Ingersoll, Richard & May, Henry. (2011).

Recruitment, Retention, and the Minority Teacher

Shortage.

Abstract: Using nationally representative data, this study empirically grounds the debate over
minority teacher shortages by examining trends in recruitment, employment and retention of
minority teachers. The study’s findings reveal that a gap continues to persist between the
percentage of minority students and the percentage of minority teachers in U.S. schools, but
contrary to widespread belief this gap is not due to a failure to recruit new minority teachers.
The data show that efforts over recent decades to recruit more minority teachers, and place
them in disadvantaged schools, have been very successful. But, these efforts have also been
undermined because minority teachers have lower retention — largely because of poor
working conditions in their schools.
The research presented in this report was co-sponsored by CPRE and the Center for
Educational Research in the Interest of Underserved Students at the University of California-
Santa Cruz.

Introduction
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Arguments Critics make three related Demographic parity what were the
arguments for why this holds that minority arguments that
mismatch is detrimental and teachers are critics made for a
why increasing the racial/ethnic important as role mismatch?
diversity of the teaching force models for both
would be beneficial. The first minority and White
focuses on demographic parity. students. Cultural
A second related argument synchronicity holds
focuses on what is often called that minority
“cultural synchronicity” (Irvine, students benefit from
1988, 1989). A third related being taught by
argument concerns teacher minority teachers
shortages in general. because minority
teachers are likely to
have “insider
knowledge” due to
similar life
experiences and
cultural
backgrounds.
Conclude Critics have concluded that the Based on arguments, What critics
minority teacher shortage has the critics concluded concluded from
resulted in unequal access to that. arguments?
adequately qualified teachers
and, hence, to quality teaching,
in poor, urban public schools
serving minority students.
Factors Critics have identified several These factors are what are teacher
factors behind these minority important. staffing problems?
 teacher staffing problems (for
reviews, see Zumwalt & Craig,
2005; Villegas & Irvine, 2010).
These factors concern different
stages in the pipeline of supply
into the teaching occupation.
Policy The prevailing policy response These efforts have What is the
to these minority teacher included future prevailing policy
staffing problems has been to educator programs in response?
attempt to increase the supply high schools,
of minority teachers (see, e.g., partnerships between
Hirsch, Koppich, & Knapp, 4 community
2001; Feistritzer, 1997; Liu et colleges with higher
al., 2008; Rice, Roellke, minority student
Sparks, & Kolbe, 2008). enrollments and
four-year colleges
with teacher
education programs,
career ladders for
paraprofessionals
already in the school
system, and
alternative
certification
programs.
Initiatives Many of these initiatives have The design of What initiatives have
been designed to recruit initiatives should be been taken for
minority teachers to teach in implemented too. minority teachers?
schools serving predominantly
minority student populations,
often in low-income, urban
school districts. Some of these
initiatives have been designed
to recruit male minority
teachers—often considered the
group in the shortest supply
(e.g., Lewis, 2006; Norton,
2005). By 2005, 36 states had
minority teacher recruitment
policies (Villegas & Irvine,
2010).

The Study
Annotation Quote Notes Corresponding
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Recruitment In recent decades, what Sets of research What kind of
& changes have there been in questions were used questions are used to
Employment the numbers of minority to examine the trend examine the
 students and numbers of of recruitment and recruitment and
minority teachers in the employment of employment of
school system, and how does minority teachers. minority teachers?
this compare with White what will be your
students and teachers? Is answers to these
there more or less questions?
racial/ethnic diversity in the
teaching force? Are
minority teachers more
likely than White teachers to
be employed in schools
serving high-poverty, urban,
and high-minority student
populations? How do the
organizational and working
conditions of minority
teachers’ schools compare to
those of White teachers?
Trends in In recent decades, what have Sets of research What kind of
Turnover been the rates and magnitude questions were used questions are used to
of minority teacher turnover to examine the examine the trends
— both those moving trends in Minority in Minority Teacher
between schools and those Teacher Turnover. Turnover?
leaving teaching altogether? what will be your
How does this compare to answers to such
White teachers? What is the questions?
role of minority teacher
turnover in the staffing
problems of schools and in
the minority teacher
shortage?
Determinants What are the reasons behind Sets of research What kind of
the turnover of teachers and questions were used questions are used to
does this differ by their to examine the examine the
race/ethnicity? What determinants of determinants of
proportion of minority and Minority Teacher Minority Teacher
White teacher turnover is Turnover. Turnover?
due to retirement? Are the What will be your
demographic characteristics answers to such
of schools associated with questions?
the departures of teachers,
and does this differ by the
race/ethnicity of teachers?
Are minority teachers less
likely than White teachers to
depart from schools serving
high-poverty, urban, and
high-minority student
populations?
 Organizationa By adopting this perspective, The central premise What is an
l theory we seek to discover the of the study is that organizational
extent to which staffing fully understanding theory?
problems in schools can be minority teacher What is the major
usefully reframed from shortages and difference between a
macro-level issues, staffing problems minority thesis and
involving inexorable societal organizational
demographic trends, to theory?
organizational-level issues,
involving policy-amenable
aspects of particular districts
and schools.

