The worldwide problem of teacher recruitment and retention is particularly pronounced in STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) subjects, due in part to a lack of trainee teachers and to high rates of attrition. The teacher shortage has resulted in non-specialist teachers teaching STEM subjects and is likely to have a negative…

Background: A raft of initiatives and reforms have been introduced in many countries to attract and recruit school teachers, many of which do not have a clear evidence base, so their effectiveness remains unclear. Prior research has been largely correlational in design. This paper describes a rigorous and comprehensive review of international…

The cost of attending college has risen sharply over the last 40 years. Although more credit and grant aid have been made available to students, there are still major gaps between aid and the cost of attendance for many students in the United States, all of whom are left to figure out whether they can afford the remaining costs associated with…

Governments, schools, and communities throughout Australia are working to improve school attendance among Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students using numerous strategies. Currently, however, little is known about the effectiveness of these strategies and the key factors which underpin programs and strategies which are successful. This…

Merit pay programs for educators--sometimes referred to a "pay for performance"--attempt to tie a teacher's compensation to his/her performance in the classroom. While the idea of merit pay for classroom teachers has been around for several decades, only now is it starting to be implemented in a growing number of districts around the…

The article explores theoretical and practical factors that support or challenge the effectiveness of various awards programs intended to motivate improvement in youth fitness, motivate youth to take fitness tests, and encourage active lifestyles. (Author/CB)

Employee recreation programs have been shown to reduce absenteeism, increase performance and productivity, reduce stress levels, and increase job satisfaction. Studies that present positive results of employee recreation are discussed. (DF)

Suggests four criteria (efficiency, return on investment, incentives, and equity) for evaluating and comparing public programs for poor children, and provides an overview of information available on eight large federal programs using these criteria. Positive effects of some programs are noted, and policy recommendations the evidence supports are…

Reviews recent trends in the development and implementation of performance-based incentive programs for teachers and administrators. Looks at program control, administrator and teacher involvement, time frames used, criteria for career advancement, evaluation methods employed, effects of funding on implementation, and program evaluation. Considers…

A "10% solution" to systematic coordination of university collaborations with local schools involves a decentralized approach with incentives and a focus for coordination. The overall effect is that the institution lays out no additional cash, redirects funds to support coordination, and intensifies and focuses scattered efforts for…

This review examines literature on the community's role in the achievement and psychosocial outcomes of disadvantaged students. It identifies three classes of factors as pertinent: community structure, community climate, and community involvement. Community characteristics were found to have only a weak effect on achievement at the individual…

Based on a synthesis of research and on telephone interviews with representatives of 22 school districts, this study analyzes the effectiveness and problems of two types of motivational plans for teachers: merit pay plans in which at least part of a teacher's pay is linked to performance, and nonmonetary performance-by-objectives plans in which…

This monograph summarizes 20 recently completed dissertations representative of research being done in employment and training. Each summary has this format: description of the framework into which the study fits, explanation of its purpose, summary of methodology and type of data, and author's findings and conclusions. Six studies in section I on…

In this paper we examine the research literature on teacher performance pay. Evidence clearly suggests an upsurge of interest in many states and school districts; however, expanded use of performance pay has been controversial. We briefly review the history of teacher pay policy in the U.S. and earlier cycles of interest in merit or…