Surveys of teacher preparation program (TPP) completers have become one widely used measure for program accountability and improvement, yet there is little evidence as to whether perceptions of preparation experiences predict the workforce outcomes of teachers. In the present study, we use statewide completer survey data from North Carolina to assess whether perceptions of preparation quality and opportunities to learn during teacher preparation predict completers’ value-added estimates, evaluation ratings, and retention. We perform multiple analyses to address validity concerns—that is, selection into TPPs, sorting into K-12 schools, simultaneity in survey and outcome measures, and differential survey response rates across TPPs. Results are not always consistent across these analyses; however, evidence suggests that completer perceptions are modestly associated with teacher effectiveness and retention. Continued research can further address validity concerns and build a body of evidence on completer perceptions and teacher outcomes.
BastianK. C.PattersonK. M.PanY. (2018). Evaluating teacher preparation programs with teacher evaluation ratings: Implications for program accountability and improvement. Journal of Teacher Education, 69(1), 429-447.
2.
BormanG. D.DowlingN. M. (2008). Teacher attrition and retention: A meta-analytic and narrative review of the research. Review of Educational Research, 78(3), 367-409.
3.
BoydD.GrossmanP.IngM.LankfordH.LoebS.WyckoffJ. (2011). The influence of school administrators on teacher retention decisions. American Educational Research Journal, 48(2), 303-333.
4.
BoydD.GrossmanP.LankfordH.LoebS.WyckoffJ. (2009). Teacher preparation and student achievement. Educational Evaluation and Policy Analysis, 31(4), 416-440.
5.
BoydD.LankfordH.LoebS.WyckoffJ. (2005). The draw of home: How teachers’ preferences for proximity disadvantage urban schools. Journal of Policy Analysis and Management, 24(1), 113-132.
6.
ClotfelterC.GlennieE.LaddH.VigdorJ. (2008). Would higher salaries keep teachers in high-poverty schools? Evidence from a policy intervention in North Carolina. Journal of Public Economics, 92(5-6), 1352-1370.
DanielsonC. (2007). Enhancing professional practice: A framework for teaching. Alexandria, VA: Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development.
9.
Darling-HammondL.ChungR.FrelowF. (2002). Variation in teacher preparation: How well do different pathways prepare teachers to teach?Journal of Teacher Education, 53(4), 286-302.
10.
DeAngelisK. J.WallA. F.CheJ. (2013). The impact of preservice preparation and early career support on novice teachers’ career intentions and decisions. Journal of Teacher Education, 64(4), 338-355.
11.
DuckworthA. L.YeagerD. S. (2015). Measurement matters: Assessing personal qualities other than cognitive ability for educational purposes. Educational Researcher, 44(4), 237-251.
12.
FlodenR. E. (2012). Teacher value-added as a measure of program quality: Interpret with caution. Journal of Teacher Education, 63(5), 356-360.
13.
GansleK. A.NoellG. H.BurnsJ. M. (2012). Do student achievement outcomes differ across teacher preparation programs? An analysis of teacher education in Louisiana. Journal of Teacher Education, 63(5), 304-317.
GoldhaberD.CowanJ. (2014). Excavating the teacher pipeline: Teacher preparation programs and teacher attrition. Journal of Teacher Education, 65(5), 449-462.
16.
GoldhaberD.GrossB.PlayerD. (2011). Teacher career paths, teacher quality, and persistence in the classroom: Are public schools keeping their best?Journal of Policy Analysis and Management, 30(1), 57-87.
GoldhaberD.LiddleS.TheobaldR. (2013). The gateway to the profession: Assessing teacher preparation programs based on student achievement. Economics of Education Review, 34(2), 29-44.
19.
Government Accountability Office. (2015). Teacher preparation programs: Education should ensure states identify low-performing programs and improve information-sharing. Retrieved from http://www.gao.gov/assets/680/671603.pdf
20.
HarrisD. N.SassT. R. (2011). Teacher training, teacher quality and student achievement. Journal of Public Economics, 95(7-8), 798-812.
21.
HenryG. T.CampbellS. L.ThompsonC. L.PatriarcaL. A.LuterbachK. J.LysD. B.CovingtonV. M. (2013). The predictive validity of measures of teacher candidate programs and performance: Toward an evidence-based approach to teacher preparation. Journal of Teacher Education, 64(5), 439-453.
22.
HoyA. W.SperoR. B. (2005). Changes in teacher efficacy during the early years of teaching: A comparison of four measures. Teaching and Teacher Education, 21(4), 343-356.
KoedelC.ParsonsE.PodgurskyM.EhlertM. (2015). Teacher preparation programs and teacher quality: Are there real differences across programs?Education Finance and Policy, 10(2), 508-534.
25.
LaddH. (2011). Teachers’ perceptions of their working conditions: How predictive of planned and actual teacher movement?Educational Evaluation and Policy Analysis, 33(2), 235-261.
26.
LincoveJ. A.OsborneC.DillonA.MillsN. (2014). The politics and statistics of value-added modeling for accountability of teacher preparation programs. Journal of Teacher Education, 65(1), 24-38.
27.
MihalyK.McCaffreyD.SassT. R.LockwoodJ. R. (2013). Where you come from or where you go? Distinguishing between school quality and the effectiveness of teacher preparation program graduates. Education Finance and Policy, 8(4), 459-493.
28.
PapayJ. P.KraftM. A. (2016). The productivity costs of inefficient hiring practices: Evidence from late teacher hiring. Journal of Policy Analysis and Management, 35(4), 791-817.
29.
PiantaR. C.HamreB. K.HaynesN. J.MintzS.La ParoK. M. (2006). Classroom assessment scoring system (CLASS) manual: Middle/secondary version pilot. Charlottesville: Curry School of Education, University of Virginia.
30.
PrestonC. (2017). University-based teacher preparation and middle grades teacher effectiveness. Journal of Teacher Education, 68(1), 102-116.
31.
RonfeldtM. (2015). Field placement schools and instructional effectiveness. Journal of Teacher Education, 66(4), 304-320.
32.
RonfeldtM.BrockmanS. L.CampbellS. L. (2018). Does cooperating teachers’ instructional effectiveness improve pre-service teachers’ future performance?Educational Researcher, 47(7), 405-418.
33.
RonfeldtM.CampbellS. L. (2016). Evaluating teacher preparation using graduates’ observational ratings. Educational Evaluation and Policy Analysis, 38(4), 603-625.
SteinbergM. P.GarrettR. (2016). Classroom composition and measured teacher performance: What do teacher observation scores really measure?Educational Evaluation and Policy Analysis, 38(2), 293-317.
36.
SunM.LoebS.GrissomJ. A. (2017). Building teacher teams: Evidence of positive spillovers from more effective colleagues. Educational Evaluation and Policy Analysis, 39(1), 104-125.
37.
von HippelP. T.BellowsL. (2018). How much does teacher quality vary across teacher preparation programs? Reanalyses from six states. Economics of Education Review, 64, 298-312.
Please find the following supplemental material available below.
For Open Access articles published under a Creative Commons License, all supplemental material carries the same license as the article it is associated with.
For non-Open Access articles published, all supplemental material carries a non-exclusive license, and permission requests for re-use of supplemental material or any part of supplemental material shall be sent directly to the copyright owner as specified in the copyright notice associated with the article.
