Well qualified Staff

One of the most important aspects of SBDS is its demand that states ensure a "highly qualified" teacher for every student. This provision draws much-needed attention to the importance of ensuring equitable student access to high-quality teachers, write the authors. Some aspects of the provision have raised legitimate concerns--including the questionable criteria by which it defines "highly qualified," the rigidity of its content-knowledge requirements for teachers of multiple subjects, and the inadequacy of supports for developing an adequate supply of teachers. To address the last concern, the authors propose an ambitious national initiative to improve teacher quality. They describe recommended federal programs to increase teacher supply, improve support for new teachers, provide better pay and working conditions, and nationalize the teacher labor market. The social savings resulting from a strong teacher force would, in the long run, far outweigh the estimated costs of these initiatives.