A study of the factors predicting attrition and contributing to the attrition rate of elementary public school teachers in Hampton Roads, Virginia

This quantitative study was designed to be a comprehensive investigation of the factors that are suspected to be associated with teacher attrition. The Teacher Attrition Survey was used to survey teachers currently in the profession regarding the contributions of several factors (personal, organizational, monetary, accountability, facility, and preparation) to the likelihood of their leaving the teaching profession.; Through analysis of the data collected in the Teacher Attrition Survey, a clearer picture of the relative contribution of each of the factors to teacher attrition was revealed. The survey was completed by 178 teachers from two large, urban school districts in Hampton Roads, Virginia. Findings indicated that of the six factors measured by The Teacher Attrition Survey monetary factors were rated highest as reasons that would cause them to leave the profession and preparation factors were rated as the least likely reasons to cause respondents to leave the profession. A multiple regression determined that only monetary factors emerged as a significant predictor of attrition. The other five factors failed to show a statistically significant relationship with teacher attrition scores.