Southeast Comprehensive Center eBulletin, Volume 4, Number 1: Improving Teacher Quality and Equitable Distribution of Effective Teachers

In this edition of the Southeast Comprehensive Center (SECC) eBulletin we highlight the issues of teacher quality and the equitable distribution of effective teachers. While we all know the importance of this issue from the research on the impact of highly effective and ineffective teachers on student outcomes, many of us also know it through personal experience as educators and parents. As educators, we have watched some teachers struggle while others excel, and as parents we have been part of the discussion about which teachers we want our children to have in a particular school. While it is an issue that we know exists and has a tremendous impact on student achievement, we often struggle with how to address it through policy at the state or local level. Yet many of our children from high-poverty backgrounds are counting on us to ensure that they have the effective teachers they need in their classrooms every day of every year.

We hope that the information included in this issue will provide you details on research and practice occurring both nationally and within our region. Be sure to read the stories from our states about their work in this area to find some innovative strategies for addressing both the teacher effectiveness issue and the teacher shortage issue that exists in some areas.