Sage Journals: Discover world-class research

Abstract

Decisions about hiring are never easy, especially in education. Sharpwood Elementary School has an open teaching position and the principal is charged with hiring the best candidate. The principal knows that a diverse teaching staff benefits all stakeholders in a school, especially students, and he wants to honor that expectation. The staff really like their current student teacher and would love to offer her the position, but she identifies as White. This case study examines the complexity of hiring a candidate that meets the needs of the school community, including staff, students, and families. The principal and staff are faced with a decision that will likely impact the school for years to come. Which candidate should they hire?

Keywords

teacher selection bias in hiring teacher diversity equitable hiring practices

Get full access to this article

View all access options for this article.

References

Abawi

Eizadirad

(2020). Bias-free or biased hiring? Racialized teachers’ perspectives on educational hiring practices in Ontario. Canadian Journal of Educational Administration and Policy, 193, 18–31.

Bell

(1992). Faces at the bottom of the well: The permanence of racism. Basic Books.

Chamberlain

R. P.

(2016). Five steps toward recognizing and mitigating bias in the interview and hiring process. Strategic HR Review, 15(5), 199–203.

D’Amico

Pawlewicz

R. J.

Earley

P. M.

McGeehan

A. P.

(2017). Where are all the black teachers? Discrimination in the teacher labor market. Harvard Educational Review, 87(1), 26–49.

Dixon

R. D.

Griffin

A. R.

Teoh

M. B.

(2019). If you listen. We will stay: Why teachers of color leave and how to disrupt teacher turnover. The Education Trust & Teach Plus.

Goings

R. B.

Walker

L. J.

Cotignola-Pickens

(2018). School and district leaders’ role in diversifying the teacher workforce. Educational Planning, 25(3), 7–17.

Hill-Jackson

(2020). Special emphasis recruiting: Intentional recruitment of Black women to the teaching profession. Theory Into Practice, 59(4), 429–440.

Ingersoll

R. M.

May

Collins

(2017). Minority teacher recruitment, employment, and retention: 1987 to 2013. Learning Policy Institute.

Johnson

S. K.

(2020). Inclusify: The power of uniqueness and belonging to build innovative teams. Harper Business.

10.

Kayes

(2006). New paradigms for diversifying faculty and staff in higher education: Uncovering cultural biases in the search and hiring process. Journal of Multicultural Education, 14(2), 65–69. https://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/EJ759654.pdf

11.

Liera

(2019). Moving beyond a culture of niceness in faculty hiring to advance racial equity. American Educational Research Journal, 57(5), 1954–1994.

12.

Madsen

Mabokela

R. O.

Luevanos

E. A.

(2019). School context: Implications for teachers of color. Equality, Diversity and Inclusion, 38(1), 56–70.

13.

Segrest Purkiss

S. L.

Perrewé

P. L.

Gillespie

T. L.

Mayes

B. T.

Ferris

G. R

. (2006). Implicit sources of bias in employment interview judgments and decisions. Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, 101(2), 152–167.

14.

Sensoy

Ö.

DiAngelo

. (2017). “We are all for diversity, but . . .”: How faculty hiring committees reproduce whiteness and practical suggestions for how they can change. Harvard Educational Review, 87(4), 557–581.

15.

U.S. Department of Education, Office of Planning, Evaluation and Policy Development, Policy and Program Studies Service. (2016, July). The State of Racial Diversity in the Educator Workforce, Washington, DC.

The Perfect Fit

Abstract

Keywords

Get full access to this article

References