Data and Methods

Data
Annotation Quote Notes Corresponding
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Analysis Our analysis uses data from This analysis uses What analysis they
all six cycles of SASS/TFS to data weighted to used to examine
examine trends. We focus on compensate for the trends?
the 2003-04 SASS and the over- and under
2004-05 TFS for our primary sampling of the
analyses. The 2004-05 TFS complex stratified
has the advantage of having a survey design
larger sample size than the
more recent 2008-09 cycle of
TFS. The 2003- 04 SASS
sample comprises 43,358
White and 7,865 minority
elementary and secondary
teachers. The 2004-05 TFS
sample comprises 6,118
White and 1,311 minority
elementary and secondary
teachers.

Measures and Methods

Annotation Quote Notes Corresponding
Code Interview Questions
Stages Our analysis has two stages. In These are the stages How many stages
the first stage, we present of analysis. does the analysis
mostly descriptive statistics to have?
address our three research
questions. In the second stage,
we follow up with a detailed
multiple logistic regression
analysis of the predictors of
 turnover to further address the
third research question.
Regression The dependent variable— The examination is what are regression
Models teacher turnover—is based on based on three model?
whether each teacher remained groups of predictors
with the school, moved to of turnover: teacher
another school, or left teaching characteristics,
within one year after the 2003- school
04 SASS administration. characteristics, and
organizational
conditions
Teacher Following previous research The regression What teacher
turnover on teacher turnover, in the model of previous turnover regression
regression models, we include research on teacher model include?
control variables for two key turnover.
individual teacher
characteristics: gender and age.
Because it has been found to
have a U-shaped relationship
to turnover (Ingersoll, 2001),
we transform age into a three-
category set of dummy
variables—younger (less than
30), middle-aged (31-50), and
older (greater than 50).
School Following previous research The regression What school
organization on school organization (e.g., model of previous organization
Bryk et al., 1990; Chubb & research on school regression model
Moe, 1990; Coleman & organization. include?
Hoffer, 1987), in the
regression models we include,
as independent variables,
school characteristics typically
found to be important in this
literature: school level and
school size.
Demographi To examine the role of school Because these what is the role of
c demographic characteristics, demographic factors school demographic
we also include measures of are often highly characteristics?
whether the school is urban, inter-correlated and
rural, or suburban, the confounded.
proportion of each school’s
student population at or below
the poverty level (i.e., eligible
for free or reduced lunch), the
proportion of each school’s
student population that is
minority, and proportion of the
school faculty that is a
 minority.
empirical Unlike most empirical Their approach is What is the purpose
analyses analyses, which use either better. of organizational-
individual teachers’ salaries or level compensation
the school’s mean teacher structure?
salary, we use the normal
yearly base salary for teachers
at the highest step on the
district or school salary
schedule because it better
assesses differences in the
organizational-level
compensation structure.
PROC Our analysis used PROC This procedure also What is PROC
GENMOD GENMOD in SAS (version supports logistic GENMOD and why
9.2) because it adjusts for the regression and they used that in
nonrandom clustering of allows for the their research?
teachers within schools inclusion of
resulting from the multilevel sampling design
structure of the sample and weights.
uses within- and between-
school predictor variables to
estimate separate effects across
multiple levels.

