TY  - JOUR
AU  - Figlio,David N.
AU  - Kenny,Lawrence
TI  - Individual Teacher Incentives And Student Performance
JF  - National Bureau of Economic Research Working Paper Series
VL  - No. 12627
PY  - 2006
Y2  - October 2006
UR  - http://www.nber.org/papers/w12627
L1  - http://www.nber.org/papers/w12627.pdf
N1  - Author contact info:
David N. Figlio
Institute for Policy Research
Northwestern University
2040 Sheridan Road
Evanston, IL 60208
Tel: 847-467-1503
Fax: 847-491-9916
E-Mail: figlio@northwestern.edu

Lawrence Kenny
Department of Economics
University of Florida
Gainesville, FL 32611-7140
E-Mail: larry.kenny@cba.ufl.edu
AB  - This paper is the first to systematically document the relationship between individual teacher performance incentives and student achievement using United States data.  We combine data from the National Education Longitudinal Survey on schools, students, and their families with our own survey conducted in 2000 regarding the use of teacher incentives. This survey on teacher incentives has unique data on frequency and magnitude of merit raises and bonuses, teacher evaluation, and teacher termination.  We find that test scores are higher in schools that offer individual financial incentives for good performance.  Moreover, the estimated relationship between the presence of merit pay in teacher compensation and  student test scores is strongest in schools that may have the least parental oversight.  The association between teacher incentives and student performance could be due to better schools adopting teacher incentives or to teacher incentives eliciting more effort from teachers; it is impossible to rule out the former explanation with our cross sectional data.
ER  -