NEW YORK, November 22, 2024—This week, the American Institutes for Research (AIR) released a meta-analysis that synthesizes the effects of TFA teachers on student achievement. The analysis reviewed 23 studies of TFA’s impact spanning 24 years—including 63,134 teachers and over 5 million students—and found that:

• Teach For America teachers over the last few decades have had a consistent and significant impact on students’ learning.
• On average, students of TFA teachers perform better in math than those of similar non-TFA teachers.
• On average, students of TFA teachers perform better in science than those of similar non-TFA teachers.
• On average, students of TFA teachers perform similarly in reading to those of similar non-TFA teachers.

Throughout its history, Teach For America has relied on research to continually refine its program and ensure the organization’s teachers are equipped to positively impact student achievement. Over the years, many independent studies have been conducted by respected research leaders including Mathematica, American Institutes for Research, Southern Methodist University, and Calder, to examine the impact of the TFA program. Most recently, the organization has seen research emerge from Miami, Indianapolis, and Texas, which all show a consistent and positive impact of TFA teachers on student outcomes. 

Teach For America remains committed to learning, improving, and working in partnership with the students they serve, other educators, and partners. TFA is contributing learnings to the education field about its work and recently announced they have joined the Research Partnership for Professional Learning (RPPL) as a member. This unique collaborative brings together leading organizations, researchers, and school systems to identify and share professional learning practices that improve teacher effectiveness and student outcomes. By joining RPPL as a full member—after three years of participation as an affiliate—TFA will deepen its contributions to advancing research on professional learning in schools nationwide.

Since Teach For America’s network spans urban, rural, and tribal communities, it encompasses a wide range of cultural, linguistic, and socioeconomic backgrounds. This diversity allows the organization to implement and evaluate innovative educational practices in various settings, creating a robust evidence base for what works in classrooms across America. With thousands of corps members teaching in over one thousand schools across the country, TFA is uniquely positioned to gather and analyze a broad spectrum of data on teaching practices and student outcomes, helping to inform both internal strategies and broader educational practices.

Visit the organization’s research page to learn more.

About Teach For America

Teach For America works in partnership with communities across the country to expand educational opportunities for children. Founded in 1990, Teach For America finds, develops, and supports a diverse network of leaders who expand opportunity for children from classrooms, schools, and every sector and field that shapes the broader systems in which schools operate. Today, Teach For America is a force of over 70,000 alumni, corps members, and Ignite fellows working in pursuit of profound systemic change so that one day every child has an equal opportunity to learn, lead, thrive, and co-create a future filled with possibility. Teach For America is a proud member of the AmeriCorps national service network. For more information, visit www.teachforamerica.org and follow us on Facebook and X.

Press Contact

Natalie Laukitis

(646) 369-7306

natalie.laukitis@teachforamerica.org