Absence of conflict of interest.
Citation
Highlights
- The study's objective was to examine the impact of the Missouri Teacher Academy on teacher self-efficacy, reflective capacity, and job satisfaction.
- The study used an interrupted time series to compare the outcomes of participants before and after they participated in the Missouri Teacher Academy. Using survey data, the authors conducted statistical analyses to compare differences in outcomes.
- The study found significant relationships between Missouri Teacher Academy participation and increased self-efficacy, reflective capacity, and job satisfaction.
- This study receives a low evidence rating. This means we are not confident that the estimated effects are attributable to the Missouri Teacher Academy; other factors are likely to have contributed.
Intervention Examined
Missouri Teacher Academy
Features of the Intervention
The Missouri Teacher Academy is a program within the Missouri Teacher Development System designed to provide professional learning opportunities to teachers in the state. It aims to increase teacher retention through self-efficacy, reflective capacity, and job satisfaction. As part of the Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education's (DESE) Teacher Workforce Outreach Plan of 2020, the program focuses on priority areas such as data-driven decision-making, continuous reflection, working in a community of practice, and student engagement. Teachers in the academy participate in reflective journaling, questioning, and a year-long classroom action research project that allows them to continually reflect on the efficacy of their instruction and engagement strategies while also incorporating emerging research and innovative practices. The teachers apply what they learn in their classrooms, evaluate the effectiveness of their instruction, reflect on its impact on student learning, and modify practices as needed. The program is offered through nine Regional Professional Development Centers (RPDCs) and one additional approved provider. Participants are required to attend two state meetings and six regional sessions, totaling eight days of learning. Each provider selects their own program facilitators, session dates, and locations as aligned with Missouri DESE's guidelines.
Features of the Study
The study used an interrupted time series to compare the outcomes of teachers before and after they participated in the Missouri Teacher Academy. Eligible participants registered for the 2019-2020 Missouri Teacher Academy and were identified, either by themselves or their school administrators, as effective teachers who wanted to keep improving. The sample consisted of 96 teachers from nine RPDCs and one approved provider in Missouri who completed both the pretest and posttest surveys. Among the teachers, 86.4% were women, 53.6% had 3 to 10 years of experience, 37.5% primarily taught grades 3 to 5, 72.6% worked in rural districts, and 36.8% were ages 25 to 34.
The primary data sources were the pretest and posttest surveys, which gathered information on demographics and the outcomes of interest. The pretest surveys were administered in Fall 2019, prior to the intervention, while the posttest surveys were administered from March 14, 2020 to June 1, 2020, after the intervention. The author used statistical analyses to assess the differences in teacher self-efficacy, reflective capacity, and job satisfaction before and after they participated in the program.
Findings
Attitudes
The study found a statistically significant relationship between participation in the Missouri Teacher Academy and increased self-efficacy, reflective capacity, and job satisfaction.
Considerations for Interpreting the Findings
The authors compared the outcomes of participants measured before and after they participated in the intervention. For these types of designs, the authors must observe outcomes for multiple periods before the intervention to rule out the possibility that participants had increasing or decreasing trends in the outcomes examined before enrollment in the program. That is, if participants who had increasing self-efficacy, for example, tended to enroll in the program, we would anticipate further increases over time, even if they did not participate in the program. Without knowing the trends before program enrollment, we cannot rule this out. Therefore, the study receives a low causal evidence rating.
Causal Evidence Rating
The quality of causal evidence presented in this report is low because the authors did not account for trends in outcomes before the intervention. This means we are not confident that the estimated effects are attributable to the Missouri Teacher Academy; other factors are likely to have contributed.