How are issues of teacher recruitment, development, and retention impacting the profession? What can educators and public education advocates do about it?

Bloggers from across the country explored the implications of teacher shortages during a roundtable co-hosted by CTQ and the Learning Policy Institute. Building from their own experiences, as well as the policy research and writing of CTQ’s Barnett Berry and the Learning Policy Institute’s Patrick M. Shields featured in this recently released Kappan article, these classroom experts will propose innovative solutions to our nation’s persistent challenge: to ensure quality teaching and learning for every student.

In his blog post kicking off the roundtable discussion, John Holland, an early childhood NBCT based in Richmond, Virginia, addresses a letter to future teachers that emphasizes why we need young people to choose and stay in the teaching profession. He posits: “I chose to work with our most underserved and vulnerable students in a high-poverty preschool program not because it was easy, but because it was important…after more than 20 years in the profession, I can honestly say I would make the same decision again.” He will be leading this roundtable conversation in collaboration with CTQ Consultant Jon Eckert, an Associate Professor of Education at Wheaton College.

Please share your thoughts and experiences by commenting on these blog posts, joining the conversation in the CTQ Collaboratory, and inviting people to join the discussion on social media with #CTQCollab. Follow CTQ on Facebook and Twitter to see when each new blog is posted. Finally, don’t forget to join the #Teachershortage Twitter chat, co-hosted with our colleagues at LPI, on July 12th, 4 p.m. EST.

To learn more about evidence-based initiatives, policy options, and other approaches to building a strong and stable teacher workforce, visit LPI’s blog series Solving Teacher Shortages.