| David Perda
University of Pennsylvania
Predictors of teacher turnover and retention: What matters and when?
FINAL REPORT
In this dissertation, I examine turnover longitudinally during the early years of teachers' careers. Using a nationally representative sample of college graduates from the class of 1992-93, I first investigate the entrance of college graduates into teaching and explore various factors that influence graduates' decisions to enter the occupation. Next, I examine the extent to which various subgroups of teachers change teaching jobs or leave teaching altogether by conducting a series of descriptive and explanatory analyses. Finally, in order to better understand the degree to which early career attrition is or is not a problem in the field of education, I conduct a comparative analysis of teacher leavings relative to attrition in other occupations.
Findings suggest that an array of factors influence college graduates' decisions to both enter the teaching force and remain in their teaching jobs. Among these factors are teacher demographics, personal values about work, academic ability as well as factors related to teachers' assignments and schools. Comparisons of teacher leaving rates to those of other occupations during the early career stages suggests that teaching can likely not be characterized as either a low or high turnover occupation. If efforts to retain early career teachers in the occupation are to be successful, it is important to understand the conditions under which teacher turnover is more or less likely to occur. If effective teachers are choosing to leave teaching prematurely, policies and work environments should be designed to help schools retain these individuals.
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