In recent years, reducing teacher turnover has become one of the greatest challenges for school and district leaders, particularly those districts serving students from low-income households and students of color. A recent Gallup survey found that finding and keeping qualified teachers is currently the highest-priority issue for school superintendents. That’s no surprise, seeing as teacher turnover consumes sizable chunks of school budgets in addition to having a significant negative effect on student achievement.
Fortunately for principals and superintendents working to identify ways to retain great teachers, research shows that many of the factors that lead teachers to continue teaching in a given school are under the control of school leaders.
In our white paper, we summarize research showing that when teachers
- receive instructional support from leaders
- engage in collaborative work with their colleagues, and
- are provided with job-embedded professional development,
they are more likely to remain teaching in their school.
At BetterLesson, we have found that one of the most effective ways to strengthen these three factors in a teachers’ professional development is by providing high-quality instructional coaching. When teachers receive personalized instructional coaching, they gain the support, resources, opportunity for collaboration, and training that they need to be successful and satisfied in their role.
Ultimately, instructional coaching decreases teacher turnover, reduces costs associated with teacher recruitment and hiring, and improves student achievement outcomes. 94% of teachers report BetterLesson instructional coaching made them more likely to stay in the teaching profession.
