This study examined the mobility trends of African American public-school teachers. Guided by the integration of critical race theory and organization theory, this study used longitudinal data from the National Center for Education Statistics to explore how race and organizational climate predict African American teacher mobility. Using a quantitative descriptive study with logistic regression to determine which characteristics impact African American early career teachers’ decision to stay in the profession, findings suggest alarming trends in African American teacher mobility and opportunities for school leadership to have a greater role in retaining African American early career teachers.
AchinsteinB.OgawaR.SextonD.FreitasC. (2010). Retaining teachers of color: A pressing problem and a potential strategy for “hard-to-staff” schools. Review of Educational Research, 80(1), 71–107. https://doi.org/10.3102/0034654309355994
2.
AhmadF. Z.BoserU. (2014). America’s leaky pipeline for teachers of color: Getting more teachers of color into the classroom. Center for American Progress. https://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/ED561065.pdf
3.
BearG.YangC.PellM.GaskinsC. (2014). Validation of a brief measure of teachers’ perceptions of school climate: Relations to student achievement and suspensions. Learning Environments Research, 17(3), 339–354.
4.
BellD. A. (1995). David C. Baum memorial lecture: Who’s afraid of critical race theory?University of Illinois Law Review, 4, 893–910.
5.
BennettC. I.McWhorterL. M.KuykendallJ. A. (2006). Will I ever teach? Latino and African American students’ perspectives on PRAXIS I. American Educational Research Journal, 43(3), 531–575.
6.
BoydD.GrossmanP.IngM.LankfordH.LoebS.WyckoffJ. (2011). The influence of school administrators on teacher retention decisions. American Educational Research Journal, 48(2), 303–333.
7.
BoydD.LankfordH.LoebS.WyckoffJ. (2005). Explaining the short careers of high achieving teachers in schools with low performing students. American Economic Review, 95(2), 166–171.
8.
BristolT. (2018). To be alone or in a group: An exploration into how the school-based experiences differ for Black male teachers across one urban school district. Urban Education, 53(3), 334–354
9.
BristolT. J.MentorM. (2018). Policing and teaching: The positioning of Black male teachers as agents in the universal carceral apparatus. Urban Review: Issues and Ideas in Public Education, 50(2), 218–234.
10.
BrockenbroughE. (2015). “The Discipline Stop”: Black male teachers and the politics of urban school discipline. Education & Urban Society, 47(5), 499–522.
11.
BronfenbrennerU. (1977). Toward an experimental ecology of human development. American Psychologist, 32(7), 513–531.
12.
BrownA. L. (2012). On human kinds and role models: A critical discussion about the African American male teacher. Educational Studies, 48(3), 296–315. https://doi.org/10.1080/00131946.2012.660666
13.
BrownK. M.WynnS. R. (2009). Finding, supporting, and keeping: The role of the principal in teacher retention issues. Leadership and Policy in Schools, 8(1), 37–63.
14.
CarnallC. A. (1986). Toward a theory of the evaluation of organizational change. Human Relations, 39(8), 745–766.
15.
Carver-ThomasD.Darling-HammondL. (2017). Why Black women teachers leave and what can be done about it. In Farinde-WuA.AllenA.LewisC. (Eds.), Black female teachers: Diversifying the United States’ teacher workforce (pp. 117–134). Emerald Publishing Limited.
16.
ChinE.YoungJ. W. (2007). A person-oriented approach to characterizing beginning teachers in alternative certification programs. Educational Research, 36(2), 74–83.
17.
Cochran-SmithM. (2019, February). Teacher preparation at new graduate schools of education: A controversial innovation. Paper presented at the Annual Conference of the American Association of Colleges for Teacher Education, Louisville, KY, USA.
18.
Cochran-SmithM.VillegasA. M.AbramsL.Chavez-MorenoL.MillsT.SternR. (2015). Critiquing teacher preparation research: An overview of the field, part II. Journal of Teacher Education, 66(2), 109–121. https://doi.org/10.1177/0022487114558268
19.
