What's the Cost of Teacher Turnover?

High teacher turnover—or churn—undermines student achievement and consumes valuable staff time and resources. It also contributes to teacher shortages throughout the country, as roughly 6 of 10 new teachers hired each year are replacing colleagues who left the classroom before retirement. Research shows that urban districts can, on average, spend more than $20,000 on each new hire, including school and district expenses related to separation, recruitment, hiring, and training. These investments don’t pay their full dividend when teachers leave within 1 or 2 years after being hired. Turnover rates vary by school and district, with those in rural and urban settings or that serve high percentages of student in poverty experiencing the highest rates. Use this tool to estimate the cost of teacher turnover in your school or district and to inform a local conversation about how to attract, support, and retain a high-quality teacher workforce. High-leverage strategies are highlighted below.


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teacher residencies

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Preparing and Retaining Effective Special Education Teachers: Short-Term Strategies for Long-Term Solutions
Resource type:
Brief
district solutions federal solutions principals retention school leadership special education state solutions teacher preparation
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Preparing and Retaining Effective Special Education Teachers: Short-Term Strategies for Long-Term Solutions
Resource type:
Brief
district solutions federal solutions principals retention school leadership special education state solutions teacher preparation
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Resource description

Many states struggle with shortages of special education teachers (SET). To address the shortage problem in the long term, policymakers, preparation providers, and state and district administrators must ensure that any short-term strategies are combined with a comprehensive plan that includes long-term systemic strategies to strengthen the supply, preparation, and retention of special education teachers.

Related policy solutions
Service Scholarships & Student Loan Forgiveness , Effective Training & Support for New Teachers , Teaching Conditions & Supportive Leadership , Competitive Compensation
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The Teacher Residency: An Innovative Model for Preparing Teachers
Resource type:
Brief, Report
special education teacher residencies
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The Teacher Residency: An Innovative Model for Preparing Teachers
Resource type:
Brief, Report
special education teacher residencies
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Resource description

Newly emerging teacher residency programs seek to address teacher shortages by offering an innovative approach to recruiting and retaining high-quality teachers for hard-to-staff schools. This report summarizes the features of these programs and research about their practices and outcomes.

Related policy solutions
Effective Training & Support for New Teachers
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The Teacher Residency: An Innovative Model for Preparing Teachers
Sep 15, 2016
Resource type:
Report, Research
Author:
Roneeta Guha, Maria E. Hyler, Linda Darling-Hammond
district solutions federal solutions state solutions teacher residencies
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The Teacher Residency: An Innovative Model for Preparing Teachers
Sep 15, 2016
Resource type:
Report, Research
Author:
Roneeta Guha, Maria E. Hyler, Linda Darling-Hammond
district solutions federal solutions state solutions teacher residencies
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Resource description

This report details the features of teacher residency programs—an innovative approach to recruiting and retaining high-quality teachers for hard-to-staff schools.

Related policy solutions
Effective Training & Support for New Teachers
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Teacher Residencies: Building a High-Quality, Sustainable Workforce
Jan 19, 2016
Resource type:
Brief, Research
Author:
Roneeta Guha, Tara Kini
district solutions federal solutions state solutions teacher residencies
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Teacher Residencies: Building a High-Quality, Sustainable Workforce
Jan 19, 2016
Resource type:
Brief, Research
Author:
Roneeta Guha, Tara Kini
district solutions federal solutions state solutions teacher residencies
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Resource description

This brief summarizes the features of teacher residency programs—an innovative approach to recruiting and retaining high-quality teachers for hard-to-staff schools.

Related policy solutions
Effective Training & Support for New Teachers
Print
Teacher Residencies in California
Jan 19, 2016
Resource type:
Brief, Research
California state solutions teacher residencies
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Teacher Residencies in California
Jan 19, 2016
Resource type:
Brief, Research
California state solutions teacher residencies
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Resource description

This brief describes how teacher residency programs in California help meet critical hiring needs in both urban and rural areas.

Related policy solutions
Effective Training & Support for New Teachers
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