Merit Pay

Race to the Top legislation rekindled the discussed about the benefits of merit pay for both teachers and principals. Over the past few decades many districts and several states have launched merit pay systems with inconsistent results on student achievement. Several independent studies have looked at the impact of merit pay and provide disparate results. The Denver Public Schools have had positive results from their system while a study of a program in Nashville found no differences in achievement. Other studies in Florida and Texas provided mixed results.

The National Center on Performance Incentives at Vanderbilt University is one of the most comprehensive sources of up-to-date information about merit pay plans and the research on their success (www.performanceincentives.org).

During the past year I have authored two Research Briefs on the subject. They include one on Merit Pay for Teachers, and one on Merit Pay for Principals. These briefs are available on the website of The Principals Partnership, sponsored by the Union Pacific Foundation, and on my website (www.ronwilliamson.com).

As always I would welcome hearing from you about your experience with merit pay or about questions or comments you may have about the topic.