Recruitment and Retention of High Quality Teachers: Some

International Evidence

Prof Peter. J. DoltonRoyal Holloway, University of London

& Centre for Economic Performance, London School of Economics

Email: Peter.Dolton@rhul.ac.uk

World Bank South Asia Regional Conference on Education Quality

New Delhi, India, October 24-26, 2007

Outline of Talk

1. Context: The Market Story

2. Aspects of Demand

3. The Supply of Teachers –Recruitment and Retention

4. Teacher’s Pay

5. Who Becomes a Teacher?

6. Incentives & Performance Related Pay.

7. Reflections on Teacher Training

8. Sideways Look at Teachers in India

9. Areas for Further Necessary Research.

1. The Market Story

  Assume :

• Demographically determined inelastic demand.

Figure – The Labour Market for Teachers

Wa D

Q

Q

1. The Market Story

  Assume :• Demographically determined inelastic demand.

• Government Budget Constraint.

Figure – The Labour Market for Teachers

Wa D

E

Q

Q

1.The Market Story

  Assume :• Demographically determined inelastic demand. • Government Budget Constraint.

• Homogenous Supply & Government Sets Wages.

Some outputs are easier to observe than others!

Figure – The Labour Market for Teachers

Wa D

S

aW

agW

E

Q gQ Q

2. Aspects of Demand

• Demographic Age Structure of Teacher population

The Percentage of teachers aged 50 years and over, lower

secondary education

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

1992

1996

2000

The age distribution of teachers in England (2000)

0

2000

4000

6000

8000

10000

12000

14000

16000

18000

Primary

0

2000

4000

6000

8000

10000

12000

Secondary

2. Aspects of Demand

• Demographic Age Structure of Teacher population

• Variation in Pupil/Teacher Ratios

01

02

03

04

0

Stu

de

nts

/Te

ach

ers

ra

tio 2

00

1

Den

mar

k

Hun

ga

ry

Ita

ly

Por

tug

al

Nor

wa

y

Ice

lan

d

Sw

ee

den

Gre

ece

Aus

tria

Spa

in

Bel

giu

m

US

A

Sw

itze

r

Net

he

rla

nd

Fin

lan

d

Aus

tra

lia

Cze

k R

epu

blic

Fra

nce

Ger

man

y

Uru

gu

ay

New

Zea

lan

d

Jord

an

UK

Ma

lays

ia

Ire

lan

d

Arg

en

tina

Tu

nisi

a

Bra

zil

Per

u

Ind

one

sia

Tu

rke

y

Kor

ea

Chi

le

Phi

lipp

ine

s

Source: Education at a Glance, OECD (2003)

Primary education

Students/Teachers ratio 2000 by country

2. Aspects of Demand

• Demographic Age Structure of Teacher population• Variation in Pupil/Teacher Ratios

• Variation in Teacher Hours Worked

050

01,

000

1,50

0T

each

ers

ann

ual w

orki

ng

hour

s 20

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Icel

and

Tur

key

Den

mar

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Rep

ublic

Fin

land

Aus

tria

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way

Tun

isia

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Italy

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aysi

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tina

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itzer

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nce

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and

Net

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ew Z

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SA

Phi

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a

Source: Education at a Glance, OECD (2003)

Primary educationTeachers annual working hours 2000 by country

2. Aspects of Demand

• Demographic Age Structure of Teacher population• Variation in Pupil/Teacher Ratios• Variation in Teacher Hours Worked

• Overall Market Position

Excess Demand of Teachers, by Sector in the UK, 1947-2000

Teachers in service – Demand for teachers

Source: Own calculations

-30000

-20000

-10000

0

10000

20000

30000

40000

50000

60000

700001

94

6

19

49

19

52

19

55

19

58

19

61

19

64

19

67

19

70

19

73

19

76

19

79

19

82

19

85

19

88

19

91

19

94

19

97

20

00

Year

Ex

ce

ss

De

ma

nd

fo

r T

ea

ch

ers

Nu

mb

ers

Secondary Total Primary

Based on the number of children of school age and the desired Pupil-teacher ratios

3. Aspects of Supply

• What is supply? Non- standard.

