After years of figuring out different ways to find enough qualified teachers — and keep them on the job — Missouri has put together a game plan of lessons learned.
The Teacher Recruitment and Retention Playbook was released last week. It was developed by the state Department of Elementary and Secondary Education and the Community Training and Assistance Centers.
In a presentation to the state Board of Education, Paul Katnik, assistant commissioner in the Office of Educator Quality, said the playbook reflects information that has been gleaned as part of a three-year study.
“We’ll use this playbook as a blueprint for our future efforts,” Katnik said.
He argued teacher quality is the most important school-level variable in student achievement and the best way for the state to invest in its future citizens is by supporting educators.
“The goal of the recruitment and retention system is to ensure a high qualify teacher workforce for every student in every classroom in every school in our state,” Katnik said.
Through teacher recruitment and retention grants, the state DESE helped districts, and higher education institutions that prepare teachers strengthen their existing strategies and try innovative approaches. They collected data to see what was paying off.
For example, Grow Your Own programs — which identify and support future teachers at the high school or college level — showed progress over time.
William Slotnik, chief executive officer of the CTAC involved in creating the playbook, said fixing the teacher shortage is “now a national urgency.”
“By planning carefully, allocating funds strategically, and coalescing all key constituencies, Missouri is taking the lead in catalyzing innovation and fostering promising strategies to address this need that is affecting every state,” Slotnik said, in a Tuesday release. “Missouri is the national exemplar for how a state system can show and support the way forward to the mutual benefit of students and educators.”
Through study and investment, Katnik said cornerstones of the playbook emerged. He said they involve the support of the entire state system, and shared ownership among stakeholders.
“All of us share the same teacher workforce,” he said. “If a teacher leaves a classroom anywhere in our state today or one joins the profession, it impacts all of us. Fragmented efforts don’t work but coordinated, collaborative efforts do show results of a stronger and better prepared workforce.”
Katnik said statewide campaigns are needed to elevate the teaching profession.
“There’s plenty of criticism and negativity about teaching. To be successful, the rest of the story must be told. There are joyful, rewarding parts of teaching that must be part of the narrative,” he said.
He said the state must recognize the importance of the teacher voice. He repeated a statement made by Darrion Cockrell, 2021 Missouri Teacher of the Year, that teachers are “walking billboards for the profession.”
“The voice of teachers must be included in the strategies of a state system to inform policy and funding and to provide a narrative about the joys of teaching that can only be told by those who do it — our teachers,” he said.
Katnik said targeted funding and the strategic use of public policy tools are also critical. He said to figure out what has a “high return on investment” and what does not, data must be collected and reported.
“There is never enough money to do everything so the right thing matters most and every ‘yes’ decision must justify a ‘no,'” he said.
He said once teachers are recruited, they must be trained and compensated adequately. In recent years, lawmakers and state education officials have successfully increased salary levels.
“It’s not enough to get more individuals into the profession. From there, as teachers, they must be cultivated and developed to increase the overall expertise and excellence of the workforce,” he said.
In wrapping up, Katnik said the state can’t cherry-pick the strategies, it must work on different areas at the same time. “We have to hit it from all fronts if we’re going to be successful in turning around the shortage.”
SPRINGFIELD NEWS-LEADER