ABSTRACT
Education occupies a privileged position in social policy as the fundamental pathway to attenuate achievement gaps, promote economic opportunity, and increase social mobility as well as individual and social well-being. This chapter summarizes findings from studies examining the effects of policies intended to improve teacher quality, with specific attention given to studies focusing on improving the quality of teachers serving low-income students. It begins with a brief exploration of the conceptualization and measurement of teaching effectiveness. The chapter then reviews policies intended to improve teacher quality, dividing these policies between those that attempt to improve existing teachers (teacher development) and those intended to differentially select and retain the most effective teachers (teacher composition). Early efforts to ensure teacher quality focused on establishing minimum entry requirements for the profession. Efforts to improve teacher quality are distinguished between policies that seek to improve the effectiveness of current teachers and those that aim to change the composition of the teacher workforce.