Results
Trends in Minority Teacher Recruitment and Employment
Annotation Quote Notes Corresponding
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Data The data show that minority The data is based What is data
teachers continue to represent a on this represented
small portion of the teaching regarding trends in
force and that a gap persists minority teacher
between the percentage of recruitment
minority students and the employment?
percentage of minority teachers
in the U.S. school system.
Statistics For instance, in the 2007-08 The teaching force, what are the
school year, 34% of the nation’s as a whole, also statistics regarding
population was minority, 41% of increased over this trends in minority
all elementary and secondary same two-decade teacher recruitment
students were minority, and only period but, employment?
16.5% of all elementary and strikingly, by 48%
secondary teachers were —a rate over two
minority. After a period of times that of the
decline during the 1970s, overall growth rate
elementary and secondary for students of
student enrollments began to 19%.
 grow steadily in the U.S.,
beginning in the mid-1980s and
continuing to the present. As
Table 3 shows, over the two
decades between 1988 and 2008,
the elementary and secondary
student population as a whole
increased by 19%. But this varied
by the race/ethnicity of students.
While the number of White
students decreased by 2% during
those two decades, the number of
minority students increased by
73%.
Recent in recent decades the rate of The recent What rate of growth
growth in the number of minority statistics of an has shown in the
teachers has outpaced that of increasing number recent decade?
minority students and that of of minority
White teachers. As a result, in teachers.
spite of the overall ballooning of
the teaching force, the percentage
of minority teachers has
increased, from 12.4% to 16.5%.
Differences The number of White female The teaching force Why there is still a
teachers increased by 51% during has become more shortage of male
this period, and the number of female, but this black teachers?
White male teachers increased by differs by
only 18%. At the same, the race/ethnicity
number of minority female
teachers increased by 97%, and
the number of minority male
teachers increased by 92%. In
2008, males represented about
one quarter of both the White and
minority portions of the teaching
force.
Minority The minority teachers important to note.
teachers represented only 16.3% of the
teaching force in 2003-04, in the
same types of schools where
minority teachers were
disproportionately employed, the
teaching staff overall was
nevertheless predominantly
White. For instance, only 42% of
teachers are minority in high-
minority public schools (i.e.,
those with 75% or more minority
students). Likewise, only 35% of
 teachers are minority in high-
poverty public schools.
Organizatio For instance, 26% of teachers Statistics
nal employed in high-poverty public
characterist schools reported the school
ics having serious student discipline
problems, compared to 11% of
teachers in low-poverty schools.
Similarly, 28% of teachers in
urban public schools reported
that textbooks and classroom
supplies were inadequate,
compared to 19% in suburban
public schools. Likewise, 36% of
teachers employed in high-
poverty public schools reported
having very low levels of
classroom autonomy, compared
to 23% of teachers in low-
poverty schools.

Trends in Minority Teacher Turnover

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Annual rate In the two decades from the these are the what is the annual
late 1980s to 2009, despite statistics for overall rate of overall
some fluctuations, the annual teacher turnover. teacher turnover in
rate of overall teacher turnover the last two decades?
(public and private) increased
overall. This was especially
true for minority teachers,
whose turnover rate increased
by 28% during this period. In
the 2004-2005 and 2008-09
school years, minority
turnover was, respectively,
18% and 24% higher than
White teacher turnover.
Teacher The data show that at the This data shows how what are the statistics
staffing beginning of the 2003-04 much minority of minority teachers
school year, about 47,600 teachers entered in entered the school in
minority teachers entered the the school. 2003-04?
school system; however, by
the following year, 20% more
—about 56,000—left teaching.
Interestingly, if minority
teacher attrition in 2004-05
had been at a rate similar to
 that of White teachers that
year (8.8%), then the minority
teacher outflow in Figure 5
would have been reduced to
47,521—about the same as the
inflow earlier that year.
Migration Migrants, of course, do not Teacher migration— how teacher
represent a net loss of human those who transfer or migration would be a
capital from the teacher supply move to different problem for teacher
and, hence, do not teaching jobs in other staffing?
permanently contribute to schools—also has
overall systemic-level implications for
shortages. However, from an minority teacher
organizational-level staffing problems
perspective, employee
migration can result in
disproportionate gains and
losses of human capital for
particular kinds of schools.
Examine & Using the 2004-05 TFS data These patterns
Compare we were able to examine and provide further
compare the demographic support for our
characteristics of the original theoretical
and destination schools of perspective that fully
migrants who went from one understanding the
public school to another. minority teacher
Interestingly, the data show staffing problems.
that both minority and White
teachers who moved between
schools in that year were most
likely to go to schools that
were similar demographically
to those from which they
departed. However, high-
poverty schools, high-minority
schools, and urban schools all
have far higher rates of overall
teacher migration than,
respectively, low-poverty
schools, low-minority schools,
and suburban schools. Despite
the fact that teachers tend not
to move to 28 demographically
different schools, these higher
overall rates from
disadvantaged schools resulted
in a net loss of minority
teachers from high-poverty to
low-poverty schools and from
 urban schools to suburban
schools.

