Research Report: Teacher Turnover: Why It Matters and What ...

Teacher Turnover: Why It Matters and What We Can Do About It

Desiree Carver-Thomas and Linda Darling-Hammond

AUGUST 2017

Teacher Turnover: Why It Matters and What We Can Do About It

Desiree Carver-Thomas and Linda Darling-Hammond

Acknowledgments

The authors would like to thank Larry Rosenthal, Senior Lecturer of Public Policy at University of California, Berkeley, for his insights and advice. We also thank the following LPI colleagues for their valuable feedback: Leib Sutcher, Roneeta Guha, Tara Kini, and the entire Educator Quality team. We thank Bulletproof Services and Penelope Malish for their editing and design contributions to this project, and Lisa Gonzales for overseeing the editorial process. Research in this area of work is funded in part by the S. D. Bechtel, Jr. Foundation. Core operating support for the Learning Policy Institute is provided by the Ford Foundation, the William and Flora Hewlett Foundation, and the Sandler Foundation.

External Reviewers

This report benefited from the insights and expertise of two external reviewers: Li Feng, Brandon Dee Roberts Excellence Assistant Professor at Texas State University; and Jesse Rothstein, Professor of Public Policy and Economics and Director of the Institute for Research on Labor and Employment at University of California, Berkeley. We thank them for the care and attention they gave the report. Any remaining shortcomings are our own.

Suggested citation: Carver-Thomas, D. & Darling-Hammond, L. (2017). Teacher turnover: Why it matters and what we can do about it. Palo Alto, CA: Learning Policy Institute. The report can be found online at . This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution--NonCommercial 4.0 International License. To view a copy of this license, visit .

LEARNING POLICY INSTITUTE | TEACHER TURNOVER: WHY IT MATTERS AND WHAT WE CAN DO ABOUT IT

Table of Contents

Executive Summary.................................................................................................................................. v Introduction................................................................................................................................................1 Trends in Teacher Turnover......................................................................................................................3

National Trends...............................................................................................................................3 Regional and State-by-State Trends................................................................................................9 Subject-Area Turnover.................................................................................................................. 11 Turnover in Schools Serving Historically Underserved Students................................................. 14 Turnover of Teachers of Color...................................................................................................... 20 Predictors of Turnover............................................................................................................................ 24 School Characteristics................................................................................................................. 24 Teacher Characteristics............................................................................................................... 25 Main Teaching Subject Area........................................................................................................ 27 Teaching Conditions..................................................................................................................... 29 Summary of Findings............................................................................................................................. 30 Policy Considerations............................................................................................................................. 32 Compensation.............................................................................................................................. 32 Teacher Preparation and Support................................................................................................ 33 School Leadership....................................................................................................................... 34 Conclusion............................................................................................................................................... 34 Technical Appendix................................................................................................................................ 35 Data............................................................................................................................................. 35 Methodology................................................................................................................................ 35 Endnotes.................................................................................................................................................. 43 About the Authors.................................................................................................................................. 48

List of Figures and Tables

Figure 1: Rate of Leaving Teaching Has Increased..........................................................................3 Figure 2: Sources of Teacher Turnover, 2011?12 to 2012?13.....................................................4 Figure 3: Occupational Status of Leavers........................................................................................5 Figure 4: Factors Teachers Report as Being Very Important for Leaving Teaching.........................6 Figure 5: Factors Teachers Report as Being Very Important Reasons for Moving..........................6 Figure 6: Turnover Rates Vary by Region and District Type.......................................................... 10 Figure 7: Teacher Turnover Varies Widely by State....................................................................... 11 Figure 8: Turnover Rates Vary by Primary Teaching Assignment.................................................. 12

LEARNING POLICY INSTITUTE | TEACHER TURNOVER: WHY IT MATTERS AND WHAT WE CAN DO ABOUT IT

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