Details
- Publication date
- 30 April 2014
- Author
- European Expert Network on Economics of Education (EENEE)
- Geographical scope
- European Union
- Level of education focus
- School education
- Thematic areas covered
- Educational attainment and participation in education
- Educational effectiveness and efficiency
- Investment in education, economic impact of education
- Monitoring and quality assurance
- Quality and inclusive education for all
- Skills development
- Teachers and trainers
Description
This policy brief highlights the long-term value of high-quality teaching, focusing on the “value-added” (VA) approach to evaluating teacher performance. The VA method assesses teachers based on the test score improvements of their students, adjusted for prior achievement and background factors.
A large-scale U.S. study tracking over one million students shows that high-VA teachers significantly improve students’ life outcomes - including earnings, college attendance, and reduced teen parenthood. The economic benefit of replacing a low-VA teacher with an average one is estimated at $250,000 in lifetime earnings per classroom.
The brief acknowledges concerns around teaching to the test but supports the use of VA as a helpful indicator of teacher impact. It also finds little correlation between teacher quality and observable traits like degrees or years of experience. Overall, improving teacher quality offers substantial economic and social returns.
Authors
Raj Chetty, John N. Friedman and Jonah E. Rockoff
Cite as
Raj Chetty, John N. Friedman and Jonah E. Rockoff, (2014). 'Great Teachers Create Lasting Value', EENEE Policy Brief 4, 2014
