Do Teachers matter?
A psychology study hit the headlines last Friday under the banner
‘Teacher quality makes little difference, study shows’.
AN AUSTRALIAN study has cast doubt over the “teacher effect”, by suggesting differences between teachers play only a minor role in how well a child will learn.
The global study, led by the University of New England, monitored 500 pairs of identical twins during their first three years of school.
They were divided into two groups: twins who shared the same teacher, and siblings who were split across different classrooms.
The same genetics and home life ensured the twins had the same ability to learn. The study was designed to reveal any differences linked to their teacher alone.
Professor Brian Byrne said the finding contradicted the views of educationalists who claimed teacher quality could account for a variance of up to 40 per cent in a child’s learning outcome.
“Our study shows … the ‘teacher effect’ on differences in children’s acquisition of literacy skills in the early years of schooling is no more – and sometimes less – than 8 per cent,” Professor Byrne said.
“This result is certainly in the direction you would expect if teachers do ‘make a difference’ but it is not very large.
