As school districts continue searching for ways to recruit and retain teachers, new research from UNC-Chapel Hill suggests one promising pipeline may already be in classrooms: teaching assistants.
A new statewide study from the Education Policy Initiative at Carolina (EPIC) found that nearly 1 in 5 beginning teachers in North Carolina previously worked as a teaching assistant. Researchers also found that these former TAs perform just as well as other early-career teachers—and are significantly more likely to remain in the profession through their second and third years.
The findings also suggest the TA-to-teacher pipeline could help address other workforce needs. Former TAs are more likely to be teachers of color and more likely to hold special education licenses, strengthening areas where many districts face persistent shortages.
Why it matters: Rather than focusing solely on recruiting new graduates into teaching, the research points to an existing workforce that states and districts could better support as they look to address teacher vacancies and improve retention.
Lead author Kevin Bastian, research associate professor in UNC's Department of Public Policy and director of EPIC, can discuss:
Why teaching assistants represent an overlooked teacher pipeline.
What the findings mean for North Carolina and other states facing teacher shortages.
How policymakers can better recruit and support TAs who want to become teachers.
Why former TAs are more likely to stay in the classroom.
The study was recently published in Educational Evaluation and Policy Analysis.
