Why are New Teachers Leaving the Profession? Results of a Canada-Wide Survey 1

Thierry Karsenti and Simon Collin (2013) focused on new teachers who leave the profession in Canada in a recent study. Using a questionnaire targeting drop-out teachers and other education actors who witnessed the events surrounding the teachers’ resignation, the research objectives were to: 1) determine professional aspirations to enter the teaching profession; 2) identify the main reasons for new teachers to leave the profession; and 3) identify the individuals to whom new teachers turn when problems arise.

Results confirm a number of drop-out factors reported in the literature and provide a deeper understanding of how they interact. In particular, a lack of support is cited as a main factor for attrition while mentorship by colleagues is considered to be the “most important requirement to prevent beginning teachers from quitting” (p. 147). The study found that 50% of the drop-outs reported left the profession within the first two years of teaching, highlighting the induction period as a vulnerable stage for teacher retention.

The full study is available here.

Workload and the amount of work to be done at home were found to be main difficulties for new teachers.

Reference

Karsenti, T. & Collin, S. (2013). Why are New Teachers Leaving the Profession? Results of a Canada-Wide Survey. Education, 3(3). Retrieved from http://karsenti.ca/archives/10.5923.j.edu.20130303.01.pdf