Factors and Circumstances Related to Teacher Retention in Rural, High Poverty Districts in South Carolina

• Main Author: Vincent, Neal
• Format: Others
• Language: English
• Published: Digital Commons @ East Tennessee State University 2018
• Subjects: teacher retention; rural teacher retention; Educational Administration and Supervision; Elementary and Middle and Secondary Education Administration
• Online Access: https://dc.etsu.edu/etd/3455; https://dc.etsu.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=4903&context=etd

According to the literature related to teacher retention in rural, high poverty districts, South Carolina researchers are predicting a major shortage of teachers based on the number of college students enrolled in education majors. Another area of concern is the retention of teachers in high poverty districts and schools. A qualitative study was therefore conducted to investigate the factors and circumstances related to teacher retention in rural, high poverty, South Carolina districts. Specifically, data was collected and analyzed to determine why long-serving teachers have remained in the same district for at least four years instead of transferring or leaving the district. The results of this study show that the likelihood of a teacher remaining in a challenging school environment over time may be directly influenced by the relative priority they place on intrinsic or extrinsic motivational factors, but can also be mediated by the teacher’s level of self-efficacy. This study did not seek to investigate the existence or strength of such relationships but attempted to provide deeper insights into the ways in which the identified factors influence teacher decisions to remain in the same district for at least four years instead of transferring or leaving the district. Findings from the research are presented in this study and recommendations are made for use by district and school leaders as they explore factors that lead to teacher retention in rural, high poverty, South Carolina districts.