Teachers' professional identities are the foundation of their practice. Previous scholarship has largely overlooked the extent to which the broader reform culture shapes teachers' professional identities. In this study, I draw on survey data from 950 teachers across four US states (California, New York, Florida, and Texas) to examine the extent to…

One of the greatest contributors to a student's success in K-12 education is the effectiveness of their teachers and, consequently, teacher retention. Unfortunately, teacher turnover rates have increased substantially since 2015, with the majority of teachers leaving for reasons that do not include retirement. Teachers who are more satisfied with…

The COVID-19 pandemic was an unprecedented event in modern educational history that resulted in a dramatic upheaval of the traditional school system. The shift from brick-and-mortar to virtual instruction resulted in profound anxiety and demand (Kush et al., 2021). As the quarantine ended, the return to the physical classroom brought with it new,…

Teacher recruitment is a pressing need in the United States. Equally important is the recruitment of more racial-minority teachers to help close the teacher-student diversity gap. We surveyed 300 undergraduates at our university regarding their perspectives on teaching careers--what they found attractive and deterring. Results from this survey and…

There is a teacher shortage across the United States, and California, specifically, is experiencing a shortage. The shortage is compounded by teachers leaving the profession with reports of significant dissatisfaction (Darling-Hammond et al., 2023). Low enrollment in teacher preparation programs and a decline in individuals pursuing degrees in…

Complex career decisions, such as teacher mobility, are often reduced to stigmatizing labels that do little to account for the state of teaching as a profession or credit those engaging in migratory decisions as making healthy career choices. Through our study, we focused on understanding workforce mobility, teaching as an unstaged profession, and…

How are teacher pension benefits funded? Under traditional plans, the full cost of career teachers' benefits far exceeds the contributions designated for them. The gap between the two has three pieces, which may (with some license) be mnemonically tagged the three R's of pension funding: "redistribution," "return," and…

In the final month of 2024, a Newsweek article celebrated an apparent victory in the Lone Star State: "Texas' Teachers Are More Diverse Than California's." In Washington, D.C., the press was slightly more subdued, but still proud: "Teacher diversity is slowing down, but D.C, offers a bright spot." These and many other headlines…

This study examines why the passing rates of African Americans on the CBEST are the lowest in California at 60%. Madkins (2011) identified licensure testing as a significant reason why African Americans cannot enter the teaching progression. According to Darling-Hammond et al. (2016), California has an ongoing credentialed teacher shortage. An…

As school systems work to recover from the COVID-19 pandemic, states continue to grapple with persistent teacher shortages, a lack of teachers of color in the workforce, and high turnover rates undermining recruitment efforts. Teachers' effectiveness and their likelihood of staying in teaching are strongly influenced by the quality of preparation…

There is a national need to recruit more science teachers. Enhancing pathways to teaching for science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) majors could help to address this need. The Learn By Doing Lab is a course in which STEM undergraduates teach hands-on life science and physical science to local third- through eighth-grade…

The teacher workforce does not look much like the adult population or the students they serve. Across the country, only 21% of teachers are from historically disadvantaged racial groups compared to 35% of working-age adults and 49% of students. Simple math suggests that the diversity gap between students and teachers will only close when teachers…

Dr. J. Scott Vernon presented the 2017 AAAE Distinguished Lecture at the Annual Meeting of the American Association for Agricultural Education in San Luis Obispo, California in May, 2017. The article is a philosophical work based upon the author's experiences in the agricultural education profession.

How are teacher pension benefits funded? Under traditional plans, the full cost of a career teacher's benefits far exceeds the contributions designated for them. The gap between the two has three pieces, which may (with some license) be mnemonically tagged the three R's of pension funding: "Redistribution, Return, and Risk." First, some…

This article presents new quasi-experimental evidence regarding the effectiveness of teaching-oriented faculty with tenure-track appointment, a model pioneered at the University of California (UC) system. Using data from six cohorts of students at a UC campus, we examine the impact of initial course-taking with three distinct types of…