Suing for your supper? Resource allocation, teacher compensation and finance lawsuits

Despite a large literature examining the effect of litigation on education finance and student achievement, there is relatively little recent evidence about how extra resources generated by litigation are spent. This paper uses national data to examine the effects of high court finance rulings from 1991 to 2002 on school districts’ education spending: including the categories of capital, plant, and support expenses as well as the teacher wage bill. It also decomposes the latter change into a quantity effect from teacher hiring and a price effect due to increased wages. I find that the largest spending increase comes from salary increases to teachers, with other large increases for hiring more instructors and increasing support spending. Further evidence suggests that the higher salaries are manifest more in an increased experience premium rather than higher salaries for new teacher hires. This evidence helps rationalize the role teachers unions play in supporting, and sometimes originating finance lawsuits.     

Teacher salaries and teacher aptitude: An analysis using quantile regressions

This study investigates the relationship between salaries and scholastic aptitude for full-time public high school humanities and mathematics/sciences teachers. For identification, we rely on variation in salaries between adjacent school districts within the same state. The results indicate that teacher aptitude is positively correlated with teacher salaries with an elasticity point estimate of 0.132. However, using quantile regressions, we find the elasticity estimates form an inverted U-shape across the scholastic aptitude distribution, and that higher aptitude teachers are more profoundly affected by the percentage of students eligible for free lunch and local street crime, while lower aptitude teachers are more profoundly affected by local education support. Furthermore, studying mathematics/sciences teachers, we find that while the elasticity estimates maintain an inverted U-shape, scholastic aptitude is not correlated with changes in salaries for the lower 40 percentiles of the aptitude distribution.     

西北农村中小学教师收入差异的实证分析

农村中小学教师工资与教师队伍稳定性、师资质量、教育均衡发展及社会收入分配正义等问题密切相关,因此备受社会关注。基于甘肃省基础教育调查数据,运用方差分析和回归分析,本文分析了甘肃农村教师收入差异的表现形式和工资结构。研究发现,甘肃农村教师收入差异表现形式多样且要素结构复杂。     

Towards an optimal teacher salary schedule: Designing base salary to attract and retain effective teachers

This study presents the literature’s first estimates of the effect of teacher pay on the distribution of experience among teachers hired by public school districts. Overall, a 1% increase in base salary for teachers of a particular experience level increases the proportion of the targeted teachers hired by 0.04–0.08 percentage points. Pay increases have the largest effect on hire rates among teachers with 2–3 years of experience and the effect diminishes with experience. I show that higher teacher salaries provide a dual benefit of retaining and attracting a more effective distribution of teachers. Districts may also improve student achievement growth at no cost by reshaping their salary schedules so that they are increasing and concave in teacher experience.     

我国教师工资及其位序的时空特征:1988-2018

本文采用中国劳动统计年鉴(1989-2019)的有关数据对1988-2018年间我国教师工资的空间分布、相对位序和演变趋势进行了系统分析。研究发现:就我国教师工资的总体水平来看,在三十年间获得了巨大的提升,其绝对数量增长了51倍,年均增长率达14%;就我国教师工资在不同省份和地区的均衡分配程度来看,整体上呈现出从绝对均衡向相对均衡的发展趋势;就我国教师工资收入在全部国民经济行业中的相对位置来看,呈现出频繁变动的趋势和先下降后逐渐回升的趋势;就我国教师群体内部工资差距来看,呈现出不同教育阶段教师工资间的差距持续拉大的趋势。考虑到教师在培养社会劳动力中的重要性,在未来的发展中,要更加重视从整体上提升教师群体的工资水平和其他待遇,特别是要重视提高初等教育阶段教师的工资收入。     

Monetary returns to academic ability in the public teacher labor market

Previous research has established the returns to academic ability in the general labor market, and this paper investigates such returns in the teacher labor market. Using a nationally representative sample of public school teachers, I find that teachers who graduate from the most selective undergraduate institutions have salaries that are between 7% and 14% higher than those who graduate from the least selective colleges. An empirical investigation of the source of these returns reveals that the majority of this difference is due to high-ability teachers sorting into higher paying districts, though a non-trivial amount arises from within-district deviations from the salary schedule.     

教师绩效工资改革的国外研究及其启示

随着国外教师工资改革的不断推进,学者对教师绩效工资改革的研究不断拓展和深入。梳理发现,研究内容主要集中在教师工资与教师供给、教师工资与学生产出、教师工资与教师流失以及公立学校和私立学校绩效工资改革对比研究等方面。对国外绩效工资改革的反思,使我们认识到教师工资制度改革必须要与学校组织的变革有机结合;政策制定、实施要努力做到＂程序公平＂;采用合理的评价标准和方式;正确对待绩效工资,将其看作一个持续的工作而不断完善。     

Conversations about head start salaries: A feminist analysis

This qualitative interview study investigates the Hoover Community Action Agency's Head Start salary policies as described by 3 program administrators and 10 teachers. Feminist theories explain how teachers' and administrators' interpretations of salaries reflect societal beliefs about the value of Head Start teaching. Head Start teachers acknowledge both their low wages and their deep commitment to the Head Start mission. Low- and middle-income teachers differ in how they describe current salary levels: low-income teachers are proactive in salary enhancement efforts and middle-income teachers view salaries as supplemental family income. Agency administrators, while acknowledging the low teacher wages, argue that Head Start employment is more financially lucrative than day care teaching. Administrators cite teacher commitment, not salary, as the best predictor of teacher tenure.     

