Identifying Effective Teachers Policy
Providing comprehensive reporting may be the state's most important role for ensuring the equitable distribution of teachers among schools. Idaho reports little school-level data that can help support the equitable distribution of teacher talent.
Idaho does not collect or publicly report most of the data recommended by NCTQ. The state does not provide a school-level teacher quality index that demonstrates the academic backgrounds of a school's teachers and the ratio of new to veteran teachers. Idaho also does not report on teacher absenteeism or turnover rates.
Idaho does report the percentage of teachers on emergency credentials and the percentage of core academic subjects taught by teachers who are not highly qualified. Commendably, these data are reported for each school rather than just aggregated by district. Idaho is commended for comparing the average percentage of highly qualified teachers in high- and low-poverty schools statewide.
Use a teacher quality index to report publicly about each school.
A teacher quality index, such as the one
developed by the Illinois Education Research Council, with data
including teachers' average SAT or ACT scores, the percentage of
teachers failing basic skills licensure tests at least once, the
selectivity of teachers' undergraduate colleges and the percentage of
new teachers, can shine a light on how equitably teachers are
distributed both across and within districts. Idaho should
ensure that individual school report cards include such data in a
manner that translates these factors into something easily
understood by the public, such as a color-coded matrix indicating a
school's high or low score.
Publish other data that facilitate comparisons across schools.
Idaho should
collect and report other school-level data that reflect the stability
of a school's faculty, including
the rates of teacher absenteeism and turnover.
Provide comparative data based on school demographics.
As Idaho does with highly qualified teachers, the state should provide comparative data for schools with
similar poverty and minority populations. This would yield a more
comprehensive picture of gaps in the equitable distribution of
teachers.
Idaho recognized the factual accuracy of this analysis.