Date of Conferral
2020
Degree
Doctor of Education (Ed.D.)
School
Education
Advisor
Robert Flanders
Abstract
Researchers have indicated that principals can play a crucial role in motivating teachers to stay or leave. The purpose of this qualitative study was to examine the perceptions of principals who work in urban schools as related to overcoming the high attrition of teachers in their schools. Using transformational leadership theory as a framework to address research questions, data were collected from semistructured interviews with 12 principals. Using a 7-question interview protocol, this study sought perspectives on the causality of urban teachersâ attrition, including leadership practices that help with hiring, sustaining, and retaining teachers on urban school campuses. Interviews were examined using open-coding techniques with thematic analysis. The data were examined for patterns and themes. The three themes that emerged from the data analysis were (a) principals impact teacher retention, (b) school culture is important to teacher retention, and (c) personal connections increase the probability for teacher retention. Further recommendations include continuing research with a larger participant population to add greater context to the findings. The findings from this study may lead to positive social change because it could improve the quality of the educational experience provided to students in urban school communities.
Recommended Citation
Stredic, LaTonya, "Perceptions of Urban School Principals on Urban Teacher Retention" (2020). Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies. 9270.
https://scholarworks.waldenu.edu/dissertations/9270