School Autonomy: A Comparison between China and the United States

Abstract

This study examined and compared school autonomy in China and the United States. Based on the international PISA 2012 school data, the authors examined three aspects of school autonomy. We found that in comparison with the United States, (1) principals from China were less likely to have responsibility over eleven school decisions (hiring teachers, firing teachers, salary increase, budget formulation, budget allocation, disciplinary policies, assessment policies, student admittance, textbook selection, course content, and courses offered) and were similar in having responsibility over teacher start salaries, and (2) teachers from China were less likely to have responsibility over six school decisions (hiring teachers, budget formulation, disciplinary policies, textbook selection, course content, and courses offered), were more likely to have responsibility over two decisions (firing teachers, student admittance), and were similar in having responsibility over four decisions (teacher start salaries, salary increase, budget allocation, and assessment policies). We also found that schools in China had (1) lower responsibility for curriculum/assessment and lower responsibility for resource allocation and (2) a lower level of teacher participation/autonomy. The findings have implications for educational policy in China and the United States.     

The impact of salary differentials on teacher shortages and turnover: The case of mathematics and science teachers

One of the major focuses of the recent reform movement in education concerns perceived and anticipated teacher shortages, especially in particular fields such as mathematics and science. It is widely believed that lower salaries relative to alternative occupations are responsible for teacher shortages and that higher salaries will therefore help reduce shortages. Yet there is little empirical research that examines the relationship between teacher shortages and teacher salary differentials. This paper examines this relationship for the case of mathematics and science teachers using data on a sample of medium and large school districts located within large metropolitan areas throughout the United States. The results support the general proposition that salary differentials between teachers and alternative occupations influence teacher shortages, although the relationship varies by gender and geographic area of the U.S.     

The pension subsidy of educational inequality

Public school teachers receive on retirement a pension typically equaling 75% of the average salary earned during the three peak years. While the teachers pay part of the costs of their defined benefit pension through payroll deductions, most of the cost is subsidized by the state. The pension subsidy, a far from neglible component of the per pupil cost of instruction, is particularly high in those school districts that pay high salaries and enjoy low student/teacher ratios. It is a regressive subsidy highly correlated with school district income and wealth. Several alternative reform measures are considered.     

What Does Professional Rank Mean to Teachers? A Survey of the Multiple Impacts of Professional Rank on Urban and Rural Compulsory Education Teachers

Abstract

Professional rank is an important indicator of the professional capacity of compulsory education teachers. A rational professional rank evaluation system plays an important role in mobilizing the enthusiasm of teachers, improving the overall quality of teachers, and promoting the development of education. Based on stratified random sample data from compulsory education teachers in 23 counties and cities in 12 Chinese provinces, this study analyzes the multiple impacts of urban and rural compulsory education teacher professional rank on teacher salaries, development opportunities, and work duties. The authors found the following: (a) Urban-rural differences exist in the opportunity to access compulsory education teacher professional rank; rural school teachers are disadvantaged in accessing professional rank, especially senior rank; (b) Significant salary differences exist among teachers of different ranks, as well as significant urban-rural differences in the total monthly incomes and monthly salary among teachers of the same rank; (c) Teachers of different ranks have different opportunities to participate in training and undertake school duties. Within the same rank, rural teachers have fewer opportunities to participate in high-level training and have a higher proportion of school duties; (d) Significant differences exist among teachers of different ranks in terms of average classroom hours per week and important duties undertaken. There is a significant urban-rural difference in average weekly classroom hours and important duties among teachers of the same rank; weekly classroom hours are higher for rural teachers, while they have more opportunities to undertake important duties.     

Teacher Salaries and the Shortage of High-Quality Teachers in China’s Rural Primary and Secondary Schools

Abstract

Teacher salary level and structure are not only important factors affecting the supply of primary and secondary school teachers, but they are also crucial to attracting, training, and retaining high-quality teachers, thereby impacting the overall quality of education and teaching in schools. The reform of China’s basic education management system has ensured the fiscal security and steady increase of rural primary and secondary school teacher salaries and has effectively improved the supply and quality of rural teachers. The objective gap between urban and rural teacher salaries and benefits has, however, led to the one-way mobility of rural teachers, resulting in the loss of quality teachers and giving rise to a structural shortage in rural schools. To improve the supply and quality of teachers in rural areas, it is necessary to effectively and systemically increase rural teachers’ basic salaries and subsidies according to the law. There is the necessity through various channels to raise primary and secondary school teachers’ salaries and benefits, especially subsidy and allowance standards, to eliminate actual variances in teacher salaries.     

