Teacher Attrition: What's Really Going On?

The goal of education has evolved in response to societal demands. (Little, 2013). The objective of future-focused education is to produce adults who can compete in a global economy. Additionally, educators hope to create emotionally stable adults who are able to form lasting relationships (De Stercke et al., 2015). A result is student achievement and the impact that quality teaching has on students.

However, what happens when a shift occurs in the quality of teachers in the classroom? What happens when educators no longer desire to teach? According to Garcia and Weiss (2019), due to the rising rates of teacher attrition, school districts are now seeking teachers with bachelor's degrees in any major rather than only hiring highly prepared educators.

Educators are hired and permitted to teach and to seek alternative forms of certification (Garcia & Weiss, 2019). The problem is teacher attrition rates are increasing in the state of Georgia (Owens, 2015). A lack of teachers may negatively impact pupils and the educational system (Carver-Thomas & Darling-Hammond, 2019; Young, 2018).

The ability of a child to learn is directly threatened by the instability in the classroom caused by the hiring of inexperienced teachers (Garcia & Weiss, 2019). According to Ingersoll (2004), less than 30% of graduates who choose to work as teachers continue in the field after five years. (García & Weiss, 2019).

According to data gathered in 2015, 44% of Georgia's newly hired teachers leave the profession within five years (Owens, 2015). If sufficient safeguards are not put in place, teacher attrition rates will continue to have a negative impact on student outcomes and attainment (Owen, 2015).

Effects of Teacher Attrition on Students

While the nationwide attrition rate is 8%, there are significant regional, subject-area, and school-specific variations in attrition rates (Carver-Thomas & Darling- Hammond, 2019). Every year, schools all around the country want to hire instructors as a result of new teachers and mid-career teachers quitting the field. In comparison to the Northeast, the South has greater attrition rates. The South often has the highest turnover rates, with urban regions experiencing rates of 16–17% and rural areas experiencing rates of 14–15% (Carver-Thomas & Darling- Hammond 2019).

Strategies for Teacher Retention

The school districts need to have a logistic and comprehensive approach to new teachers coming out of college and teachers who enter the education profession through alternate means (Garcia & Weiss, 2019). In addition to providing a teaching and learning environment that supports educators' growth and increases their effectiveness, a complete plan should adequately prepare educators for the difficulties of the classroom (Carver-Thomas & Darling- Hammond, 2019).

Mentors must be appointed in order to support new teachers who are joining the profession and the school system. Within the school where a new teacher works, there are senior instructors who serve as mentors (Sowell, 2017). The mentor's job is to help new teachers understand the district's expectations and ease frustrations (Young, 2018; Sowell, 2017). Relationships are built within the mentor program, and mentors learn the benefits of building relationships with new teachers and being available to the teachers for questions they may have in those first few years of teaching.

Teacher Preparation and Support

De Stercke et al. (2015) recommends more effective advising of students before and immediately upon entering an education program. The process is necessary to reduce the rate at which new teachers abandon the profession. Collaboration among grade-level teams and content area teachers is a significant support strategy for retaining teachers (De Stercke et al., 2015; Sowell, 2017).

One of the benefits of collaboration is that teachers work together to prepare lesson plans to meet every student's achievement goals. A teacher's well-being and overall outlook on their daily job as a teacher will significantly affect their success in the classroom.

Educators can gain perspectives through reflective thinking and the study of emotional intelligence (De Stercke et al., 2015; Goleman & Senge, 2014).

The next steps are a New Teacher preparation program geared towards supporting New teachers and waiver teachers in local school districts.

References:

References

Akiba, M., Wang, Z., & Liang, G. (2015). Organizational Resources for Professional Development: A Statewide Longitudinal Survey of Middle School Mathematics Teachers at least 10% of their Title I funds for professional development. According to the Quality. Journal of School Leadership, 25.

Ansley, B., Houchins, D., & Varjas, K. (2019). Cultivating Positive Work Contexts That Promote Teacher Job Satisfaction and Retention in High-Need Schools.

