Patterns in Critical Incidents

• In Event: Moscone Center West Roundtable Session 7
  In Roundtable Session: Exploring Multiple Pathways to Teaching in Diverse Contexts

Abstract

This mixed-methods study uses the concept of the critical incident to develop the implications of careership theory on teacher retention. We collected open-response, longitudinal survey data from 224 alternatively-certified teachers in New York City public schools, which we then coded into four categories of critical incidents. We then used a qualitative analysis to identify emergent patterns in these critical incidents and logistic regression to test the quantitative relationship between critical incidents and retention. We found in both analyses that critical incidents add significant value to teacher retention models that focus only on demographics, structure, or context, and that critical incidents relating to students and support were more influential on teachers’ retention decisions than those involving teaching as a job.

Authors

• Christopher Hurst, University of Maryland - College Park

• Andrew M. Brantlinger, University of Maryland