In Los Angeles Unified, novice teachers tend to be assigned students who are academically farther behind those assigned to experienced teachers. Before they depart, usually afterward merely two years, Teach for America teachers have a bigger impact on students than that of other new teachers. And National Board Certified teachers significantly outperform other teachers in LAUSD.

These are among the findings of an all-encompassing six-twelvemonth study of about a third of teachers in LAUSD by the Strategic Data Project, which is affiliated with the Eye for Education Policy Research at Harvard Academy. Researchers accept conducted similar analyses of teacher recruitment, development and retention patterns in iii dozen school districts and charter organizations nationwide, under work funded by the Gates Foundation. LAUSD'south study, which was released Wednesday, could become a key resource as the district and United Teachers Los Angeles negotiate changes to teacher evaluations and other parts of the teachers' contract.

The finding with perhaps the biggest implication quantified significant disparities in effectiveness among the district'southward simple and middle school teachers, as measured by students' standardized test scores. Researchers constitute that the difference between a math instructor in the 75thursday percentile – those whose students performed meliorate than three quarters of other students – and a teacher in the 25th percentile was the roughly equivalent benefit to a student of having eight additional months of instruction in a calendar year (technically i quarter of a standard deviation). The differences were greater than the average of the other districts studied nationwide, although like to the differences found in San Diego Unified. The study covered simply thirty percent of teachers in the district – those whose students take the California Standards Tests, primarily unproblematic and middle schoolhouse teachers. The differences betwixt teachers whose students take the English language arts tests were less pronounced than with math.

Researchers used a method similar to the district's controversial Bookish Growth over Time, which factors in students' by test scores and socioeconomic background to decide their teachers' bear upon. LAUSD has used the method to rate individual teachers. Considering ratings fluctuate significantly year to twelvemonth, the method has been criticized equally a tool for evaluating teachers. Merely Jon Fullerton, director of the Middle for Education Policy Research, said that the method is useful for aggregate trends using grouping averages of teacher effectiveness – comparing novice and experienced teachers, or measuring the effectiveness of teachers with advanced bookish degrees.

Drew Furedi, LAUSD'southward executive director for talent management, best-selling in an interview that examination scores are just one of the multiple measures the district will use to measure effectiveness. But the information in the report, he said, most immediately "will aid our agreement of placement strategies and distribution challenges in the system."

Among other findings:

Only about one out of six Teach for America teachers return to teach in Los Angeles Unified after three years. Source: SDP Human Capital Diagnostic in the Los Angeles Unified. (Click to enlarge.)

But about one out of half-dozen Teach for America teachers render to teach in Los Angeles Unified after three years. Source: SDP Human being Majuscule Diagnostic in the Los Angeles Unified. (Click to enlarge.)

  • New teachers hired through Teach for America and the district's own Career Ladder programme, encouraging paraprofessionals to go teachers, have a positive effect ­– equal to ii months and ane month actress of instruction respectively in math – compared with other novice teachers. All the same, about two-thirds of Teach for America teachers, recruited from pinnacle colleges nationwide, leave the commune after the program's required two years, while more than Career Ladder teachers go on on – a factor LAUSD will want to consider. Over the past several year, well-nigh 1 out of viii teachers were hired through the 2 programs. Furedi said that the district may practice a similar analysis of other teacher preparation programs.
  • Novice and early career elementary teachers unduly are assigned struggling students – those entering the twelvemonth an average of half-dozen months behind their peers. Novices non only are unduly assigned to schools with lower achieving students, but also are given more than struggling students than experienced teachers within schools. Since experienced teachers on average are more effective, "this is a call to action, for better strategic placement of teachers for student outcomes," Fullerton said Wednesday in a webinar announcing the results.
  • Math teachers in LAUSD ameliorate substantially over time in the classroom – roughly equal to an additional three months of educational activity by their fifth yr. Improvement in English language arts is less dramatic.
Of the teachers who were laid off, 45 percent were in the top two quartiles of effective teachers in Los Angeles Unified. Source: SDP Human Capital Diagnostic in the Los Angeles Unified. (Click to enlarge.)

Of the teachers who were laid off, 45 percent were in the superlative ii quartiles of effective teachers in Los Angeles Unified. Source: SDP Human Uppercase Diagnostic in the Los Angeles Unified. (Click to enlarge.)

  • Even though they are automatically paid more under the current salary organization, LAUSD teachers with advanced bookish degrees are no more constructive than those who lack them. Withal, teachers with a National Board Certification outperform other teachers, by roughly two months of boosted math instruction and one month of additional ELA education over a yr. This could reflect the benefits of the program or the quality of the teachers who pursue certification, the written report said. Just nigh four percent of LAUSD teachers have board certification, and most of those teach in high-performing schools, indicating the district may want to encourage placement in schools with greater needs.
  • In a finding with implications for a country constabulary and district policy requiring layoffs by seniority, the study found that teachers who were laid off in LAUSD every bit a effect of upkeep cuts were well-nigh as effective as teachers who kept their jobs. Since nigh of the laid-off teachers were less experienced, a slightly higher proportion – 55 percent – were in the bottom ii quartiles of functioning. However, that also meant that 45 percent of those let get were in the acme ii quartiles of performers, who, under a more than rigorous evaluation system deemphasizing seniority, might retain their jobs.

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