How can administrators accurately predict which teacher candidates will succeed? Well, there’s software for that. And two of the largest companies in the industry have joined forces.
PeopleAdmin announced that it acquired TeacherMatch. They will combine to offer “the industry’s most comprehensive talent management platform and analytical solutions” that administrators could use to make hiring decisions, according to a joint statement.
The combined company will operate under the PeopleAdmin name.
TeacherMatch brings to the partnership its proprietary screening tool, Educators Professional Inventory, which the company says can accurately predict which teacher candidates “are most likely to deliver academic growth for their students.”
Austin, Texas-based PeopleAdmin develops human resources software exclusively for education and government clients. The company says it serves school districts that together hire more than a third of the teachers in the nation.
TeacherMatch brings more than 800 of its own customers, which include four of the five largest school districts, to the table.
In a statement, PeopleAdmin CEO Kermit S. Randa said, “Districts are recognizing the need to adopt the most proven, innovative solutions available as hiring becomes more competitive and talent management strategically more important.”
Randa told the Washington Post:
“At the end of the day you want to get the best people, you want to get them up to speed as fast as possible, you want to engage them and have them perform at their best.”
The Post called it “a controversial concept” that software can predict which teachers will succeed in the classroom.
Despite the doubts, many school districts are getting onboard. The company’s statement pointed to one of its satisfied customers: Jason D. Hammond, the human resources director at Phoenix Elementary School District #1.
“As a customer of both (PeopleAdmin and TeacherMatch), I see this partnership bringing us new technologies and services that will help us be more efficient, stay compliant, hire the best teachers and focus more on our mission of giving students the best chance to succeed.”
Hammond stated to the Post that his school district ranks teacher applicants based on their TeacherMatch survey score:
“We’re moving away from that gut feeling, or just needing something to fill a position, and moving more into that scientific realm.”
According to the newspaper, Hammond’s school district began using TeacherMatch in 2013, in the hope of stemming its tide of teacher turnovers. He said using the software helped the district to identify and retain effective teachers.
SOURCE: PeopleAdmin.com, Washington Post | PHOTO CREDIT: Getty
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