What Causes Teacher Turnover in Indiana

Abstract

Teacher turnover is a major reason for teacher shortages. Schools struggle with finding qualified teachers and with the financial burden this recruiting process brings. Student achievement suffers from this frequent changing/ adapting period as well. This study used school district data from the Indiana Department of Education to examine the specific factors that cause high teacher turnover in this state. A total of 279 school districts were included in our study, and a regression analysis was used to measure the relationships of teacher turnover to a series of independent variables, including teachers’ age, relative salary, students’ SAT scores, enrollment size, and a rural dummy variable. We focused on the 105 largest school districts with enrollment greater than 2,500 students. The total enrollment of these districts includes 75% of overall Indiana enrollment. Teachers’ age exhibited a U-shaped effect on turnover, with both younger and elder teachers exhibiting more turnover than middle-aged teachers. Higher teacher salary relative to average local pay tended to reduce turnover. The strongest factor that influenced turnover was the share of students eligible for the federal free lunch program. This variable measures socioeconomic conditions in school districts. A higher free lunch percentage increased turnover at a very significant level. Lastly, teachers in rural areas were less likely to leave than those in urban areas. Knowing the specific causation of teacher turnover in Indiana could help policymakers improve the education environment.