THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN FLORIDA ACCOUNTABILITY PROGRAMS AND MERIT-BASED PAY IN TWO LARGE URBAN BASED SCHOOL DISTRICTS

The purpose of this study was to ascertain insightful knowledge through the analysis of teacher pay across two similar K-12 public school districts that reflect the current evaluation methodology being utilized within the State of Florida. The two districts were selected because they are among the largest public school districts in the nation (Florida Department of Education [FLDOE], 2021a), have comparable student demographics and utilize contrasting weighted merit pay salary schedule profiles and algorithms which could provide insights into the relationship between accountability and merit-based pay. The Florida Standards Assessment (FSA) student assessments in (English [R%H] and Mathematics [M%H]) as well as the District School Grades (DSGs) were analyzed. The DSGs were commensurate with an approximation to the Value-Added Model (VAM) and Learning Growth Model (LGM) scores. Since the FLDOE does not release individual K-12 public school teacher VAM and LGM scores, the DSGs were the most appropriate comparative score to utilize when comparing these two districts. These are the primary variables utilized by the Florida K-12 Public School Accountability Programs that directly impact merit pay salary schedule placement.
Quantitative methods employed statistical tests and analyses that included Independent Samples t-tests, Intercorrelation Matrices, Independent Correlation Contrasts, and Overlapping Dependent Correlation Contrasts between correlations that were calculated in the two K-12 public school districts. The study found that the input variables (R%H, M%H, and DSGs) had no statistically significant differences of the means between districts tested. Each input variable was commensurate over the 7-year study. Yet, there were statistically significant differences of the percentage mean in the output variables in regard to the percentage of K-12 public school teachers rated Highly Effective and Effective between both districts. The study also determined that the remaining input variable of the teacher classroom observation Instructional Practice (IP) score was significantly related to an educator’s placement on annual merit pay-for-performance salary schedules. Both districts utilized the assessment tool iObservation ®. The results of all of the statistical analyses served to call into question the accuracy, legitimacy, and the efficacy of the methodology utilized to incentivize, compensate, and produce more Highly Effective educators.