This is an interesting approach (somewhat like Zappos $1000 proposition with new employees). Front load teacher salaries and reduce the steps in the pay scale to attract more (and better?) candidates:
Boosting new teachers’ salaries, officials in Denver, the District of Columbia, and New York City contend, would increase the applicant pool and help school systems recruit higher-caliber talent. Coupled with other changes designed to improve teacher effectiveness, the practice also could help reduce costly attrition rates among rookies, they say.
“You want to allocate your money in a way that attracts new talent and rewards excellence,” said New York City Schools Chancellor Joel I. Klein, who has extolled the concept in recent public appearances. “The two things most school systems pay for are longevity and seat time, neither of which has had any proven value.”
(source: http://www.edweek.org/ew/articles/2009/01/28/19salary_ep.h28.html?tmp=96756517 unfortunately you might have to register to read it…)
It’s no wonder the NEA is in support of part of the plan (more pay for teachers earlier), but I’m curious if this will work out. I like the DC district plan of bonuses for highly successful teachers (which is more reactive to teacher success), seems like a no-brainer. This however, could seriously backfire while costing more. What happens if attrition rates rise because more people thought they wanted to be teachers for the $?