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Can Public Schools Buy Better-Qualified Teachers?

Author

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  • David N. Figlio

Abstract

Since the early 1980s, real teacher salaries in U.S. public schools have increased considerably faster than salaries of other Americans with similar levels of education and training. Providing an important impetus for this development were claims that increased salaries would allow the recruitment of better-qualified teachers. This analysis, which uses panel data on new teachers in 188 public school districts that changed their salaries between 1987–88 and 1993–94, investigates whether a school district can, by unilaterally increasing teacher salaries, improve the quality of the teachers it hires, as indicated by their having graduated from selective colleges and majored in the specific subject matter they teach. For nonunion school districts, the author finds a positive, statistically significant relationship between a given district's teacher salaries and that district's probability of hiring well-qualified teachers. Several tests indicate that this relationship is not found in unionized school districts.

Suggested Citation

  • David N. Figlio, 2002. "Can Public Schools Buy Better-Qualified Teachers?," ILR Review, Cornell University, ILR School, vol. 55(4), pages 686-699, July.
    • Handle: RePEc:sae:ilrrev:v:55:y:2002:i:4:p:686-699
    DOI: 10.1177/001979390205500407
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    Citations

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    Cited by:

    1. Angrist, Joshua D. & Guryan, Jonathan, 2008. "Does teacher testing raise teacher quality? Evidence from state certification requirements," Economics of Education Review, Elsevier, vol. 27(5), pages 483-503, October.
    2. John V. Winters, 2011. "Teacher Salaries and Teacher Unions: A Spatial Econometric Approach," ILR Review, Cornell University, ILR School, vol. 64(4), pages 747-764, July.
    3. Johnston, Andrew C., 2021. "Preferences, Selection, and the Structure of Teacher Pay," IZA Discussion Papers 14831, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    4. Fraenkel, Rebecca Cannon, 2022. "Local labor markets and job match quality: Teachers," Labour Economics, Elsevier, vol. 78(C).
    5. Hendricks, Matthew D., 2015. "Towards an optimal teacher salary schedule: Designing base salary to attract and retain effective teachers," Economics of Education Review, Elsevier, vol. 47(C), pages 143-167.
    6. Barbieri, Gianna & Rossetti, Claudio & Sestito, Paolo, 2011. "The determinants of teacher mobility: Evidence using Italian teachers’ transfer applications," Economics of Education Review, Elsevier, vol. 30(6), pages 1430-1444.
    7. Kertesi, Gábor & Kézdi, Gábor, 2005. "Általános iskolai szegregáció, I. rész. Okok és következmények [Segregation in the primary-school system, I. Causes and consequences]," Közgazdasági Szemle (Economic Review - monthly of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences), Közgazdasági Szemle Alapítvány (Economic Review Foundation), vol. 0(4), pages 317-355.
    8. Brasington, David M. & Haurin, Donald R., 2009. "Parents, peers, or school inputs: Which components of school outcomes are capitalized into house value?," Regional Science and Urban Economics, Elsevier, vol. 39(5), pages 523-529, September.
    9. Baron, E. Jason, 2018. "The Effect of Teachers’ Unions on Student Achievement in the Short Run: Evidence from Wisconsin’s Act 10," Economics of Education Review, Elsevier, vol. 67(C), pages 40-57.
    10. Quinby, Laura D. & Wettstein, Gal, 2021. "Do deferred benefit cuts for current employees increase separation?," Labour Economics, Elsevier, vol. 73(C).
    11. Galvis-Aponte, Luis Armando & Bonilla-Mejía, Leonardo, 2014. "Desigualdades en la distribución del nivel educativo de los docentes en Colombia," Chapters, in: Sánchez Jabba, Andrés & Otero Cortés, Andrea (ed.), Educación y desarrollo regional en Colombia, chapter 6, pages 213-234, Banco de la Republica de Colombia.
    12. Stoddard, Christiana, 2005. "Adjusting teacher salaries for the cost of living: the effect on salary comparisons and policy conclusions," Economics of Education Review, Elsevier, vol. 24(3), pages 323-339, June.
    13. Luis Armando Galvis & Leonardo Bonilla Mej�a, 2011. "Las desigualdades en la distribución del nivel educativo de los docentes en Colombia," Documentos de Trabajo Sobre Economía Regional y Urbana 8918, Banco de la República, Economía Regional.
    14. Jason Barr, 2005. "Teacher Location Choice And The Distribution Of Quality: Evidence From New York City," Contemporary Economic Policy, Western Economic Association International, vol. 23(4), pages 585-600, October.
    15. Player, Daniel, 2009. "Monetary returns to academic ability in the public teacher labor market," Economics of Education Review, Elsevier, vol. 28(2), pages 277-285, April.
    16. Cowen, Joshua M. & Strunk, Katharine O., 2015. "The impact of teachers’ unions on educational outcomes: What we know and what we need to learn," Economics of Education Review, Elsevier, vol. 48(C), pages 208-223.
    17. Willén, Alexander, 2021. "Decentralization of wage determination: Evidence from a national teacher reform," Journal of Public Economics, Elsevier, vol. 198(C).
    18. Christa Deneault, 2025. "Local Labor Markets and Selection into the Teaching Profession," Working Papers 2522, Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas.

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