Recruitment & Retention

Oft-Cited Statistic Likely Inaccurate

By Bess Keller — June 12, 2007 2 min read
  • Save to favorites
  • Print

“About half of all new teachers leave the profession after just five years on the job.”

-The Plain Dealer, Dec. 3, 2006

It’s a neat and memorable statistic that’s been repeatedly cited by news reporters, advocacy groups, union officials, and state education departments, among others.

Trouble is, it is arguable and often used misleadingly.

Richard M. Ingersoll, the University of Pennsylvania professor whose calculation was first rounded up to the “half” figure in a 2003 report, sticks to upwards of 40 percent. Other scholars, such as Linda Darling-Hammond, an education professor at Stanford University, say the most defensible estimate is about a third. Some of the difference between the figures is accounted for by teachers who leave and return to the profession.

See Also

Return to the main story,

Gone After Five Years? Think Again

New studies of state rather than national retention suggest even a third might be high. Just 22 percent of California teachers left for good in their first four (rather than five) years, and in Illinois the figure was 27 percent in five years.

Second, the figure is rarely presented in context, often because it is being used to incite alarm. Teacher turnover is roughly in line with that in other professions with similar educational requirements for entry, such as nursing and accounting. And that is so even with the pressure on school districts to get rid of teachers in their first two or three years before tenure protections make it more difficult.

Most worrisome about the 50 percent figure, though, may be the way it obscures the damage done to some schools—typically those serving poor and minority children—from teachers’ switching schools. Evidence suggests that teachers are more likely to leave high-poverty, high-minority, and low-performing schools than schools without those characteristics, although working conditions, not the characteristics themselves, may be mostly to blame. (A significant exception found by researcher Eric A. Hanushek and others he worked with is that black and Hispanic teachers are not more likely to leave schools with higher proportions of students in those same groups. Minority teachers, however, are in short supply.) According to Mr. Ingersoll, in the 2000-01 school year, low-poverty schools turned over between 11 percent and 16 percent of their teachers annually, while high-poverty urban schools had to replace between 19 percent and 26 percent.

Vacancies in high-poverty schools tend to be filled by brand-new teachers—who because of their inexperience are less effective than the teachers who left. Plus, the churn disrupts the schools’ chance to build strong teaching teams. For those reasons, teaching in the most challenged schools, where the best educators are most needed, is often weakest.

“Broad-brush, statewide strategies to reduce attrition are not the answer” to raising teacher quality, summed up the authors of the Illinois study, echoing a growing number of experts. “We need targeted, school-by-school approaches that involve teachers, parents, and principals to create more positive school environments that are more conducive to teaching and learning.”

Related Tags:

A version of this article appeared in the June 13, 2007 edition of Education Week as Oft-Cited Statistic Likely Inaccurate

Events

This content is provided by our sponsor. It is not written by and does not necessarily reflect the views of Education Week's editorial staff.
Sponsor
Professional Development Webinar
Inside PLCs: Proven Strategies from K-12 Leaders
Join an expert panel to explore strategies for building collaborative PLCs, overcoming common challenges, and using data effectively.
Content provided by Otus
This content is provided by our sponsor. It is not written by and does not necessarily reflect the views of Education Week's editorial staff.
Sponsor
Science Webinar
Making Science Stick: The Engaging Power of Hands-On Learning
How can you make science class the highlight of your students’ day while
achieving learning outcomes? Find out in this session.
Content provided by LEGO Education
Teaching Profession Key Insights to Elevate and Inspire Today’s Teachers
Join this free half day virtual event to energize your teaching and cultivate a positive learning experience for students.

EdWeek Top School Jobs

Teacher Jobs
Search over ten thousand teaching jobs nationwide — elementary, middle, high school and more.
View Jobs
Principal Jobs
Find hundreds of jobs for principals, assistant principals, and other school leadership roles.
View Jobs
Administrator Jobs
Over a thousand district-level jobs: superintendents, directors, more.
View Jobs
Support Staff Jobs
Search thousands of jobs, from paraprofessionals to counselors and more.
View Jobs

Read Next

Recruitment & Retention Leader To Learn From How This HR Director Pushed for Pay Increases for Teachers
Teachers are getting paid more in the Charleston, S.C. district—thanks in part to their champion in administration.
9 min read
Bill Briggman, Chief Human Resources Officer for the Charleston County School District, speaks with Ella Larson as she teaches students at Pinehurst Elementary School, on Jan. 27, 2025, in North Charleston, S.C.. Some of the teachers at Pinehurst Elementary are a part of the district’s partnership with Clemson University to earn their Master’s degree while they teach.
Bill Briggman, chief human resources officer for the Charleston County School District, speaks with Ella Larson as she teaches students at Pinehurst Elementary School, on Jan. 27, 2025, in North Charleston, S.C..
Laura Bilson for Education Week
Recruitment & Retention Q&A A Formula for Better Teacher Recruitment and Retention
Helping teachers advocate for themselves is key to success.
3 min read
Bill Briggman, Chief Human Resources Officer for the Charleston County School District, listens to public comments during a Charleston County School Board meeting, on Jan. 27, 2025, in North Charleston, S.C. Briggman is a go-between for the superintendent and the school board.
Bill Briggman, chief human resources officer for the Charleston County School District, listens to public comments during a school board meeting, on Jan. 27, 2025, in North Charleston, S.C.
Laura Bilson for Education Week
Recruitment & Retention Why Boys Don't Want to Become Teachers and What Schools Can Do About It
Boys would benefit from more male role models in the classroom.
10 min read
High school student Me’Kenzie Square-Ward, 17, works with a small group of fourth grade students at Clayton Elementary School, where he has an internship in Smyrna, Del., on October 15, 2024.
Me’Kenzie Square-Ward, 17, works with a small group of 4th grade students at Clayton Elementary School in Smyrna, Del., on Oct. 15, 2024. Many boys, especially boys of color, don't consider teaching as a profession, but Me'Kenzie has a teaching internship through his high school's career pathways program.
Michelle Gustafson for Education Week
Recruitment & Retention CTE Grows in Popularity Among Students, But Teachers Are Tough to Find
As career and technology education becomes more popular among students, schools struggle to fill teaching vacancies.
5 min read
Students in Miranda Baxter’s Welding Program work on projects at the Journey Career Center on Wednesday, Jan. 11, 2023, in Bakersfield, Calif.
Students in Miranda Baxter’s Welding Program work on projects at the Journey Career Center on Jan. 11, 2023, in Bakersfield, Calif. Career and technical education is rising in popularity among students, but qualified teachers remain hard to find.
Morgan Lieberman for Education Week