Are Better Teachers More Likely To Move? Examining Teacher Mobility In Rural China

Abstract

This study investigates an understudied but crucial issue in education in rural China: teacher mobility. Using school- and teacher-level data from primary and middle schools in Gansu province in western China, this study examines how school and teacher characteristics relate to teacher mobility. The school-level analysis shows that school location was the most consistent factor associated with teacher turnover. The association between higher wages and lower teacher turnover diminished as district and wave fixed effects were included. The probability of teacher turnover was higher for teachers with higher professional ranks and teachers who were initially assigned to schools away from home. We also found that failing the annual teacher evaluation increased the probability of leaving the school the following year, suggesting that teacher transfer might also be used to punish lower-performing teachers.