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the alliance’s overview handout [141 KB
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Partnership Objective
Research has found that the biggest in-school factor in strengthening student
achievement is teacher quality. However, declining enrollment in preparation programs
and low retention in the profession have led to teacher shortages, meaning schools
must rely on less qualified candidates to fill some teaching positions. This gap
in access to effective teachers highlights the importance of understanding current
trends and the challenges associated with recruitment and retention of high-quality
teachers.
The REL Midwest Alliance to Improve Teacher Preparation (MAITP) leverages existing
data on education preparation providers to explore teacher preparation models, study
relationships between existing models and teacher and student outcomes, and examine
the implementation of changes in state policy across the Midwest. MAITP’s
primary focus is teacher preparation in Michigan. In addition, a community of practice
connects key stakeholders across the region and is an active partner in the research
process.
The Michigan Department of Education (MDE) has worked to address the quality of
the state’s education preparation providers. In recent years, the state has
focused on continuous improvement of teacher preparation and the use of accountability
as a lever to improve the quality of the teacher pipeline. MDE’s underlying
assumption is that if motivated, well-trained teachers have opportunities for
growth, collaboration, and leadership, then student learning will improve.
Training, Coaching, and Technical Support Projects
Improving Michigan Teacher Recruitment and Retention Coaching in Lansing, Traverse Bay, and Maple Valley
MAITP continues to focus on district-level efforts to strengthen the teaching profession. In 2020, REL Midwest launched district partnerships with Lansing Public Schools, Traverse Bay Area Intermediate School District, and Maple Valley Public Schools. REL Midwest is engaging Lansing and Maple Valley in a structured process of data analysis, root-cause analysis, goal setting, and action planning around their local context of teacher supply and demand. REL Midwest will then support the districts as they begin the implementation stage of their action plan, including identifying measurable outcomes. Meanwhile, REL Midwest is supporting the Traverse Bay team as they develop a research project focused on their local context of teacher supply and demand.
Coaching on Tools for Michigan School Districts to Develop an Effective, Stable
Teaching Workforce
Although districts in Michigan have a wealth of policies, practices, and supports
aimed at teacher recruitment and retention, they do not currently have a systematic
way of taking stock of existing offerings and assessing their effectiveness. To
address this need, REL Midwest is conducting a coaching project with the Michigan
Department of Education (MDE) and other stakeholders to develop two tools: (1) a
needs assessment that districts can use to take stock of existing programs for teacher
recruitment and retention, and (2) a survey that MDE and districts will administer
to gather teachers’ perspectives on the usefulness of existing supports. Using
information gathered through these tools, districts can make decisions about which
programs they should maintain, discontinue, or introduce.
Developing a System for Reporting Outcomes of Michigan Educator Preparation
Institutions
The Michigan Department of Education wanted to better understand outcomes associated with educator preparation institutions to develop and sustain a high-quality teaching workforce. In this project, REL Midwest coached Office of Educator Excellence staff to help them develop a system for regular reporting of the outcomes for 35 Michigan-based educator preparation institutions offering 84 teaching programs.
Using State Data to Address Questions About Illinois’ Teacher Workforce
In late 2017, the Illinois State Board of Education (ISBE) asked its staff to engage
in “a year of inquiry” on the status of Illinois’ teacher workforce.
To help fulfill this request, REL Midwest coached ISBE staff through the process
of identifying and refining research questions, identifying data sources and analytic
methods to address each research question, collecting and preparing data for analysis,
and analyzing data and reporting findings. As a result of this project, ISBE gained
access to research-based information for policymaking, and ISBE staff developed
a process for completing this reporting annually.
Exploring the Potential of Clinically Oriented Teacher Preparation Programs
for Michigan
The Michigan Department of Education and REL Midwest conducted a two-part training to explore the potential of clinically oriented teacher
preparation programs, or teacher residencies, in Michigan. During in-person
sessions, higher education and K–12 representatives from across Michigan came
together to learn about teacher residencies and to identify opportunities for potential
partnerships between the higher education and K–12 sectors. REL Midwest generated
a training handout
that describes characteristics of successful clinically oriented teacher preparation
programs, and profiles 10 of these programs throughout the United States, including
two in Michigan.
Works in Progress
District-Level Supports Associated with Retaining Teachers in Michigan School Districts
A main strategic goal for the Michigan Department of Education is ensuring that
all students have equal access to quality teachers. This goal is impeded by a trend
observed in many states: Experienced teachers tend to leave low-performing, high-poverty
school districts to take vacant positions in better performing school districts
that serve lower poverty student populations. The Michigan Department of Education
is taking several steps to help lower performing school districts reverse this trend.
To help the department in this work, REL Midwest is conducting a study to identify
promising district-level supports for teachers (that is, policies, practices, or
programs) that may improve teacher retention.
Teachers Who Do Not Teach: Who Are They and What Would Motivate Their Return to
Teaching?
In Michigan, public school students’ access to effective teachers is hindered
by teacher shortages in rural and urban regions of the state and in certain subjects.
Yet the Michigan Department of Education (MDE) estimates that approximately 105,000
teacher certificate holders who currently reside in Michigan do not teach. This
study is providing MDE with information about the characteristics of nonteaching
certificate holders, their reasons for leaving or never entering the teaching profession,
and the incentives that could encourage them to enter or reenter the profession.
Characteristics of and Outcomes for Students who Pursued an Education Major in Indiana’s
Teacher Preparation Programs
The study is describing the characteristics of students who enrolled in Indiana’s
teacher preparation institutions and examining the extent to which they persisted
in and graduated from a teacher preparation program, entered into teaching, and
succeeded in Indiana’s public schools.
