Economics of Education: Teacher Pay Incentives
Economics of Education Policy Debate Assignment #2 Instructions: Responses should be approximately ~1000 words. This assignment will challenge you to focus on the economic arguments relevant to the given debate. These arguments may include both economic theory/concepts as well as economic empirical evidence. If you think the topic is missing some key detail necessary to evaluate the alternative arguments, please feel free to make additional assumptions about the context, as long as you clearly state them and why you think it necessary to clarify. After presenting the economic arguments on both sides of the given issue, your assignment should include 1-2 paragraphs stating and explaining your own conclusion. In this conclusion, you may also highlight any limitations of the economic perspective that you think are relevant, or note other perspectives that you think would need to be considered as well. Make sure to present the economic arguments supporting both positions in the debate (that is, you should present both the pro and con side before reaching your conclusion). You can structure your argument presenting one side fully, and then the other side fully, or you can alternate point-counterpoint. You have flexibility regarding the structure as long as you address both positions and come to a clear conclusion at the end. Expectations for good work: • Reference at least 2-4 specific economic arguments (either theory/concepts or evidence). Please underline these arguments (e.g. the topic sentences or key phrases) in your report. • Concepts should be selected and applied appropriately and persuasively to the specific context. • Must include at least 4 citations (please include citations to relevant textbook pages, and at least one additional resource NOT on our reading list). • Incorporating statistics/evidence/data to support points (REPHRASE) • Clarifies any additional key assumptions made about the context. • Must include a clear statement and justification of your own conclusion. • Use clear and concise writing. See “General Writing Tips” document for more resources. (Topics on the next page) Debate Topic Options: CHOOSE EITHER A, B, or C. Feel free to specify the context (country or state of your choice) if you think doing so is helpful to develop your arguments. 1. (a) College finance: enrollment-based versus outcomes-based funding. In an effort to improve the productivity of public colleges and universities, many US states and some other countries have shifted (or considered shifting) their funding models to fund colleges based on how many students they graduate, instead of how many students they enroll. Analyze the pros and cons of such a shift from an economic perspective. 2. (b) Teacher pay incentives. Many countries struggle to recruit and retain qualified teachers. Consider the economic arguments for increasing teacher pay across the board, versus an incentive/bonus pay system that pays teachers more depending on their effort (e.g. attendance) and/or outcomes (e.g. student test scores). 3. (c) School Choice. New York State law prohibits the number of charter schools from exceeding 460 across the state and 290 in New York City. Imagine you have just been elected governor of New York and have been granted the authority to raise or lower the cap on the number of charter schools in the state. Analyze the benefits and drawbacks of lifting the city and/or state cap on charter schools using economic concepts while clearly stating your official policy stance.
Hi,
This is my a paper on "Economics of Education Policy Debate Paper". The detailed instruction is listed below and I have also attached the "General tips for Writing" and "Examples of this paper from last year" just for reference. Please follow the instruction and rubric strictly since this paper takes a big portion on final grade.
I have also attached a zip file for the readings and slides in our class in case if you need it. (The major class materials is in the second assignment folder)My professor is very strict on plagiarism and uniqueness since this is a both master and phd class.
Thank you for you help!
By the way, my professor really like the last paper your wrote. So probably check with the last policy debate you write.
Teacher Pay Incentives
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Teacher Pay Incentives
A significant challenge that has plagued the education sector is the shortage of human capital, with low pay being one of the top causative factors. Lovenheim and Turner (2018) report that national and local newspapers are filled with stories about teacher shortages nearly every August. In an effort to recruit and retain qualified teachers, policymakers often face the decision of whether to increase teacher pay across the board or implement an incentive/bonus pay system that remunerates teachers based on their effort and outcomes. Traditionally, the payment contracts for teachers have been based on experience and educational level, which has elicited concerns that they lack adequate incentives to raise student achievement. As noted by Lovenheim and Turner (2018), while most teachers value their work and students, the absence of monetary incentives tied to specific achievement outcomes may cause them to put too little effort or focus too much on areas that are not relevant to student achievement. With a dramatic rise in incentive pay programs in the United States, the question of whether the approach is better than increasing pay across the board in recruiting and retaining qualified teachers arises. In essence, are there relevant economic arguments in favor of incentive pay for teachers?
Economic Arguments for Incentive Pay
A well-designed incentive pay system can solve the turnover problem in the education market and raise students' achievement. While teaching is characterized by high rates of movement of teachers across districts and schools, Lovenheim and Turner (2018) point out that many teachers leave the profession for other fields. In many cases, teachers who leave the profession are highly qualified. For example, Lovenheim and Turner (2018) indicate that in New York State, many of the teachers that leave the profession graduated from competitive colleges and are less likely to have failed in their teacher certification program compared to those that remain. The same scenario happens in North Carolina, where those that leave the profession tend to have higher certification exam scores. One of the reasons for this phenomenon is the fact that teaching is characterized by a low return to skill and a compressed wage structure. In essence, when teacher's compensation is based on incentive pay, the wage structure will expand to match other professions like accounting, engineering, and computer programming. This will prevent highly qualified teachers from exiting the profession, given that their educational output will be compensated just like in other professions. Furthermore, Goldhaber (2010) noted that highly effective teachers translate to student academic success. In the study by Duflo (2012), the authors show that monitoring in combination with financial incentives raised teachers' attendance and the test scores of students. Therefore, compared to raising wages across the board, incentive pay for teachers can solve the turnover problem and raise the achievement of students.
Inventive pay for teachers can also address the principal-agent problem better than raising wages across the board. As explained by Lovenheim and Turner (2018), the principal-agent problem exists when the goal of employer does not align with the goal of the employee. In the education market, the parents and the school principals expect specific education outcomes such as grade completion and improved test scores. Without educational outcomes tied to incentives, teachers may only put forth minimal effort. This is, thus, a key weakness of raising wages across the board. However, when the incentives are aligned with educational outcomes, teachers are bound to be motivated to perform better, consequently rai...