Proportionally fewer principals remained at lower-performing schools than at higher-performing schools across all three states (three-year retention)¶
Claim · All claims
Evidence · 1 study · associationalr2·q2
Currency · newest study 2021 · not yet checked against its sources · not reviewed by a person · recheck by 2026: baselines and conditions change
Subclaims¶
Reading the evidence codes
q is the design tier, i the impact, n the sample, and the kind with its r
the rigour judged within that kind: what each code means.
This claim: no standardized effect is recorded in observations/ for it yet, so no benchmark reading is possible.
q2 i? Three-year retention was lower in schools below the statewide average proficiency in math and English language arts, with gaps of roughly 14–16 points in Arizona and 4–6 points in Utah. → Makkonen 2021
Evidence¶
Makkonen 2021¶
Makkonen, R., & Jaquet, K. (2021). Principal retention patterns in Arizona, Nevada, and Utah (REL 2022–129). U.S. Department of Education, Institute of Education Sciences, National Center for Education Evaluation and Regional Assistance, Regional Educational Laboratory West. https://ies.ed.gov/use-work/resource-library/report/descriptive-study/principal-retention-patterns-arizona-nevada-and-utah
q2 · i? · associational · r2
Three-year retention analysis by spring 2019 test proficiency (figure 7) from state staffing data; spring 2020 tests were not administered due to COVID-19. The gap was "most pronounced in Arizona" at approximately 14–16 percentage points and least pronounced in Utah at 4–6 points.
"All three states had lower three-year principal retention rates (fewer school stayers) from fall 2016 to fall 2019 in schools that had below-average proficiency rates on statewide standardized tests in math and English language arts (figure 7)."
Discussion¶
Related Claims¶
- Fewer than half of principals in Arizona, Nevada, and Utah remained at the same school from fall 2016 to fall 2020 — related
- Each state's lowest four-year principal retention rate occurred at a different grade span — related
- One-year principal retention rates were stable from fall 2016 to fall 2020 and did not decline during the COVID-19 pandemic year — related
- Retention was higher in majority-White schools in Arizona and Nevada but the converse held in Utah — related
- New principals' five-year retention differs by school level, student-body racial composition, and free/reduced-price lunch category — related
Page metadata
| Field | Value |
|---|---|
type |
claim |
id |
lower-retention-at-below-average-proficiency-schools |
title |
Proportionally fewer principals remained at lower-performing schools than at higher-performing schools across all three states (three-year retention) |
description |
Proportionally fewer principals remained at lower-performing schools than at higher-performing schools across all three states (three-year retention) |
status |
review |
evidence_strength |
moderate |
newest_evidence |
2021 |
recheck_by |
2026 |
generated |
by process:wiki-ingest on 2026-10-08 |
trust |
unverified — no one has confirmed this page's content |
sources |
1 — makkonen-2021 |
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