Crowding Out Intrinsic Motivation? How Compensating Teachers for Leadership Roles May Facilitate Collaboration

• In Event: Large-Scale Teacher Leader Initiatives: Findings From the Field

Abstract

The purpose of this study is to examine performance-based-pay incentives designed to facilitate collaboration through teacher leadership roles. We use two years of teacher survey and interview data in a school district that implemented a Teacher Incentive Fund grant. We find that teachers in new leadership roles report increases in collaboration and interactions with colleagues inside their own school and between schools in the district. We also find that teachers reports varied based on the role, especially for reported interactions between schools The findings inform pay-for-performance policies by noting that incentives can be influential in increasing collaborative practices of those who hold teacher leadership roles. Future studies should examine whether influencing collaborative practices improves teacher or student outcomes.

Authors

• Jeremy B Landa, University of Connecticut

• Morgaen L. Donaldson, University of Connecticut - Storrs