CoffeyH.Farinde-WuA. (2016). Navigating the journey to culturally responsive teaching: Lessons from the success and struggles of one first-year, Black female teacher of Black students in an urban school. Teaching and Teacher Education, 60, 24–33.
20.
CohenJ.McCabeE. M.MichelliN. M.PickeralT. (2009). School climate: Research, policy, practice, and teacher education. Teachers College Record, 111(1), 180–213.
21.
CroccoM. S.CostiganA. T. (2007). The narrowing of curriculum and pedagogy in the age of accountability urban educators speak out. Urban Education, 42(6), 512–535.
22.
Darling-HammondL. (2003). Keeping good teachers: Why it matters, what leaders can do. Educational Leadership, 60(8), 6–13.
23.
Darling-HammondL. (2010). The flat world and education: How America’s commitment to equity will determine our future. Teacher’s College Press.
24.
Darling-HammondL.ChungR.FrelowF. (2002). Variation in teacher preparation: How well do different pathways prepare teachers to teach?Journal of Teacher Education, 53(4), 286–302.
25.
DeCuir-GunbyJ. T.GunbyN. W.Jr. (2016). Racial microaggressions in the workplace: A critical race analysis of the experiences of African American educators. Urban Education, 51(4), 390–414.
26.
DeeT. S. (2004). Teachers, race, and student achievement in a randomized experiment. The Review of Economics and Statistics, 86(1), 195–210.
27.
DelgadoR.StefancicJ. (2007). Critical race theory and criminal justice. Humanity and Society, 31(2), 133–145.
28.
DelonF. G.EvansG. W. (1976). Organizational theory and the secondary school principal. The Journal of Experimental Education, 45(1), 33–37.
29.
DixsonA. D.DingusJ. E. (2008). In search of our mother’s gardens: Black women teachers and professional socialization. Teachers College Record, 110(4), 805–837.
30.
DolphD. (2017). Challenges and opportunities for school improvement: Recommendations for urban school principals. Education and Urban Society, 49(4), 363–387. https://doi.org/10.1177/0013124516659110
31.
DonaldsonM. L. (2009). Into- and out of-city schools: The retention of teachers prepared for urban settings. Equity & Excellence in Education, 43(3), 347–370.
32.
Easton-BrooksD.RobinsonD.WilliamsS. (2018). Schools in transition: Creating a diverse school community. Teachers College Record, 120(13), 1–26.
33.
FeitlerF.BlumbergA. (1971). Changing the organizational character of school. The Elementary School Journal, 71(4), 206–215.
34.
FewA. L. (2007). Racialized gender. In RitzerG. (Ed.), The Blackwell encyclopedia of sociology. Blackwell Publishing.
35.
FitchettP. G.HeafnerT. L. (2018). Teacher quality or quality teaching? Eighth grade social studies teachers’ professional characteristics and classroom instruction as predictors of US history achievement. RMLE Online, 41(9), 1–17.
36.
GistC. D. (2017). Voices of aspiring teachers of color: Unraveling the double bind in teacher education. Urban Education, 52(8), 927–956.
37.
GrahamS.ParmerR.ChambersL.TourkinS.LyterD. M.CrossF. (2011). Documentation for the 2008–09 teacher follow-up survey (NCES 2011-304). National Center for Education Statistics.
38.
GrayL.TaieS. (2015). Public school teacher attrition and mobility in the first five years: Results from the first through fifth waves of the 2007–08 Beginning Teacher Longitudinal Study (First look NCES 2015-337). National Center for Education Statistics. https://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/ED556348.pdf
39.
GreenA. M.MunozM. A. (2016). Predictors of new teacher satisfaction in urban schools. Journal of School Leadership, 26(1), 92–123.
HammondZ. (2015). Culturally responsive teaching and the brain: Promoting authentic engagement and rigor among culturally and linguistically diverse students. Corwin Press.
43.
Hill-JacksonV. (2017). And then there were none: Reversing the exodus of Black women from the teaching profession. In Farinde-WuA.AllenA.LewisC. (Eds.), Black female teachers: Diversifying the United States’ teacher workforce (pp. 9–49). Emerald Publishing Limited.
