Making Do: Why Do Administrators Retain Low-Performing Teachers?

Previous reports suggest that administrators rarely dismiss low-performing teachers despite the changing policy landscape allowing them to do so. This brief uses survey data from Tennessee to investigate the underlying reasons explaining administrators’ decisions to retain low-performing teachers. The presented analysis suggests that administrators largely retain low-performing teachers due to a persistent belief that these teachers will improve with time; further analysis presents some evidence regarding observable improvement among low-performing teachers. The brief concludes with a brief discussion of implications for policy and practice.