The Determinants of Minority Teacher Turnover

Annotation Quote Notes Corresponding
Code Interview Questions
Data These data raise an important the research focused what important
question: What are the reasons on the public schools question raised by
for and sources of these levels in which most the data? What do
and patterns of White and minority teachers are you think about it?
minority teacher turnover? employed.
One way to answer this
question is to examine self-
report data from those who
have moved or left.
Factors The most prominent set of The factors behind what are the factors
factors behind both moving moving and leaving behind teachers
and leaving, according to of teachers. moving and leaving
teachers, was a desire to obtain the profession?
a different job or career, or
dissatisfaction with some
aspect of their teaching job. .
Fifty-eight percent of White
teachers reported that
dissatisfaction with some
aspect of their school was
behind their move to a
teaching job elsewhere; this
was true for 64% of minority
teachers. While 33% of
minority teachers who left
teaching indicated retirement
was a major reason, 35%
reported a major reason was
dissatisfaction and 35% said it
was due to desire for a better
job.

Individual, School, and Organizational Predictors of Minority Teacher Turnover

Annotation Quote Notes Corresponding
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Series We estimated a series of The series of What researchers
regression models using the regression models estimated from the
SASS/TFS data to examine based on these. series of regression
whether our predictor variables models?
were associated with teacher
turnover. The predictor
variables and associated
regression estimates from each
model To evaluate whether
relationships between the
predictors and turnover. we
sequentially added each of the
organizational condition
variables to a basic model that
included the set of teacher
characteristics, the set of school
characteristics, and the set of
school demographic measures.
Model 1 our analyses found that the Model 1 analysis of What researchers
individual demographic regression models analyze from Model
characteristics of teachers were 1?
related to their likelihood of
staying or departing at a
statistically significant level,
after controlling for other
factors. But this differed by the
race/ethnicity of the teacher.
The age of teachers was a
salient predictor of the
likelihood of turnover. Gender
was also a factor, but only for
minority teachers.
Models 2, Schools in urban areas, schools Analysis of Models what researchers
3, 4 and 5 with higher percentages of low- 2,3,4,5 analyze from Models
income students, schools with 2,3,4 and 5?
higher percentages of minority
students, and schools with
higher percentages of minority
teachers each had higher White
turnover.
Model 6 Model 6 includes all of these Analysis of Model 6 What researchers
predictors simultaneously; it analyze from Model
examines whether the effects of 6?
the different measures of school
demographics were
independent or redundant.
Interestingly, after controlling
for the other school
demographic characteristics,
 the student poverty enrollment
of schools was no longer
significantly related to White
teacher turnover; minority
enrollment and minority faculty
remain related, but with only
borderline statistical
significance.
Model 7 The coefficient for highest Analyses made from what researchers
salaries was of only borderline Model 7 analyze from Model
statistical significance for 7?
White teachers. The coefficient
for minority teachers was the
same magnitude (-.06) as for
White teachers, but was not
statistically significant. The
SASS data indicate that in
2003-04, the average starting
salary in public schools for a
teacher with a bachelor’s
degree and no experience was
about $32,000, and the average
maximum salary (the measure
used here) was about $61,000.
Model 8 In schools with higher levels of Analyses made from what researchers
student discipline problems, Model analyze from model
turnover rates were distinctly 8?
higher for White teachers; the
relationship was in the same 35
direction for minority teachers,
but not at a statistically
significant level. The former is
one of the stronger relationships
we found. A 1-unit increase in
average reported student
discipline problems between
two schools (on a 5-unit scale)
was associated with a 31%
increase in the odds of a White
teacher departing.
Model 9 In schools that provide better analysis of Model 9 What researchers
principal leadership and analyze from Model
administrative support, as 9?
reported by teachers, turnover
rates for both minority and
White teachers were lower.
However, again, the
relationship with minority
teacher turnover was not strong
 enough to reach a statistical
significance.
Model 11 Schools with higher levels of analyses of Model What researchers
school-wide faculty decision- 11 analyze from model
making influence had lower 11?
levels of turnover for both
White and minority teachers.
This is also one of the stronger
relationships we found, and
especially so for minority
teachers. A one-unit increase in
reported faculty influence
between schools (on a four-unit
scale) was associated with a
37% decrease in the odds of a
minority teacher departing
Model 12 schools with higher average analysis of Model 12 what researchers
levels of individual teachers’ analyze from Model
classroom autonomy had lower 12?
levels of turnover—and, again,
this was especially true for
minority teachers. A one-unit
difference in reported teacher
influence between schools (on a
four-unit scale) was associated
with a 40% difference in the
odds of a minority teacher
departing.
Examine We also examined the These two areas are What researchers
relationship to turnover of important to examine examined from
whether teachers participated the relationship to professional
in, and found useful, two types turnover. development of
of professional development: 1) teachers?
professional development
focused on student discipline
and classroom management,
and 2) professional
development focused on the
content of the subjects taught.

