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The NSW Department of Education and Training is funding a research project by the University of Technology, Sydney into the issues and challenges faced by newly appointed teachers to explain why some are quick to leave their jobs. The research into teacher recruitment and retention is being undertaken by academics from the UTS Faculty of Education Research Centre and UTS Centre for the Study of Choice.

Teacher retention is a serious issue internationally though in Australia it is of particular concern where a shortage of experienced teachers has made the profession a priority area for higher education.

Faculty researcher, Professor Laurie Brady, said that although policy regarding teacher recruitment was being formulated by the NSW Department of Education and Training (DET) and a number of recruitment initiatives were underway, long-term retention of teachers was essential for an effective workforce.

“Studies on retention indicate that newly appointed teachers often find the workload and complexity of teacher roles to be overwhelming,” Professor Brady said.

“Many early career teachers feel isolated and experience a great gulf between their expectations and the realities of being a teacher.

Project team leader, Associate Professor Sandy Schuck, said that members of the UTS team have conducted a number of research studies on the experiences of newly appointed teachers, teacher support networks, the preparation of mentor teachers, the retraining of teachers, and teacher induction, professional development and growth. The findings from their studies have contributed to the formulation of DET policy in the past, and are contributing to the development of an effective research design for this study.

The UTS research includes tracking scans of all graduates from the 2005 cohort who agree to participate. Data on their positions will be collected annually and telephone interviews with a small group of participants will provide richer and more descriptive data illuminating the nature of the experiences of new teachers.

“Teaching narratives from the early career teachers will be obtained through telephone-mediated interactions,” Professor Schuck said. “Earlier research done by UTS has shown that these interactions in their own right can provide a lot of support to early career teachers.”

The research will also incorporate a unique process for investigating the choices made by teachers about staying or leaving the profession. This choice methodology has been developed the UTS Centre for the Study of Choice and is used to predict and understand the decisions made by individuals.

“Finally, our methodology will include two conferencing opportunities with groups of participants, that will serve both as data collection techniques and as support structures for the participants,” Professor Schuck said.

“Key outcomes of the study will be an extensive mapping of graduates from teacher education programs over three years, understanding of their decisions regarding teaching and insights into their experiences as early career teachers.

“These outcomes will lead to recommendations for strategies that will help to retain effective early career teachers.”

Further Information:
Released by Robert Button
UTS Media Office 9514 1734

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