Robert Shockley

The High Cost of Leaving: An Analysis of the Cost of Teacher Turnover

The cost of teacher turnover to schools and school districts has only recently been studied. This research reveals that when high-quality teachers leave the classroom, the effect on both student performance and school and district fiscal operations is significant and deleterious. The implications for study in this area include the planning of teacher induction programs that can improve teacher retention and student achievement, and educational finance reforms that have the potential to increase the efficiency of school district finances and operations. In this article, the two fiscal measurement instruments used to determine the cost of teacher attrition are compared and critiqued—the School Turnover Analysis and the Teacher Turnover Cost Calculator. The article concludes with recommendations for future research and policy reform, and encourages the increased use of teacher attrition cost measurement tools in schools and school districts.

Variables associated with teacher retention: A multi‐year study

Abstract This research study is a multi‐year project covering four South Florida School Districts that examines variables associated with the demographics of 2,129 teachers who were hired during the 2000–2001 academic year. The purpose was to assess the relationship between teacher retention and various demographic variables. A model predicting teacher retention based upon these variables is also intended. Findings revealed that 96% of the sample were retained after 1 year of employment, 79% were retained after 2 years and 72% after 3 years. The variables of gender, χ2(1) = 13.03,p < .007, out‐of‐state hires, χ2(1) = 15.17,p < .007, preparation, χ2(2) = 9.93, p < .007, and placement, χ2(1) = 7.81, p < .007, were significantly associated with retention after the 3rd year of the study.

Out on a Limb The Efficacy of Teacher Induction in Secondary Schools

This article reports the results of a qualitative meta-analysis study of the research and literature on the efficacy of teacher induction on the retention of high-quality secondary school teachers and challenges current assumptions about the efficacy of induction despite the proliferation of induction programs nationwide. A theoretical model for the design of future teacher induction programs that emerged from the research is presented. Recommendations for secondary school leadership, policy, and future research are included.

Teacher Advisory Programs—Strategies for Successful Implementation

An extended guidance program is critically important to the success of a middle level program, according to these writers, who outline the steps needed to implement such a program.

Reform Efforts in Florida's Middle Level Schools: Shifting from Mandate to Accountability Through Deregulation

AbstractOver the past two decades, Florida has made various statewide attempts to implement the middle school concept. In the early 1970s, some school districts began reorganizing its schools. The PRIME (Progress in Middle Childhood Education) was passed in 1984 and funded in 1985. This legislation mandated some programs and practices normally associated with the middle school concept and encouraged others through special funds. In 1991, PRIME legislation was placed in abeyance and Accountability/Blueprint 2000 legislation now stipulates site-based management and accountability. This evolutionary cycle of middle school programs and policies is the basis of this research project.Data documenting the impact of PRIME legislation during the years 1984–1989 served as a beginning point to this study. The four research questions that guided this study focused on the overall impact of PRIME legislation and categoricalfunding on middle level schools in Florida, the conditions of implementation that lead to institu...