"Teacher hiring is central to issues of teacher quality, and yet little research to date has addressed the practices districts use to hire teachers. This study used statewide teacher data in Michigan and interview data collected in five school districts in a common labor market to investigate district teacher hiring practices. Teacher data covered the 12-year period from 2004 to 2015, a time of intense state and federal focus on school and district accountability as measured by student performance on statewide assessments of mathematics and reading, primarily in grades 3-8. In response to the accountability measures, districts were hypothesized to have increased the percentage of elementary teachers who were male, or teachers of color, or teachers assigned as mathematics or reading specialists, but the data soundly rejected the hypothesis. Interview data supported the concept of bounded rationality in district hiring decisions: scarcity of time, attention, information, and capacity, and ambiguity of organizational preferences led to satisficing and rule-following behavior on the part of administrators. Districts and decision makers employed various strategies to mitigate the forces of scarcity and ambiguity. Note: This research project used data structured and maintained by the Michigan Department of Education (MDE) and/or Michigan's Center for Educational Performance and Information (CEPI). Results, information and opinions solely represent the analysis, information and opinions of the author(s) and are not endorsed by, or reflect the views or positions of, grantors, MDE and CEPI or any employee thereof."--Page ii.
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