When our team first began planning this issue on the teacher pipeline, we had a brief conversation about what the term really means—or, more precisely, how we wanted to interpret it. There was a lot of news at the time (as there still is) about teacher shortages and some school systems' desperate struggles to find teaching prospects. So, we wondered, should we focus on teacher preparation and recruitment—the "supply"-side issues most commonly linked to what was sometimes referred to as a "broken" pipeline? Or should we also try to address issues surrounding teacher support and retention, exploring promising efforts aimed at developing teachers and keeping them in the classroom?
Fortunately, we decided to define the term broadly, viewing the teacher pipeline as a kind of early-career continuum. I say "fortunately" because the pieces we ultimately selected for this issue drive home the point that the two "sides" we were considering—recruitment/preparation versus retention/support—should in fact be closely linked. Indeed, I'd say that's a key sub-theme of this issue. Another is that school leaders have a central role to play in forging that link.
Take a look, for example, at the fascinating demographic analysis of the teaching profession by scholars Richard Ingersoll, Lisa Merrill, and Daniel Stuckey—a centerpiece of this issue. Their data show that the U.S. teaching profession has actually grown dramatically in recent years, even outpacing student-enrollment gains. However, annual turnover rates in the profession have also increased, particularly among teachers in high-needs schools, minority teachers, and the fast-growing demographic of novice teachers. The numbers suggest that teacher-preparation programs and schools and districts alike need to think more tactically about helping today's teachers get through those early years in the profession.
For Benjamin Riley and Valarie Sakimura, that means better alignment. They write that teacher-prep programs and partnering school districts need to be far more intentional in coordinating their programming, from curriculum right down to evaluation data and instructional culture. Such collaboration can help ensure that "[n]ovice teachers enter the profession feeling more confident and better prepared for the realities of the classroom."
Along similar lines, A. Lin Goodwin, Rachel Roegman, and Emilie Mitescu Reagan write about a residency-style program within Teachers College, Columbia University, that aims specifically to prepare diverse teacher candidates to work in New York City schools. The program works with partner schools to give candidates intensive, year-long "clinical" experiences in classrooms, while also providing a curriculum designed to address the particular needs of students in urban schools. So far, the retention rate of the program's graduates is far above average.
Other pieces look at ways schools and districts can better facilitate new teachers' transition into the profession. Susan Totaro and Mark Wise describe their district's four-day orientation program for new educators, which aims to provide not just basic information, but also authentic experiences of the system's instructional culture. Jennifer Abrams offers ideas on how orientation and induction programs can be customized to better cater to Millennial educators. And Sharif El-Mekki highlights the voices of black male teachers to help school leaders better understand their stories and what drives them to enter and stay in education.
Indeed, as Elena Aguilar points out, the teacher pipeline has an oft-overlooked social-emotional learning component. To prepare teachers to thrive in today's schools, she argues, preparation and school coaching programs must go beyond pedagogical and classroom-management skills training. They also need to help educators develop emotional resilience and stress-management strategies. Such training in emotional intelligence may be the "missing ingredient in reforming teacher preparation and development programs."
Of course, none of this is to suggest that hot-button policy issues like teacher pay and testing mandates don't play a significant role in whether people are drawn to and inclined to stay in teaching. But the articles in this issue do offer hope that, by thinking about the teacher pipeline in more holistic terms, schools can take steps to make the profession more supportive and attractive—and yes, more resilient.