44.
IngersollR. (1991, April3–7). Loosely coupled organizations revisited. Paper presented at the Annual Meeting of the American Educational Research Association, Chicago, IL, USA. https://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/ED351774.pdf
45.
IngersollR. (2001). Teacher turnover and teacher shortages. American Educational Research Journal, 38(3), 499–534.
46.
IngersollR.MayH. (2011). Recruitment, retention and the minority teacher shortage (CPRE research report #RR-69). Consortium for Policy Research in Education. https://repository.upenn.edu/gse_pubs/226
47.
IngersollR.MerrillL.MayH. (2014). What are the effects of teacher education and preparation on beginning teacher attrition? (Research Report No. 82). Consortium for Policy Research in Education.
48.
IngersollR. M.StrongM. (2011). The impact of induction and mentoring programs for beginning teachers: A critical review of the research. Review of Educational Research, 81(2), 201–233.
49.
JohnsonS. M. (2004). Finders and keepers: Helping new teachers survive and thrive in our schools. Jossey-Bass.
50.
KaiserA. (2011). Beginning teacher attrition and mobility: Results from the first through third waves of the 2007–08 beginning teacher longitudinal study (First look NCES 2011-318). National Center for Education Statistics. https://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/ED523821.pdf
51.
KeigherA. (2010). Teacher attrition and mobility: Results from the 2008–09 teacher follow-up survey (NCES 2010-353). National Center for Education Statistics, Institute of Education Sciences, U.S. Department of Education. https://nces.ed.gov/pubs2010/2010353.pdf
52.
KellyH. (2007). Racial tokenism in the school workplace: An exploratory study of Black teachers in overwhelmingly White schools. Educational Studies, 41(3), 230–254. https://doi.org/10.1080/00131940701325712
53.
KhalifaM. A.GoodenM. A.DavisJ. E. (2016). Culturally responsive school leadership: A synthesis of the literature. Review of Educational Research, 86(4), 1272–1311.
54.
KieranL.AndersonC. (2019). Connecting universal design for learning with culturally responsive teaching. Education and Urban Society, 51(9), 1202–1216.
55.
KohliR. (2018). Behind school doors: The impact of hostile racial climates on urban teachers of color. Urban Education, 53(3), 307–333. https://doi.org/10.1177/0042085916636653
56.
KozolJ. (2005). Shame of a nation: The restoration of apartheid schooling in America. Crown Books.
57.
LaddH. F. (2009). Teachers’ perceptions of their working conditions: How predictive of policy-relevant outcomes? (Working Paper No. 33). Center for the Analysis of Longitudinal Data in Educational Research.
58.
Ladson-BillingsG. (1994). The dream keepers: Successful teachers of African-American children. Jossey-Bass.
59.
Ladson-BillingsG.TateW. F. (1995). Toward a critical race theory of education. Teachers College Record, 97(1), 47.
60.
LambethD. T.LashleyC. (2012). A reflection of the perceptions of alternatively prepared first-year teachers in an urban high school: The necessity for improvements of mentoring and induction. Teaching and Learning, 26(1), 35–52.
61.
LiuX. S.RamseyJ. (2008). Teachers’ job satisfaction: Analyses of the teacher follow-up survey in the United States for 2000–2001. Teaching and Teacher Education, 24(5), 1173–1184. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.tate.2006.11.010
62.
LynnM. (2006). Education for the community: Exploring the culturally relevant practices of Black male teachers. Teachers College Record, 108(12), 2497–2522.
63.
MabokelaR. O.MadsenJ. A. (2003). Intergroup differences and their impact on African American teachers. Urban Education, 38(6), 725–749.
MilnerH. R. (2016). A Black male teacher’s culturally responsive practices. Journal of Negro Education, 85(4), 417–432.
66.
MilnerH. R.HowardT. (2004). Black teachers, Black students, Black communities, and Brown: Perspectives and insights from experts. The Journal of Negro Education, 73(3), 285–297. https://doi.org/10.2307/4129612
PabonA. (2016). Waiting for Black superman: A look at a problematic assumption. Urban Education, 51(8), 915–939.