Bhat, A. (2019). Survey Intelligence Blog - Page 1 | QuestionPro. QuestionPro. https://www.questionpro.com/blog/

Blank, R. (2013). What Research Tells Us: Common Characteristics of Professional Learning

That Lead to Student Achievement. Journal of Staff Development, 50-53.

Carver-Thomas, D., & Darling-Hammond, L. (2019). The trouble with teacher turnover: How teacher attrition affects students and schools. Education Policy Analysis Archives, 27, 36. https://doi.org/10.14507/epaa.27.3699

Clary, R. M., Elder, A., Dunne, J., Saebo, S., Beard, D., Wax, C., & Tucker, D. L. (2018). Beyond the professional development academy: Teachers' retention of discipline-specific science content knowledge throughout a 3-year mathematics and science partnership. School Science and Mathematics, 118(3–4), 75–83. https://doi.org/10.1111/ssm.12267

Creswell, J. W., Hanson, W. E., Clark Plano, V. L., & Morales, A. (2007). Qualitative Research Designs. The Counseling Psychologist, 35(2), 236–264. https://doi.org/10.1177/0011000006287390

De Stercke, J., Goyette, N., & Robertson, J. E. (2015). Happiness in the Classroom: Strategies for teacher retention and development. PROSPECTS, 45(4), 421–427. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11125-015-9372-z

García, E., & Weiss, E. (2019). U.S. schools struggle to hire and retain teachers: The second report in "The Perfect Storm in the Teacher Labor Market" series Report.

Goleman, D., & Senge, P. (2014). Leading for the Long Future. Leader to Leader, 2014(72), 34–39. https://doi.org/10.1002/ltl.20124

Ingersoll, R. M. (2004, November 19). Why Do High-Poverty Schools Have Difficulty Staffing Their Classrooms with Qualified Teachers? Center for American Progress. https://www.americanprogress.org/issues/education-k-12/news/2004/11/19/1205/why-do-high-poverty-schools-have-difficulty-staffing-their-classrooms-with-qualified-teachers/

Little, T. (2013). 21st Century Learning and Progressive Education: An

Intersection. International Journal of Progressive Education, 9(1). http://www.inased.org/v9n1/ijpev9n1.pdf

Meyer, S., Espel, E., Weston-Sementelli, J., Serdiouk, M., & Research, M. (2019). Teacher retention, mobility, and attrition in Colorado, Missouri, Nebraska, and South Dakota Key findings. https://ies.ed.gov/ncee/edlabs/regions/central/pdf/REL_2019001.pdf

Owens, S. (2015). Georgia's Teacher Dropout Crisis. https://www.gadoe.org/External-Affairs-

and-Policy/communications/Documents/Teacher%20Survey%20Results.pdf

Resnik, D. (2019). What is Ethics in Research & Why is it Important? National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences. https://www.niehs.nih.gov/research/resources/bioethics/whatis/index.cfm

Ronfeldt, M., Loeb, S., & Wyckoff, J. (2013). How Teacher Turnover Harms Student Achievement. American Educational Research Journal, 50(1), 4–36. https://doi.org/10.3102/0002831212463813

Sowell, M. (2017). Effective Practices for Mentoring Beginning Middle School Teachers:

Mentor's Perspectives. The Clearing House: A Journal of Educational Strategies, Issues

, and Ideas, 90(4), 129–134. https://doi.org/10.1080/00098655.2017.1321905

Sutcher, L., Darling-Hammond, L., & Carver-Thomas, D. (2016). A Coming Crisis in Teaching? Acknowledgments. https://learningpolicyinstitute.org/sites/default/files/product-files/A_Coming_Crisis_in_Teaching_REPORT.pdf

Tio, R. (2018). 2017 Georgia K-12 Teacher and Leader Workforce Report. https://gosa.georgia.gov/sites/gosa.georgia.gov/files/K-12%20Teacher%20and%20Leader%20Workforce%20Report%2020171113.pdf

Young, S. (2018). Teacher Retention and Student Achievement: How to Hire and Retain Effective Teachers.