Choice-based
Empower teachers to follow their passions and insight on what would help their students most
Heather Molloy
Education Specialist
Oxnard Union High School District
As school district leadership, we know that you are doing everything in your power to positively affect student outcomes, make progress on school district initiatives, and create a school culture that helps you find and keep great talent.
The first step to a teacher retention strategy that works is setting up a school district-wide system where teachers can have a voice in their professional growth journey. Teachers are fueled by a passion to help students. And teachers are your window into what your students need, to have the best possible student outcomes.
So how do you reduce teacher turnover?
Give great educators opportunities to have impact, and show teachers they matter by giving them choice and voice in their professional learning. Teacher retention will follow.
Finding and keeping great teachers is hard. That’s why we set out to find out what gives K-12 teachers in the U.S. job satisfaction and how professional learning factors in. Use this report to inform your planning for the current school year and beyond!
Core to satisfaction were:
High teacher turnover is not a new issue for school district leaders, but it’s one that’s been exacerbated by the pandemic. If you’re trying to increase your teachers’ job satisfaction, here’s where to start…
Nearly every teacher in the profession – whether a beginning teacher or an experienced teacher – wants to feel like she or he makes a difference in students’ lives.
Start showing your teachers they matter by giving them effective professional growth opportunities. We explain the impact effective professional development can have on teacher effectiveness and teacher retention in our latest blog.
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"Seeing these numbers makes me giggle… sometimes when you don’t mandate things, the results are even better than when you do. That’s the beautiful instruction that’s happening."
"If they need any tech training or PD training... they can get it at their level at their time, at their place, on-demand."
–Rae Dunn, Coordinator of Secondary Education, Val Verde SD
“The biggest impact that we have seen... the level of skill our teachers have and the amount of work they’ve put forth... through training with Amy and Sheryl and Alludo has really put us ahead of many districts in the state of Ohio.”
–Andrea Cook, Assistant Superintendent of Instruction, Springboro Schools
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–Josh Lewis, Director of Information Education Technology, Jurupa Unified USD
Your educators want the freedom to choose learning that is relevant to them, learning they are passionate about, and teaching that will help them create a learner-centered classroom. Leadership is likely in tune with school district initiatives but might be once removed from what teachers actually need for their teaching in the classroom.
Once you’ve given teachers the ability to follow their professional passion and address what their students need, they’ll need a framework in which to set goals they can work towards. Your educational services leaders can support them along the way.
Traditional professional development methods of one size fits all are not only costly and wasteful for districts, but they don’t work at all for the learners. Effective teachers need learning that is not only relevant, but also has a depth of material that matches their skill level.
Teachers want learning that fuels their classroom instruction time with students. Professional development time is limited. Your teacher and student learners need an efficient way to cover all professional learning bases – those they’ve selected and those required by the district.
Let learners know you care about all of the effort they are putting in by providing encouragement and fast feedback with ease. This keeps learners feeling supported and motivates them to go deeper in their understanding.
Provide your teachers and staff with a safe place to practice, so they can test out and identify strategies that will foster long-term success in the classroom. Having the opportunity to innovate is another key to teacher retention.
"Educators are unique; they’re not here for the paycheck. They have a huge heart for the difference they are trying to make in students’ lives."
"I'm a mom. I live and breathe being involved in multiple communities. When a kid feels confident and happy, she or he becomes a very different contributor in those communities – and to our world. It’s not just about student achievement or student performance. A student doesn’t have to have the best grades to have an impact. If you can give students knowledge and skills, you can help them find their purpose. When students have purpose, you can see the impact of good they make."
"This starts with the teachers. If you give teachers a choice and a voice, and the opportunity to personalize an effective professional development pathway that speaks to their individual needs, you can light them up. And when they are lit up, they are able to teach in a very different way, and your kid comes home all lit up and excited."