Teaching by first- or second-year TFA corps members shows no significant effect on elementary-grade students' reading compared with non-TFA novice teachers¶

Claim · All claims
Evidence · 1 study · quant-synthesis r2 · q3
Currency · newest study 2018 · checked against its sources 2026-10-20 (automated, 1 of 1 entry) · not reviewed by a person

Subclaims¶

q3 i? There is no significant effect on reading from teaching by TFA corps members in their first or second year compared to non-TFA teachers also in their first or second year teaching elementary-grade students (PreK–grade 5). → Turner H 2018

Evidence¶

Turner H 2018¶

Turner H, Ncube M, Turner A, Boruch R, Ibekwe N. (2018). What are the effects of Teach For America on Math, English Language Arts, and Science outcomes of K–12 students in the USA? Campbell Systematic Reviews 2018:7. https://doi.org/10.4073/csr.2018.7

q3 · i? · quant-synthesis · r2

The review's synthesis of included RCTs and QEDs comparing first- or second-year TFA corps members with non-TFA novice teachers on reading outcomes for PreK–grade 5 students. The review reports "no significant effect on reading"; no effect size is printed, so equivalence was not tested.

"There is no significant effect on reading from teaching by TFA corps members in their first or second year of teaching elementary‐grade students (PreK – grade 5) compared to non‐TFA teachers who are also in their first or second year of teaching elementary‐grade students."

Discussion¶

Related Claims¶

• TFA shows a small positive effect on reading for early elementary students (PreK to grade 2) but not in math — reports the opposite
• An elementary-school RCT found no statistically significant difference between TFA and non-TFA teachers in mathematics or reading achievement — a broader claim this one bears on
• TFA teachers in their first two years of teaching are more effective than more experienced non-TFA teachers in the same schools — related
• TFA teachers have positive effects on mathematics achievement for students in grades pre-K-12, based on six studies — related
• A randomized controlled trial found TFA secondary math teachers outperformed non-TFA comparison teachers in mathematics achievement — related
• The evidence base for estimating TFA's effects on student academic outcomes reduces to just four studies — related
• Secondary math teachers from Teach For America and the Teaching Fellows programs are as effective as teachers receiving traditional certification — related
• TFA corps members hired in the first two years of the i3 scale-up were as effective as other teachers in the same high-poverty schools in teaching reading and math — related
• Under the i3 scale-up grant, TFA planned to grow its corps by 80 percent and aimed for a majority of its teachers to be rated highly effective by the 2014-2015 school year — related
• The authors propose creating America's Teacher Corps through federal legislation to recognize highly effective K-12 public school teachers — related