69.
PearsonL. C.MoomawW. (2005). The relationship between teacher autonomy and stress, work satisfaction, empowerment, and professionalism. Educational Research Quarterly, 29(1), 38–54.
70.
PérezH. L.SolorzanoD. G. (2015). Racial microaggressions as a tool for critical race research. Race, Ethnicity and Education, 18(3), 297–320.
71.
PetchauerE. (2012). Teacher licensure exams and Black teacher candidates: Toward new theory and promising practice. The Journal of Negro Education, 81(3), 252–267. https://doi.org/10.7709/jnegroeducation.81.3.0252
72.
PierceC. (1970). Offensive mechanisms. In BarbourF. (Ed.), The Black seventies (pp. 265–282). Porter Sargent.
73.
PlayerD.YoungsP.PerroneF.GroganE. (2017). How principal leadership and person-job fit are associated with teacher mobility and attrition. Teaching and Teacher Education, 67, 330–339.
74.
ReddingC.SmithT. M. (2016). Easy in, easy out: Are alternatively certified teachers turning over at increased rates?American Educational Research Journal, 53(4), 1086–1125.
75.
RenzulliL. A.ParrottH. M.BeattieI. R. (2011). Racial mismatch and school type teacher satisfaction and retention in charter and traditional public schools. Sociology of Education, 84(1), 23–48. https://doi.org/10.1177/0038040710392720
76.
RiceS. M. (2014). Working to maximise the effectiveness of a staffing mix: What holds more and less effective teachers in a school, and what drives them away?Educational Review, 66(3), 311–329.
77.
RonfeldtM.LoebS.WyckoffJ. (2013). How teacher turnover harms student achievement. American Educational Research Journal, 50(1), 4–36. https://doi.org/10.3102/0002831212463813
78.
SnyderT. D.de BreyC.DillowS. A. (2016). Digest of educational statistics 2016 (NCES 2016-014). National Center for Education Statistics, Institute of Education Sciences, U.S. Department of Education. https://nces.ed.gov/pubs2016/2016014.pdf
79.
TamirE. (2013). What keeps teachers in and what drives them out: How urban public, urban Catholic, and Jewish day schools affect beginning teachers’ careers. Teachers College Record, 115(6), 1–36.
80.
TeasleyM. L. (2017). Organizational culture and schools: A call for leadership and collaboration. Children & Schools, 39(1), 3–5.
81.
TickleB. R.ChangM.KimS. (2011). Administrative support and its mediating effect on US public school teachers. Teaching and Teacher Education, 27(2), 342–349.
82.
TillmanL. C. (2004). (Un) intended consequences? The impact of the Brown v. Board of Education decision on the employment status of Black educators. Education and Urban Society, 36(3), 280–303.
83.
TourkinS.ThomasT.SwaimN.CoxS.ParmerR.JacksonB.ColeC.ZhangB. (2010). Documentation for the 2007–08 schools and staffing survey (NCES 2010-332). National Center for Education Statistics, US Department of Education.
84.
VillegasA. M.IrvineJ. J. (2010). Diversifying the teaching force: An examination of major arguments. The Urban Review: Issues and Ideas in Public Education, 42(3), 175–192.
85.
von BertanlanffyL. (1968). General system theory: Foundations, development, applications. Braziller.
86.
WatersT.MarzanoR. J.McNultyB. (2003). Balanced leadership: What 30 years of research tells us about the effect of leadership on student achievement (A Working Paper). https://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/ED481972.pdf
87.
WeberM. (1968). Economy and society: An outline of interpretive sociology. Bedminster Press.
88.
WeickK. E. (1976). Educational organizations as loosely coupled systems. Administrative Science Quarterly, 21, 1–19.
89.
WilliamsE.JohnsonM. (2011). Politics and principals: Beginning Black teachers’ perceptions of relationships with administrators in 21st-century schools. Improving Schools, 14(2), 187–199.
