REL developed an infographic about how a more diverse teaching workforce may improve educational outcomes for minority students.

Characteristics of Effective School Leaders Fact Sheet (327 KB)
The REL developed a fact sheet about what is known about the characteristics of effective school leaders.

The REL conducted multiple training sessions with Maryland State Department of Education (MSDE) staff to improve their knowledge of educator evaluation systems and support them in applying that information to make informed decisions about their educator evaluation system.

Teacher Residency Fact Sheet (318 KB)
The School District of Philadelphia began its teacher residency program in the 2016–2017 school year to attract teaching candidates of diverse backgrounds, improve teacher retention, and ultimately produce improved outcomes for students. The REL developed a fact sheet to summarize characteristics of existing teacher residency programs and the related research.

The School District of Philadelphia spends significant resources on hiring approximately 1,000 new teachers per year and would like data to assess which characteristics of teachers and training programs aid recruitment and retention of new teachers. We co-developed an intake form that SDP will administer to its newly hired teachers for completion upon hiring to address gaps in SDP’s existing data on these teachers. The teacher intake form is available on REL Mid-Atlantic’s website as a resource for other school districts.