高中教师奖励性绩效考核的实践与思考——基于江苏省部分重点高中教师绩效工资实施现状的调查

实施绩效工资是学校工资结构和分配方式的重要改革。受现行的评价机制和高考制度的影响,高中学校内部人员间、学科间的结构性矛盾比义务教育阶段学校要多而复杂,奖励性绩效工资考核中出现的问题也较多。在对江苏省部分重点高中教师绩效工资实施现状调查结果进行分析思考的基础上,提出高中学校要立足整体效益观、全面发展观、价值文化观来实施教师奖励性绩效考核。     

Teachers’ unions and compensation: The impact of collective bargaining on salary schedules and performance pay schemes

This study examines the impact that collective bargaining has on multiple dimensions of teacher compensation, including average and starting salaries, early and late returns to experience, returns to graduate degrees, and the incidence of different pay for performance schemes. Using data from the School and Staffing Survey (SASS) and a more recent data set, the Teacher Rules, Roles and Rights (TR3), we find that collective bargaining has a significant impact on all aspects of current, qualification-specific salary schedules. Further, we find some evidence that bargaining impacts the design of performance pay plans. Specifically, unions tend to encourage teacher bonuses that are based on additional qualifications or duties, but discourage bonuses that directly reward improved student test scores.     

Changes in teacher salaries during the 1970s: The role of school district demographics

This paper analyzes changes in the teacher salary schedules of Michigan school districts between 1970 and 1980. We find that starting salaries, expressed in 1970 dollars, decreased by an average of 20% over the decade. Real maximum salaries decreased by 15%. The between-district variability of starting salaries increased markedly over the decade, making the average starting salary a much poorer estimate of the starting salary a particular teacher earned in 1980 than was the case in 1970. The between-district variability of maximum salaries did not increase over the decade. Student enrollment changes were a significant predictor of the changes in maximum salaries. Districts that experienced the greatest percentage losses in students tended to experience the greatest declines in real maximum salaries. Student enrollment changes were also related to changes in starting salaries, but the relationship was more complex.     

Book Reviews

ABSTRACT

Each year an overwhelming number of students apply to join teacher training courses to become primary school teachers in Brunei Darussalam. This article analyses some of the factors that teacher trainees find attractive in the teaching profession. Among 25 factors listed in a questionnaire, the factors concerning more opportunity to further education through the BA Education course received the highest score. Other factors considered important were classified under various categories such as status of teaching, salaries, conditions of service and benefits. Under these categories, it was revealed that teacher status, respect by community and salaries were among the dominant factors that influenced teacher trainees’ attraction to teaching. The article concludes with implications for the teaching profession in Brunei Darussalam particularly in issues pertaining to continuing education for teachers.     

高校实施绩效工资的策略探析

教育是国家大计,教育的质量关键取决于教师的素质.合理的工资待遇能够提高高校教师的工作积极性.实施教师绩效工资,能合理保障教师收入,提高教师的工资水平,吸引大量的优秀人才从事高校教师行业;引导教师不断提高自身素质和教育教学能力,建设高素质的教师队伍,促进高等教育的均衡发展.     

Interstate variation in teacher salaries

Comparisons of public school teachers' salaries across states are frequently used by the media, teacher organizations, and others to judge how well the teachers in a particular state are paid. These comparisons and the rankings they engender typically do not control for economic factors which could cause salaries to vary across states. In this paper we examine to what degree variation in average teacher salaries is caused by differences across states in the cost of living, the personal characteristics of teachers, the characteristics of teachers' jobs, and the demand for education. We use our results to adjust the average salaries and we compute new state rankings based on these adjusted salaries. For some states the rank based on our adjusted salaries is significantly different from the rank based upon unadjusted salaries. [JEL I21, J45]     

Preservice elementary teachers' views of their students' prior knowledge of science

Pre‐service teachers face many challenges as they learn to teach in ways that are different from their own educational experiences. Pre‐service teachers often enter teacher education courses with pre‐conceptions about teaching and learning that may or may not be consistent with contemporary learning theory. To build on preservice teachers' prior knowledge, we need to identify the types of views they have when entering teacher education courses and the views they develop throughout these courses. The study reported here focuses specifically on preservice teachers' views of their own students' prior knowledge and the implications these views have on their understanding of the formative assessment process. Sixty‐one preservice teachers were studied from three sections of a science methods course. Results indicate that preservice teachers exhibited a limited number of views about students' prior knowledge. These views tended to privilege either academic or experience‐based concepts for different aspects of formative assessment, in contrast to contemporary perspectives on teaching for understanding. Rather than considering these views as misconceptions, it is argued that it is more useful to consider them as resources for further development of a more flexible concept of formative assessment. Four common views are discussed in detail and applied to science teacher education. © 2008 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Res Sci Teach 45: 497–523, 2008