Teacher Compensation Policy
Shortage-subject areas: Florida districts must provide for salary supplements for "certification and teaching in critical teacher shortage areas."
High-need schools: Florida districts must provide for salary supplements for assignment to a Title I eligible school or assignment to a school that earned a grade of F or three consecutive grades of D. The state has also identified funds as part of its efforts to recruit and retain high-performing teachers for high-need schools. Highly effective teachers, according to the VAM calculation, will receive up to a $15,000 supplement; effective teachers will receive up to a $7,500 supplement.
As a result of Florida's strong high-need schools and subjects policies, no recommendations are provided.
Florida recognized the factual accuracy of this analysis and was helpful in providing facts that enhanced this analysis.
8B: High-Need Schools and Subjects
States should help address chronic shortages and needs. States should ensure that state-level policies (such as a uniform salary schedule) do not interfere with districts' flexibility in compensating teachers in ways that best meet their individual needs and resources. However, when it comes to addressing chronic shortages, states should do more than simply get out of the way. They should provide direct support for differential pay for effective teaching in shortage subject areas and high-need schools.[1] Attracting effective and qualified teachers to high-need schools or filling vacancies in hard-to-staff subjects are problems that are frequently beyond a district's ability to solve. States that provide direct support for differential pay in these areas are taking an important step in promoting the equitable distribution of quality teachers.[2] Short of providing direct support, states can also use policy levers to indicate to districts that differential pay is not only permissible but necessary.