Treffer: Tackling Teacher Shortages: What We Know about California's Teacher Workforce Investments

Like many states across the nation, California is facing persistent teacher shortages. School districts continue to find it difficult to fill vacancies with fully credentialed teachers, especially math, science, special education, and bilingual education teachers. Teacher shortages impact student learning as districts resort to relying on a revolving door of underprepared teachers and substitute teachers, increasing class sizes, and cutting course offerings altogether. To tackle teacher shortages, especially in high-need schools, California has invested more than $1 billion to strengthen the teacher workforce. Three of California's largest investments in the teacher workforce are the Teacher Residency Grant Program ($672 million), Golden State Teacher Grant Program ($521 million), and National Board Certified Teacher Incentive Program ($250 million). In the initial years of administering these grants, state agencies have focused on establishing implementation processes and raising awareness about these programs. Data from the state's early investments show that these programs are gaining traction. however, they are funded through one-time allocations that are nearing expiration. This raises two questions: (1) To what extent are these investments supporting much-needed teacher workforce development strategies, and (2) Are they still needed in the current context? This report addresses these research questions by analyzing the California Department of Education Teaching Assignment Monitoring Outcomes data from 2020-21 to 2022-23 to gain a timely understanding of teacher shortages in the state. To understand the uptake and impact of California's major teacher workforce investments, the authors examined data from state agencies and conducted interviews with teacher preparation programs, district leaders, and grant recipients.

ERIC