Beyond the numbers: A qualitative look at teacher retention and turnover

• In Event: AERA Graduate Student Research-in-Progress Roundtable Session 1
  In Roundtable Session: Research on Teacher and School Leader Preparation: Alternative Certification, Intercultural Competencies, Retention, and Emergency Management (Table 13)

Abstract

The majority of analysis on teacher retention and turnover relies on quantitative data. Drawing on interviews with practicing teachers who graduated from a Teacher Residency program connected to a large private university in the Northeast, this study analyzes teacher turnover and retention through a qualitative lens. By looking deeply into the reasons behind teachers' decisions to stay, move, or leave- in their own words- especially those in urban, under-resourced schools, we can begin to understand how to positively impact teacher retention through the organization of teacher education programs, school administrations, and local and state policies.

Author

• Sabrina Leigh Caldwell, University of South Alabama