Raising the Bar on Teacher Shortage Data and Dialogue

Teachers are the single most important school-level factor influencing student achievement; yet teacher shortages are a challenge in 84% of school districts across the country. Leading teacher shortage subject matter experts Dr. Etai Mizrav and Dr. Ellen Sherratt have developed a groundbreaking approach to help state leaders address teacher shortages efficiently and with impact.

With over 35 years of combined national and international experience supporting all 50 states and several U.S. territories, Drs. Sherratt and Mizrav offer consulting services that span the spectrum of teacher workforce management issues, from sophisticated data analysis to strategic implementation.

At the heart of their work is the innovative Teacher Shortage Components Approach, developed by Dr. Mizrav, and the key tenets of Dr. Sherratt's Creating Coherence in the Teacher Shortage Debate paper which pioneered the national call for stronger teacher supply and demand data combined with stakeholder engagement that meaningfully advances policy dialogue.

The Components Approach for Alleviating Teacher Shortages

With proven success in Illinois and Michigan, the Teacher Shortage Components Approach provides state education agency (SEA) leaders with tailored supports to organize teacher shortage strategies and data around key components that disaggregated teacher shortage metrics identify as core drivers of the state's teacher shortage challenges.

This includes:

• Tailored coaching and structured approaches for identifying key teacher shortage components from a review of data of varying quality
• Data-driven insights and visualizations of local teacher shortages
• Robust data analysis protocols to identify nuanced shortage components and trends
• Ongoing shortage component updates and best practice sharing
• Interactive maps and dashboards that visualize teacher workforce data
• Thought partnership for improving teacher shortage data quality
• Evidence-based solutions and strategic planning tools

Data Disaggregation and Analysis

The Components Approach guides states in breaking down teacher workforce data by key factors:

• Who: Data on affected educators, students, and institutions helps identify demographic patterns
• Where: Geographical and subject-specific data allows mapping of shortage hotspots
• Career Phase: Tracking shortages across recruitment, preparation, certification, and retention