Summary and Implications

Annotation Quote Notes Corresponding
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Gap In 2008, 34% of the 41 The national data What is the gap
nation’s population was show a gap persists shown in the
minority, and 41% of all between the national data set?
elementary and secondary percentage of
students were minority, but minority students
 only 16.5% of all elementary and the percentage
and secondary teachers were of minority teachers
minority. But the data also in the U.S. school
show this gap is not due to a system
failure of teacher recruitment.
Indeed, since the late 1980s
the number of minority
elementary and secondary
teachers has ballooned by
almost 100%, outpacing
growth in the number of
White teachers and outpacing
growth in minority students.
The result is that the teaching
force has rapidly grown more
diverse.
Organizationa From an organizational level The organization What is the
l level of analysis and from the level of analysis for organizational level
viewpoint of those managing minority teacher of analysis?
schools, none of these types turnover.
of departures are cost free,
whether permanent, to other
schools, or to other education
jobs. All have the same effect;
they typically result in a
decrease in minority
classroom instructional staff
in that organization. One
consequence of such turnover,
our analysis reveals, is that it
undermines efforts to address
the minority teacher shortage.
Suggestion Nothing in our research it was all about what is the thing
suggests that bringing new bringing quality that researchers
qualified minority candidates teachers, didn’t suggest in
into teaching is not a highlighting their their research?
worthwhile step. Indeed, our problems regarding
data show that this approach their profession,
has had remarkable success. and avoiding a
In the two decades since the shortage of
late 1980s, the minority teachers.
teaching force has increased
at over two and a half times
the rate of the White teaching
force—by 300,000—almost
doubling in size.
Findings These findings also have Implications for How findings play
implications for the implementation role in implication
implementation of educational for implementation?
accountability reforms, which
have increased since the
enactment of NCLB in 2001.
In preliminary analyses, we
have found that in many states
and school districts, the
implementation of school and
teacher accountability
initiatives has been
accompanied by decreases in
levels of individual teacher
classroom autonomy,
especially in regard to the
selection of texts, content,
topics and evaluating of
students in their courses – one
of the organizational
conditions strongly associated
with minority teacher turnover
(Ingersoll, 2007; also see
Guggino & Brint, 2010)