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Factors Influencing Special Ed Teacher Retention
- 4. Theoretical Framework School Climate Factors Parental Support Factors Mentors and Colleagues Support Factors Central Office Support Factors Campus Administrative Support Factors Teachers’ Retention and Attrition
- 29. Integration of Quantitative Findings, Qualitative Findings and Review of Literature
- 35. A Review of the Quantitative and Qualitative Findings
- 37. Recommendations
- 44. Theoretical Framework School Climate Factors Parental Support Factors Mentors and Colleagues Support Factors Central Office Support Factors Campus Administrative Support Factors Teachers’ Retention and Attrition
Editor's Notes
- Teacher retention and attrition are both phenomena that have influenced the education community for many years. According to Darling-Hammond, 2003 Quote each year the number of teachers entering the workforce is increasing. However, it seems that teachers already in the workforce are leaving faster than they can be replaced. End Quote As a general education teacher it was imperative for me to collaborate with special education teachers in order to provide the best education for my students with special needs. I found this difficult due to the fact that each year there was a new special education teacher. Once I became an administrator I also found this to be true. Many special educators that I worked with were burden with unreasonable demands from parents as well as the school district. Due to these pressures many special educators become burned out and leave the field of special education before their third year of teaching. Therefore the purpose of this dissertation is to
- More specifically the study identifies important factors that influence special education teachers’ decisions to remain in or leave the field of special education .
- The dissertation defense format is as follows theoretical framework, research questions (quantitative and qualitative) followed by quantitative methods, quantitative findings and then qualitative research questions and findings will be presented. Then presentation will conclude with an integration of the quantitative, qualitative data and the review of literature and recommendations.
- This theoretical framework is based on general education literature dealing with teachers’ retention and attrition and has transferability to special education teachers’ retention and attrition because both groups are exposed to the same factors. The theoretical framework illustrates five of the many factors that may influence special education teachers retention and attrition. Factors included in this study were campus administrative support, central office support, mentors and colleagues support, parental support, and school climate factors.
- Each bulleted item indicates each of the five quantitative research questions in this study that focused on support factors that influence special education teachers’ retention and attrition.
- For each quantitative research question a null hypothesis was generated.
- Qualitative data were gathered through interviews with current and former special education teachers to answer the question.
- Research question seven was only answered by current special education teachers.
- Quantitative data were reported using descriptive statistics and analyzed by comparing means. These means were compared by using independent t-tests.
- Special education teachers’ retention and attrition was the independent variable in this study. Dependent variables were Campus administrative support factors, central office support factors, mentors and colleagues support factors, parental support factors, and school climate factors.
- A total of 300 surveys were distributed. 200 to current special educators and 100 to former special educators. The return rate on the survey was 61%. This rate is acceptable given the fact that special education teachers received the survey during the first month of the school year. A total of 132 participants were included in the study.
- A 50 item survey was designed by the researcher to gather information regarding five factors influencing special education teachers’ retention and attrition.
- Since the instrument was constructed by the researcher a pilot study was conducted with 32 special educators to ensure validity and reliability. Reliability was ensured by running a Cronbach’s alpha on each factor as well as the total instrument. Factors on the survey were considered reliable if the Cronbach’s alpha coefficients for each factor as well as for the total instrument were .70 or better. To ensure validity participants in the pilot study were asked to make comments on any questions that needed clarification. They were also asked to make suggestions on any improvements that needed to be made to the instrument. Each participant commented the questions were clear and did not need clarification. They also stated they did not notice anything that needed to be changed on the instrument.
- P is less than .05 which indicates that there is a statistically significant difference. An effect size of .45 was calculated which indicates in this study that campus administrative support had a slight effect on special educators retention and attrition.
- P is greater than .05 which indicates that there is not a statistically significant differences. This means that in this study central office support did not have an effect on special education teachers retention and attrition.
- P is less than .05 which means that there is a statistically significant difference. An effect size of .64 was calculated which indicates that in this study mentors and colleagues had a huge effect on special education teachers retention and attrition.
- P is less than .05 which indicates that there is a statistically significant difference. An effect size of .37 was calculated which means in this study parental support had a slight influence on special education teachers retention and attrition.
- According to the statistical analysis the difference in the means is not significant. However because the means are both high and as you’ll recall from the instrument the highest score a factor could have was 60. Because the means are high for both groups I am concluding that school climate factors are inconclusive. (p=.167)
- Interviews were conducted with one current and one former special educator from each district included in the study in order to reduce bias.
- Both current and former special educators were asked the question. Three themes emerged from the interviews.
- Research question 7 was only addressed by current special educators.
- Comments included Campus administration support Without my colleagues I would have quit after my first year. Mentor and collegial support “ My decision to remain in special education is based on the support of my principal” Student interest Each year I am able to see the growth that my students make and I like being a part of that”
- The quantitative and qualitative findings of this study show that the most important role of the administrator is to support and understand special education teachers’ roles.
- In the quantitative portion of this study central office support was not considered to be a factor that influenced special educators’ decisions to remain or leave the field of special education. However, the qualitative portion provided results that show that central office support is crucial to special education teachers decisions to remain or leave the field of special education.
- Both the quantitative and qualitative findings of this study indicated that special educators were influenced to remain or leave the field of special education due to the support that they did or did not receive from mentors and colleagues. Cohen (2005) Reported that
- Quantitative data in this study indicated that parental support was influential in special education teachers retention and attrition. However, qualitative findings in this study were not significant. George and colleagues in addition to Platt and Olson conducted surveys concerning parental support and teacher retention. Of the teachers surveyed George found that 23% … Platt and Olson (1990) found that 53%
- Quantitative findings in this study were inconclusive due to the high means for both groups. The Qualitative findings in this study were not significant. Other studies have shown that school climate may influence educators retention and attrition. Cotton 2004 states
- The findings suggest that supportive campus administrators enhance special education teachers’ decisions to remain in special education. Based on the key findings from this study, it is recommended that campus administrators should incorporate the following behaviors in their practice in order to develop a supportive working relationship with their staff.
- In order to increase special education teacher retention central office administrators should
- Mentors and colleagues support have a direct influence on special educators’ decisions to remain or leave the field of special education. Based on the key findings from this study, it is recommended that mentors and colleagues should incorporate the following behaviors in their practice in order to develop stronger relationships with their colleagues.
- In order to increase special education teacher retention parents should
- Interviewing campus administrators, central office administrators and parents may provide a deeper understanding of how they contribute to the retention and attrition of special education teachers. These interviews could help discover other effective practices that may enhance retention and decrease special education teachers’ attrition.
- According to the literature these factors were influential in determining teachers’ retention and attrition however in this study three of the five factors were statistically significant. These factors were campus administrative support, mentor and colleague support, and parental support.