School principal's role in reducing the rate of teachers' turnover

النوع : Mémoire

The high rate of teacher turnover adversely affects the delivery of quality education to learners. Studies have shown that, contrary to common belief, it is more than just the pay scale that brings about teachers’ flight to other schools and sometimes to other professions altogether. Long working hours, a stressful work environment, the lack of administrative support and parents’ indifference are but some of many factors leading to the high rate of teachers’ turnover. This study tried to explore and answer the following questions: 1) What types of factors underlie a high rate of teacher turnover? 2) What role can be played by a school principal to reduce teacher turnover? The aim of this thesis was to study the factors leading to teachers’ high rate of turnover and explore the role that school principals’ play in reducing such rates. This study advanced the following hypotheses: 1a) Principal-related and external factors have more impact on teacher turnover than personal factors; 1b) The school culture and climate that are fostered by principals have a high effect on the rate of teacher turnover; 1c) Intrinsic compensations affect teacher turnover; 1d) Extrinsic compensations impact teacher turnover; 2a) Devising clear professional development plans would help principals reduce the turnover rate; and 2b) Organizing promotion from within would reduce teacher turnover. Major literature associated with human resources administration in education was studied to examine factors affecting the teaching profession and to identify the role of the school principal. The study looked at teachers' turnover from the teachers’ point of view as well, examining the human capital theory of occupational choice and the social learning theory and their effects on teacher commitment, school effectiveness, and actions by school administrators to create distinct environments that are highly satisfactory for teachers. The thesis also examined the characteristics of the teaching labor market, how it is different from other services labor markets and what factors influence teachers to stay or leave the said market. The empirical study was conducted in three schools to collect data from 147 teachers and 3 school principals. A questionnaire was distributed to all the studied population of teachers and the answers were analyzed using SPSS. The results revealed that principal-related and external factors have more impact on teacher turnover than personal factors; school culture and climate that are fostered by principals have a high effect on the rate of teacher turnover; and intrinsic and extrinsic compensations affect teacher turnover. The study recommended that in order to reduce the rate of turnover, the principals can devise clear professional development plans and organize promotion from within.