The elements of teacher supply

Supply of Teachers

Teacher Training Programme students

Teachers in Service

Re-EntrantsNew Entrants

Leavers

Retirement

Non-Retirement

Current SupplyPotential Supply

Pool of Inactive Teachers

Pool of Recoverable Teachers

Temporary Teachers

Cross-country mean % of upper secondary students attending schools where the principal reported that hiring fully qualified

teachers is difficult, 2001

0

10

20

30

40

50

% of 15-year-old students enrolled in schools where principals report learning is hindered ‘to some extent’ or ‘a lot’ by a

shortage/inadequacy of teachers:

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

35

Mathematics Science

% of upper secondary students attending schools that use the following methods to respond to teacher vacancies, as reported

by school principals

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

80

90

100

Swed

en

Finl

and

Switz

erla

nd

Nor

way

Bel

gium

(Fl

.)

Den

mar

k

Port

ugal

Hun

gary

Irel

and

Mex

ico

Kor

ea

Spai

n

Net

herl

ands

Hire a teacher with less than a full qualification Add sections (courses) to other teachers' normal teaching hours

Expand the size of some of the classes Cancel a planned course

4. Teacher’s Pay

• International dimension• Senior /Junior pay teacher ratio• Across time in one country- UK.• Across a Lifetime – Relative decline.

01

23

Tea

che

rs w

age/

GD

P 2

001

Cze

ch R

epub

licH

unga

ryIn

done

sia

Italy

Arg

entin

aF

inla

ndG

reec

eS

wed

enN

orw

ayA

ustr

iaF

ranc

eP

eru

Bel

gium

Uni

ted

Sta

tes

Irel

and

Net

herla

ndC

hile

Bra

zil

Icel

and

Aus

tral

iaUK

Spa

inS

witz

erla

ndU

rugu

ayK

orea

New

Zea

land

Por

tuga

lM

alay

sia

Tur

key

Ger

man

yT

unis

iaT

haila

ndD

enm

ark

Phi

lippi

nes

Source: Education at a Glance, OECD (2003)

Primary educationTeachers wage/GDP 2001 by country

Ratio of salary after 15 years of experience to GDP per capita, public institutions, lower secondary education, 1994 and 2001

0

0.5

1

1.5

2

2.5

3

1994 2001

0.9

1

1.1

1.2

1.3

1.4

1.5

1.6

55 57 59 61 63 65 67 69 71 73 75 77 79 81 83 85 87 89 91 93 95 97 99

Equality

Teacher Relative w ages (using data from the NES)

Teacher relative w ages (adjusted data from the NES and Employment Gazette)

UK Relative Teachers’ Wages1955-2000

Source: Own calculations

Houghton Clegg

Age-Earning profile of Primary , Secondary School

Teachers and an Alternative occupation, Males 1975-2000 10000

20000

30000

40000

10000

20000

30000

40000

0 25-29 40-49 60-64 0 25-29 40-49 60-64 0 25-29 40-49 60-64

1975 1980 1985

1990 1995 2000

Alt_Occ Primary_Teachers

Secondary_Teachers

Earn

ings (

£ in 2

002 p

rices)

Age Category

Graphs by Year

5. Who Becomes a Teacher?

– Huge literature on this topic – See my Handbook Chapter.

– BUT we need more intergenerational studies.

0

0.1

0.2

0.3

0.4

0.5

0.6

0.7

Cohort 60 Cohort 70 Cohort 80 Cohort 85 Cohort 90

Observed ind1 A-level 6 Science London Woman

The predicted probability of Graduates becoming a teacher across cohorts. Ind1 - Man, Arts, A-level=10, 2:1 degree, not in London

6. Incentives & Performance Related Pay.

  Problematic because:• Multitasking Environment (Holmstrom-Milgram• Incentives can induce counterproductive effects• Multiple Principals• Dolton et al book shows all the practical and

econometric problems of PRP• Lavy paper shows reward by pupil gain score

can work.

‘Yes, it is pretty unfair. They should allow teachers time for lunch too.’

7. Reflections on Teacher Training

Based on Lavy, Moreno, Vaillant• Technological change is too fast for training methods.• Teacher training institutions are too weak.• Expenditure on Teacher CPD is too low 1% compared to

6% UNESCO. • Teachers are by default responsible for their own

training.• Training is on the job and practical – hence difficult to

articulate and systematize.• Education Policy is a battlefield• Are Teachers really Professionals – if so then States

should not control so much.

‘To save democracy, is it? I have been hurling stones thinking it’s about teachers’ pay!’

8. Sideways Look at Teachers in India

• Teacher Truancy – Duflo Study

• Growing Private Sector – Kingdon

• Teacher Relative Earnings

• Teacher Incentives

• Teacher Training

9. Areas for Further Necessary Research. Teacher Quality

• What are costs of improving teacher quality?

• What are interactions between teacher unions and teacher quality.

• Relationship between accountability and teacher quality.

• Principal –Agent problem of partial observability.