Retaining Effective Teachers

Ensuring every student is taught by an effective teacher is the leading moral and professional obligation of school and district leaders. However, high rates of teacher turnover threaten this core mission. Annually, about 450,000 teachers leave their schools, districts or the teaching profession altogether (Johnson, Berg & Donaldson, 2005). Research shows that teacher turnover is costly and can be harmful to schools (Schwartz, Hernandez and Ngo, 2010; Odden, 2011). It further suggests that turnover is most problematic when it involves the loss of an effective teacher (Odden, 2011). Yet some schools appear to be quite successful at retaining high performers. To this end, I conducted a multiple-case study of four schools with low teacher turnover and high academic growth to understand and describe what role, if any, principal leadership plays in retaining effective teachers in these schools. Five to eight teachers with proven effectiveness and commitment, along with their principals, were interviewed at each site. Findings from this research reveal that overall the teachers in this study believe that principal leadership plays a major role in retaining effective teachers. In general, principals in this study indicated that their leadership plays a role in retaining effective teachers, but expressed mixed opinions regarding the degree of this influence. The most salient retention factors that emerged from the teacher interviews were collaboration and colleague relationships, autonomy and professional trust, and personal and professional caring and support. Teachers indicated that principal leadership played a relatively strong to moderate role in these factors. Buffering from external pressures, school environment and resources emerged as moderate retention factors across teacher interviews. Teachers indicated that principal leadership played a relatively strong to weak role in facilitating these factors.

Furthermore, these findings revealed some alignment among principals and teachers in their perceptions regarding the role of principal leadership in retaining effective teachers. The findings from this research led to a preliminary conceptual framework. My hope is that this will provide the foundation for future research and lead to the development of a more definitive framework that can be useful to principals in their efforts to retain effective teachers.