What Keeps Good Teachers in the Classroom? Understanding and Reducing Teacher Turnover

Who leaves teaching, why they leave, and the costs associated with their departures from the profession and from their schools are explored in a new brief from the Alliance for Excellent Education.

What Keeps Good Teachers in the Classroom? Understanding and Reducing Teacher Turnover, made possible with the generous support of MetLife Foundation, contends that attracting and keeping high-quality teachers significantly elevates student achievement, especially in poorer, low-performing schools. However, an estimated 157,000 teachers leave the profession every year. An additional 232,000 change schools. The costs associated with both are high, both financially and in terms of teacher quality, as experienced teachers are replaced with novices.
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The brief examines why teachers leave, as well as which teachers are leaving. For example, those who are graduates of a highly selective college or those with high college grade point averages are most likely to leave teaching before retirement. Strong education credentials, such as certification, more often lead to long-term retention. But are the ones staying necessarily the “best” teachers? The brief also considers ways to help teachers succeed, which leads to a higher likelihood they will remain in the profession.