NCTQ Publications

From Patchwork to Precision: Strengthening Teacher Data Systems

Shannon Holston March 2025

Despite enacting well-intentioned policies to improve teacher recruitment and retention, many states continue to face significant staffing challenges, particularly in high-need schools and hard-to-staff subjects such as math, science, and special education. Better state teacher workforce data systems can help address these persistent challenges.This brief outlines key findings regarding state teacher data systems and provides recommendations for enhancing them. These improvements should help states allocate resources more effectively and make better policy decisions, ultimately equipping...

Supply and Demand, Shortage areas, Hiring

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What can California, Texas, and Washington, D.C. teach us about how to diversify the teacher workforce?

Ron Noble February 2025

Nationally, the diversity of the teacher workforce is growing at a slower pace than that of college-educated adults, but California, Texas, and Washington, D.C. are bucking that trend. This latest brief explores possible reasons why and how some of their policies and practices may have unintended consequences.

National, California, District of Columbia, Texas, Teacher diversity, Hiring, Retention strategies

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A New Roadmap for Strengthening Teacher Diversity

Graham Drake, Heather Peske December 2024

The new NCTQ Teacher Diversity Dashboard reveals a troubling trend: The diversity of the teacher workforce is growing at a slower pace than the diversity of college educated adults. People of color who could be teachers are increasingly opting out.

Hiring and Assignment, Teacher diversity, Teacher diversity

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Reimagining the Teaching Role

Michael Sheehy, Shannon Holston, Heather Peske September 2024

Our classrooms haven't kept pace with innovation. The Ford Model T represented breakthrough technology in its day—more than 100 years ago—but it wouldn't serve us well today. Likewise, our traditional classroom model from the same era doesn't work well for far too many students and teachers. In fact, as a result of this outdated model, it is more difficult for schools to find and keep great teachers, which ultimately hurts student learning.It's time to reimagine...

Hiring and Assignment, Substitute teachers, Class size, Differentiated pay, Observations

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Clinical Practice Action Guide

Hannah Putman, Ron Noble, Christie Ellis, Heather Peske August 2024

This Clinical Practice Action Guide tells the stories of prep programs, districts, and states that have made a concerted effort to build a strong clinical experience, and provides resources and guidance to help others follow in their footsteps.Their work aligns with most or all aspects of the Clinical Practice Framework (released in March 2024), detailing six focus areas that make for a strong clinical experience.

Hiring and Assignment, Retention and Tenure, Retention strategies, Clinical Practice

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Clinical Practice Framework

Hannah Putman March 2024

Too many new teachers start their careers unprepared for the realities of the classroom because they haven't had enough high-quality "hands on" practice. Their students lose out on learning because of it.NCTQ's new Clinical Practice Framework details the six areas of clinical practice—backed by research and supported by the field—that lead to a strong clinical practice experience. For each focus area, we break down the action items for school districts, prep programs, and states, respectively....

Student teaching, Cooperating teachers, Clinical Practice, Classroom management, Teacher Prep

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Defining Types of Clinical Practice

Christie Ellis March 2024

Effective teacher prep depends on a high-quality clinical practice experience. There is an ever-growing variety of preparation models available to aspiring teachers. Yet to date, the field has not galvanized around a common vocabulary. This paper addresses that issue by establishing definitions of the two key types of clinical practice experiences teacher candidates need and an outline of five common models prep programs use to provide them. The paper also describes an increasingly prevalent sixth...

Student teaching, Cooperating teachers, Clinical Practice, Classroom management, Teacher Prep

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State of the States 2024 Five Policy Actions to Strengthen Implementation of the Science of Reading

Shannon Holston January 2024

For states to succeed in their efforts to improve reading instruction, they must ensure teachers are prepared to implement and sustain scientifically based reading instruction.New data and analysis from the National Council on Teacher Quality (NCTQ) show that while many states seek to improve literacy outcomes for students, they overlook a key component to implementation and sustainability: effective teachers.The report shows the extent to which states focus on 5 key policies actions: Set specific, detailed...

State role, Reading, Teacher Prep, Licensure

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State Reading Policy Action Guide

Hannah Putman January 2024

For states to succeed in their efforts to improve reading instruction, they must ensure teachers are prepared to implement and sustain scientifically based reading instruction.The states most successful in leveraging policy to improve reading outcomes for students have taken a cohesive and comprehensive approach focused on improving teachers' capacity to deliver great reading instruction.This action guide outlines five key actions states should take to strengthen implementation of reading policies.

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False Assurances: Many states' licensure tests don't signal whether elementary teachers understand reading instruction

Hannah Putman November 2023

In a new analysis, the National Council on Teacher Quality (NCTQ) finds that most states (29 states and the District of Columbia) use a weak elementary teacher reading licensure test, meaning that they do not effectively measure teachers' knowledge of scientifically based reading instruction prior to entering the classroom. One state, Iowa, requires no reading licensure test at all. This shortcoming means that, every year, nearly 100,000 elementary teachers across the country enter classrooms with...

National, Licensing requirements, Licensing tests, Reading, Teacher diversity, Licensure

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State of the States 2023: Policies to Increase Teacher Diversity

Abigail Swisher August 2023

Despite robust research that shows that teachers of color increase positive academic, social-emotional, and behavioral outcomes for all students, particularly students of color, new data and analysis from the National Council on Teacher Quality (NCTQ) suggest a variety of ways state education leaders and policymakers could do more to increase teacher diversity.

Hiring and Assignment, Teacher diversity, Differentiated pay, Retention strategies

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Teacher Prep Review: Strengthening Elementary Reading Instruction

June 2023

Giving teachers the knowledge and skills they need to teach reading effectively is fundamental for improving life outcomes for all children and reversing historical patterns of inequity. New data and analysis from the National Council on Teacher Quality (NCTQ) provides the most up-to-date information available on the extent to which nearly 700 teacher preparation programs across the country prepare aspiring teachers to teach children to read. Download the full report or view a summary of...

Reading, Teacher Prep

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Teacher Prep Review: Building Content Knowledge

Christie Ellis, Shannon Holston February 2023

New data and analysis from NCTQ finds significant opportunities for teacher preparation programs to improve their coursework requirements to ensure that aspiring elementary school teachers receive the essential social studies and science content knowledge they need for the classroom. The new report shows that while most teacher preparation programs have sufficient course options available, only 3% require aspiring teachers to complete courses in most of the social studies and science topics an elementary teacher needs...

Subject matter knowledge, Social studies , Science , Teacher Prep

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