Considerable research has examined the positive educational experiences of students of color assigned to teachers of the same race or ethnicity. Underlying this research is the belief that the cultural fit between students and teachers has the potential to improve a child’s academic and nonacademic performance in school. This comprehensive review examines the extent to which Black and Latino/a students (1) receive more favorable ratings of classroom behavior and academic performance, (2) score higher on standardized tests, and (3) have more positive behavioral outcomes when assigned to a teacher of the same race/ethnicity. Assignment to a same-race teacher is associated with more favorable teacher ratings, although the relationship differs by school level. There is fairly strong evidence that Black students score higher on achievement tests when assigned to a Black teacher. Less consistent evidence is found for Latino/a students.

Students of color are underrepresented in gifted programs relative to White students, but the reasons for this underrepresentation are poorly understood. We investigate the predictors of gifted assignment using nationally representative, longitudinal data on elementary students. We document that even among students with high standardized test scores, Black students are less likely to be assigned to gifted services in both math and reading, a pattern that persists when controlling for other background factors, such as health and socioeconomic status, and characteristics of classrooms and schools. We then investigate the role of teacher discretion, leveraging research from political science suggesting that clients of government services from traditionally underrepresented groups benefit from diversity in the providers of those services, including teachers. Even after conditioning on test scores and other factors, Black students indeed are referred to gifted programs, particularly in reading, at significantly lower rates when taught by non-Black teachers, a concerning result given the relatively low incidence of assignment to own-race teachers among Black students.

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Alternative certification programs are now commonplace in the credentialing of new teachers. We complement the growing evidence base for these teachers by exploring their turnover patterns in four waves of the nationally representative Schools and Staffing Survey (SASS). We report on descriptive evidence of growing differences in the characteristics of alternatively and traditionally certified teachers and the schools in which they teach. Controlling for factors that predict higher turnover, we find that by the 2007-2008 school year, alternatively certified teachers were still more likely than traditionally certified teachers to leave the profession. We find some evidence that an increase in the number of organizational supports for new teachers may reduce the likelihood of turnover.

Most prior research measures teacher turnover as an annual event, but teachers actually leave their positions throughout the school year. We use data from North Carolina to measure teacher turnover monthly throughout the entire year and conduct an analysis of their persistence to examine the differences in early career teacher turnover. Annually, 6% of early career teachers turn over during the school year. Teachers trained in traditional, university-based programs are most likely to move schools, and alternate entry and out-of-state prepared teachers are more likely to leave teaching, both during and at the end of the school year. We discuss the implications within-year turnover has on creating disruptive learning environments, particularly in underserved schools.