Relationship among Merit Pay Policies, Teacher Mobility and Attrition - A Study in the Rio de Janeiro Public Schools

Oct 15, 2026

Uploaded by acoobca

The objective of this work was to verify if there is an association between a merit pay policy practiced by the Rio de Janeiro municipal administration and teachers’ mobility and attrition patterns. The study tracked teachers who took posts in the municipal system between 2009 and 2011 during the policy’s eight-year period (2009–2016). Bivariate analyses and mean-difference tests were conducted. Results show that schools’ achievement of policy goals—and consequent performance pay—correlated with teacher mobility and attrition, implying higher retention probability when targets were reached more frequently.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryResearch & Report

FormatPDF

Pages18

Reading Time45 min

AccessFree to download

Abstract

Background and Motivation

Teacher turnover and inequality mechanisms

Study Design and Methods

Data window and policy period

Analytical approach

Key Findings

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Arizona State University | | --- | --- | | Volume 30 Number 109 July 26 , 2022 ISSN 1068-2341 | | Relationship among Merit Pay Policies, Teacher Mobility and Attrition: A Study in the Rio de Janeiro Public Schools1 Karina Carrasqueira Pontifícia Universidade Católica do Rio de Janeiro Brazil & Mariane C. Koslinski Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro Brazil Citation: Carrasqueira, K., & Koslinski, M. C. (2022). Relationship among merit pay policies, teacher mobility and attrition: A study in the Rio de Janeiro public schools. Education Policy Analysis Archives, 30(109). [https://doi.org/10.14507/epaa.30.7136](https://doi.org/10.14507/epaa.30.7136) Abstract: The objective of this work was to verify if there is an association between a merit pay policy practiced by the Rio de Janeiro municipal local administration in the patterns of teachers’ mobility and attrition. The research followed the movement of teachers who took posts in the Rio de Janeiro municipal system between 2009 and 2011 during the eight years the policy was in effect (2009-2016) . Bivariate analyses and comparisons with tests of differences in means were performed. The main result was that the number of times the school reached the goals set by the policy and, consequently, the staff received performance pay presented a correlation with teacher mobility and attrition. 1 This study was financed in part by the Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES) -Brasil [Finance Code 001] and by Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado do Rio de Janeiro (Faperj) . Thus, the greater the frequency of school reached the performance target, the higher the probability of retaining teachers. Keywords: teacher mobility; teacher attrition; school accountability; merit pay policy Relación entre la política de responsabilidad, la movilidad y el abandono de los profesores: Un estudio sobre la red municipal de Río de Janeiro Resumen: El objetivo de este trabajo fue verificar si existe una asociación entre la políticade remuneración por mérito practicada por la red municipal de Río de Janeiro en los patrones de movilidad y abandono de los profesores. La investigación siguió elmovimiento de los profesores que ocuparon puestos en la red municipal de Río de Janeiro entre 2009 y 2011 durante los 8 años en que la política estuvo en vigor (2009-2016) . Serealizaron análisis bivariados y comparaciones con pruebas de diferencias de medias. El principal resultado fue que el número de veces que la escuela alcanzó las metasrendimiento fijadas por la política y, en consecuencia, el personal recibió bonificaciones por desempeño presentó una correlación tanto con la movilidad como con el abandono del profesorado. Así, cuanto mayor era la frecuencia con la que la escuela alcanzaba la meta, mayor era la probabilidad de retener a los profesores. Palabras-clave: movilidad de profesores; abandono de profesores; política deresponsabilidad; política de bonificación Relação entre política de responsabilização, mobilidade e abandono docente: Umestudo sobre a rede municipal do Rio de Janeiro Resumo: O objetivo deste trabalho foi verificar se existe uma associação entre a políticade responsabilização escolar praticada pela rede municipal do Rio de Janeiro nos padrões de mobilidade e abandono docente. A pesquisa acompanhou a movimentação de docentesque tomaram posse na rede municipal do Rio de Janeiro entre 2009 e 2011 durante os 8 anos em que a política esteve em vigor (2009-2016) . Foram realizadas análises bivaridas ecomparações com testes de diferenças de médias. O principal resultado foi que o númerode vezes que a escola alcançou as metas de desempenho estabelecidas pela política e, consequentemente, que a equipe ganhou bonificação apresentou correlação tanto com amobilidade, quanto com o abandono docente. Assim, quanto mais vezes a e

FAQs

What is the study’s main objective regarding merit pay policies?

To verify whether a merit pay policy in Rio de Janeiro is associated with teachers’ mobility and attrition patterns.

How was the study conducted in terms of time coverage and sample follow-up?

It followed teachers who took posts in the municipal system between 2009 and 2011, covering the policy’s eight-year period (2009–2016).

What was the main finding about schools meeting performance targets?

The number of times schools reached the policy goals—and therefore delivered performance pay—correlated with teacher mobility and attrition, increasing the probability of retaining teachers.

Oct 15, 2026

Uploaded by acoobca