Is PAR a Good Investment? Understanding the Costs and Benefits of Teacher Peer Assistance and Review Programs

Peer Assistance and Review (PAR) is a local labor–management initiative designed to improve teacher quality. In PAR, expert “consulting teachers” mentor, support, and evaluate novice and underperforming veteran teachers. Evaluations under PAR can lead to dismissals. The authors examine the costs and...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Educational policy (Los Altos, Calif.) Calif.), 2012-09, Vol.26 (5), p.696-729
Main Authors: Papay, John P., Johnson, Susan Moore
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Academic Achievement
Administrator Attitudes
Beginning Teachers
Benefits
California
Cost
Cost benefit analysis
Cost Effectiveness
Education reform
Educational Change
Educational evaluation
Educational policy
Experienced Teachers
Faculty Development
Investments
Labor Relations
Maryland
Mentors
Minnesota
New York
Ohio
Organizational Culture
Peer Evaluation
Peer review
Principals
Program Costs
Saving
Teacher Dismissal
Teacher Effectiveness
Teacher Evaluation
Teacher Persistence
Teachers
Veterans
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Summary:Peer Assistance and Review (PAR) is a local labor–management initiative designed to improve teacher quality. In PAR, expert “consulting teachers” mentor, support, and evaluate novice and underperforming veteran teachers. Evaluations under PAR can lead to dismissals. The authors examine the costs and benefits of PAR, both financial and organizational. Although PAR is an expensive reform, costing US$3,000 to US$10,000 per teacher served, it affords the district a range of financial savings and organizational benefits that offset program costs. The authors argue that limiting the scope of an educational cost-benefit study to only quantifiable elements artificially constrains understanding what a reform actually requires and offers.
ISSN:0895-9048
1552-3896
DOI:10.1177/0895904811417584