Dissatisfaction is the most-cited reason for leaving, cited by 55% of profession-leavers and 66% of school-movers¶

Claim · All claims
Evidence · 1 study · associational r2 · q2
Currency · newest study 2017 · not yet checked against its sources · not reviewed by a person · overdue for a recheck since 2022: baselines and conditions change

Subclaims¶

q2 i? Dissatisfactions with testing and accountability pressures, lack of administrative support, the teaching career, and working conditions were noted by 55% of leavers and 66% of movers. → Carver-Thomas 2017

Evidence¶

Carver-Thomas 2017¶

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. https://learningpolicyinstitute.org/product/teacher-turnover doi:10.54300/454.278

q2 · i? · associational · r2

Analysis of TFS 2012–13 leaver and mover reason reports (Figures 4–5, Table 1); testing/accountability was the most frequent dissatisfaction (25% of voluntary leavers), followed by administration (21%) and the teaching career (21%).

"These kinds of dissatisfactions were noted by 55% of those who left the profession and 66% of those who left their school to go to another school."

Discussion¶

Related Claims¶

• Teachers who find their administrators unsupportive are more than twice as likely to leave as those who feel well-supported — related
• Working conditions, especially accountability pressures and administrative support, shape teachers' decisions to leave or stay — related
• Overall U.S. teacher turnover is about 16% annually, with about 8% leaving the profession and about 8% moving schools — related
• Teachers of color leave schools or the profession at higher annual rates than White teachers, driven largely by school moving — related
• Between 2020–21 and 2021–22, 15.1% of U.S. public school teachers moved schools or left the profession, and turnover is now about 20% higher than in 1992 — related
• Nearly three quarters (74%) of teacher turnover between 2020–21 and 2021–22 was voluntary and preretirement — related
• Louisiana teachers of color report working conditions, not salary, as primary reasons for leaving high-need schools — a narrower finding that bears on this claim
• Minority teachers who depart rarely cite retirement; dissatisfaction, pursuit of better jobs, and personal reasons dominate their reported turnover reasons — a narrower finding that bears on this claim
• Teachers of color report more workplace stress and dissatisfaction than White teachers — related
• Teachers of color are more likely than White teachers to intend to leave teaching and to actually leave the profession — related
• Piecemeal educator policymaking overburdens educators and can drive talented educators out of the profession — a broader claim this one bears on