We explore the dynamics of competitive search in the K–12 public education sector. Using detailed panel data on teacher hiring from Boston Public Schools, we document how teacher labor supply varies substantially across vacancies even within a single district depending on position type, school characteristics, and the timing of job postings. We find that early-posted positions are more likely to be filled and end up securing new hires that are better qualified, more effective, and more likely to remain at a school. In contrast, the number of applicants to a position is largely unassociated with hire quality, suggesting that schools may struggle to identify and select the best candidates even when there is a large pool of qualified applicants. These patterns persist even when we restrict comparisons to only positions within an individual school using school fixed effects. Our findings point to substantial unrealized potential for improving teacher hiring.

中文翻译：

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教师招聘中的本地供应、时间动态和未实现的潜力

我们探讨了 K-12 公共教育领域竞争性搜索的动态。使用波士顿公立学校教师招聘的详细面板数据，我们记录了教师劳动力供应在不同职位空缺（甚至在单个学区内）之间的巨大差异，具体取决于职位类型、学校特征和职位发布时间。我们发现，早期发布的职位更有可能被填补，并最终获得更合格、更高效、更有可能留在学校的新员工。相比之下，某个职位的申请者数量在很大程度上与招聘质量无关，这表明即使有大量合格的申请者，学校也可能难以识别和选择最佳的候选人。即使我们使用学校固定效应将比较仅限于个别学校内的职位，这些模式仍然存在。我们的研究结果表明，在改善教师招聘方面存在巨大的未实现潜力。