CALDER seeks to address four central research questions:

1. How do teacher policies affect the recruitment, retention and assignment of teachers at the district, school and classroom levels (who teaches which students) and student outcomes (student achievement and attainment)?

2. How do governance policies, especially accountability policies, affect the recruitment, retention and assignment of teachers at the district, school and classroom levels (who teaches what students) and student outcomes (student achievement and attainment)?

3. What factors account for teacher effectiveness in terms of student achievement outcomes? To what extent, and in what ways, does the importance of these factors vary for the performance of different types of students?

4. How are the dynamics of social and economic context related to policy, teacher recruitment, retention and assignment, and student outcomes?

Learn how CALDER addresses these questions through our research projects and publications. Please also see related research and websites.

Learn more about the research methods we employ to analyze our data.

Research Timetable

The goal for CALDER’s research is policy relevance.  Over the course of its grant, the Center will pursue varying strands of research, each a part of CALDER’s larger agenda.  However, those yearly research directions are subject to change given the evolution of state and federal policy.  CALDER pursues research opportunistically, focusing on unanticipated findings and emerging policies that relate to current policy debates.

• Year 1 (2006-2007): Developing and using state administrative databases for research purposes, along with reviewing associated technical issues and conducting initial comparative studies.
  
  
• Year 2 (2007-2008): Teacher incentives and their role in recruiting, retaining and assignment of teachers and effects on student achievement. What works and why? What doesn't?
  
  
• Year 3 (2008-2009): Governance and accountability, and their relationship to teacher labor markets and student achievement.
  
  
• Year 4 (2009-2010): Changing student demographics and their relationship to teacher labor markets and student achievement.
  
  
• Year 5 (2010-2011): TBD. The theme of year 5 will build on the findings of the research of earlier years and critically analyze new policies, some of which we may not have anticipated.