Studies Mixed on National Certification for Teachers

Does having a teacher who is nationally certified make a difference when it comes to boosting student test scores?

Yes and no, according to a set of working papers published online by the National Center for Analysis of Longitudinal Data in Education Research, or CALDER, a new federal research center based at the Urban Institute in Washington.

Since last year, center researchers have been mining the mountains of student-achievement statistics piling up in states for answers to questions about teacher quality. Under the federal No Child Left Behind Act, states must submit plans for ensuring schools are staffed by “highly qualified” teachers. Yet studies have turned up no definitive evidence on what determines teaching quality and how public policy can affect the hiring and...