Teacher Turnover: Examining Exit Attrition, Teaching Area Transfer, and School Migration
Open accessAbstract
The purposes of this research were to quantify trends in three components of teacher turnover and to investigate claims of excessive teacher turnover as the predominant source of teacher shortages. Attrition and teaching area transfer rates were comparable in special and general education and increased substantially from 1991–1992 to 2000–2001. School migration was stable over years, but higher in special than general education. Although annual turnover was high and increased to 1 in 4 teachers (25.6%) by 2000–2001, teacher attrition was lower than in other occupations. Evidence suggests that retention is unlikely to increase without dramatic improvements in the organization, management, and funding of public schools. Until then, an increased supply of qualified teachers is needed to reduce teacher shortages.
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Each year, another 20% of special educators move to general education or to a different special education role.
“An additional 20% of special educators each year transfer to general education or to another position in special education (Boe, Cook, & Sunderland, 2008).”
From Too Stressed to Teach? Teaching Quality, Student Engagement, and IEP Outcomes (2017) · cites this paper as Boe, Cook, & Sunderland, 2008
The “SPECIAL EDUCATION: TEACHER OUT-SWITCHING AND IN-SWITCHING” section reports a figure close to 20%, but its 19% includes teachers who left teaching employment as well as those who switched teaching areas. It does not say that an additional 20% transferred to general education or another position in special education. Page numbers are unavailable in our copy. (LLM, conf=0.88)
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Cites
Teacher Turnover and Teacher Shortages: An Organizational Analysis
Ingersoll, R. M. (2001) · American Educational Research Journal · doi:10.3102/00028312038003499 · Cited by 2,989 · cited 4× · see citing works
“At the policy level, NCTAF (2003) recommended downsizing schools, offering federal financial incentives for attracting teachers into high-shortage areas, and higher teacher compensation—all of which are designed to reduce teacher turnover.”
BackgroundInfluential
Flagged first, then by citations
Research works printed but not linked: 15
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Cited by
Sorted by citations
Tsouloupas, C. N., Carson, R. L., Matthews, R., Grawitch, M. J., & Barber, L. K. (2010) · Educational Psychology · doi:10.1080/01443410903494460 · Cited by 456 · see citing works
Too Stressed to Teach? Teaching Quality, Student Engagement, and IEP Outcomes
Wong, V. W., Ruble, L. A., Yu, Y., & McGrew, J. H. (2017) · Exceptional Children · doi:10.1177/0014402917690729 · Cited by 144 · see citing works
Meta-analysis of mindfulness training on teacher well-being.
Zarate, K., Maggin, D. M., & Passmore, A. (2019) · Psychology in the Schools · doi:10.1002/pits.22308 · Cited by 119 · see citing works
Demmin, D. L., Silverstein, S. M., & Shors, T. J. (2022) · Frontiers in Human Neuroscience · doi:10.3389/fnhum.2022.847301 · Cited by 24 · see citing works
“, 2021), and high rates of attrition (Boe et al., 2008; Conley and You, 2009).”
Background
- Authors
- Boe, E. E., Cook, L. H., & Sunderland, R. J.
- Affiliations
- University of Pennsylvania (US)
- California State University, Dominguez Hills (US)
- Corresponding author
- Boe, Erling E.
- Venue
- Exceptional Children
- Publisher
- SAGE Publications
- Published
- 2008-10
- Volume
- 75
- Issue
- 1
- Pages
- 7-31
- ISSN
- 0014-4029 (ISSN-L)
- 2163-5560
- OpenAlex
- W2125837342
- Cited by
- 303
- References
- 1
- Citations by year
- 2026: 6 · 2025: 8 · 2024: 13 · 2023: 18 · 2022: 16 · 2021: 14 · 2020: 13 · 2019: 26 · 2018: 24 · 2017: 13 · 2016: 16 · 2015: 17 · 2014: 23 · 2013: 29 · 2012: 22
- FWCI
- 65.15
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- green
- repository.upenn.edu
- Locations
- Exceptional Children (publishedVersion)
- Scholarly Commons (University of Pennsylvania) (submittedVersion)
- ScholarlyCommons (University of Pennsylvania) (submittedVersion)
- Topics
- Social Sciences › Education › Teacher Professional Development and Motivation
- Social Sciences › Education › School Choice and Performance
- Social Sciences › Education › Education in Rural Contexts
- Keywords
- teacher turnover, teacher attrition, school migration, teacher shortage, special education teachers, teacher retention, teacher supply, public school administration
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