Professors Matthew Kraft and John Papay discuss research showing that the school contexts in which teachers work have a profound influence on their effectiveness. Below are excerpts from their article:
An emerging body of research now shows that the contexts in which teachers work profoundly shape teachers’ job decisions and their effectiveness. Put simply, teachers who work in supportive contexts stay in the classroom longer, and improve at faster rates, than their peers in less-supportive environments. And, what appear to matter most about the school context are not the traditional working conditions we often think of, such as modern facilities and well-equipped classrooms. Instead, aspects that are difficult to observe and measure seem to be most influential, including the quality of relationships and collaboration among staff, the responsiveness of school administrators, and the academic and behavioral expectations for students.
The high rates of teacher turnover we observe in schools that serve large populations of low-income and minority students are largely explained by the poor working conditions in these schools – not the students they serve. The chart below demonstrates how, in Massachusetts, teachers are over three times more likely to report intentions to transfer away from a school with poor working conditions (bottom percentiles) than one with strong working conditions (top percentiles). The finding that teachers’ views of their working conditions are strong predictors of whether or not they stay in a school has been replicated in a wide range districts and states, including Massachusetts, as we show in the figure below, as well as California, North Carolina, New York City, and Chicago.
In supportive schools, teachers not only tend to stay, but they also improve at much greater rates over time. In a recent study, we tracked teachers in Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools for up to ten years and examined how their individual effectiveness (as measured by contributions to student achievement) changed over time. We found that teachers working in schools with strong professional environments improved, over 10 years, 38 percent more than teachers in schools with weak professional environments. Here, we used six measures drawn from teacher surveys to characterize the environment: consistent order and discipline; opportunities for peer collaboration; supportive principal leadership; effective professional development; a school culture characterized by trust; and a fair teacher evaluation process providing meaningful feedback.
These findings, and a growing body of evidence, make clear that the school context matters a great deal for teachers and, as a result, for their students.
So, what can be done to improve school context? The researchers offer a few suggestions:
- orderly, disciplined learning environments
- student support services that attend to social and emotional needs
- schoolwide efforts to engage parents
- peer collaboration
- feedback from peers and administrators
- instructional support
Importantly, school principals play a key role in establishing productive professional environments in schools. They are the ones who establish these organizational supports and build school-wide cultures. Hiring principals who have the ability to identify organizational weaknesses, establish school-wide systems to support teachers and students, and galvanize the collective buy-in and involvement of all teachers is a central lever for improving the teaching and learning environment.
To read the full article, see:
http://www.shankerinstitute.org/blog/developing-workplaces-where-teachers-stay-improve-and-succeed
