How Resilience Contributes to Quality Retention: Narratives of Teachers Who Stay

• In Event: AERA Roundtable Session Sunday 7:45 am - Gold 2
  In Roundtable Session: Holding On: Teacher Retention Amid Stress and Strain

Abstract

This study investigates why teachers across career stages choose to stay in the profession amid sustained policy reform in England. Drawing on a relational and resilience-informed perspective, it employed a two-phase sequential mixed methods design. Survey data (n=160) identified key motivators; follow-up interviews (n=19) revealed how “staying” involves navigating critical moments through identity work, value negotiation, and adaptive strategies. Findings show three patterns of staying, endurance without reinvention, navigating through challenges, and strategic re-alignment, shaped by personal, organizational, and emotional factors. The study contributes a nuanced, context-sensitive understanding of teacher retention, with implications for policy, workforce sustainability, and teacher education

Author

• Christopher W. Day, University of Nottingham