'Hard Times': A narrative investigation into the retention of outstanding teachers.

Abstract This study employs both written and spoken narratives to unearth the factors underpinning the decision made by five outstanding teachers to leave the profession. Despite teacher recruitment numbers increasing turnover rates remain high, provoking calls for further research in...

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Main Author: Peel, Sarah
Format: Dissertation (University of Nottingham only)
Language:English
Published: 2014
Online Access:https://eprints.nottingham.ac.uk/28231/
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author Peel, Sarah
author_facet Peel, Sarah
author_sort Peel, Sarah
building Nottingham Research Data Repository
collection Online Access
description Abstract This study employs both written and spoken narratives to unearth the factors underpinning the decision made by five outstanding teachers to leave the profession. Despite teacher recruitment numbers increasing turnover rates remain high, provoking calls for further research into the retention of the most successful teachers. This research asks whether the success and experience of the participants, including their promotions to managerial roles, negatively impacted upon their efficacy and commitment. It also considers the role played by their political and institutional leaders in their retention. In listening to and analysing the participants' stories, a series of tensions are arrived at regarding the factors found to have affected their decision to resign. The most significant of which is the emphasis placed on performativity by their political and institutional leaders. This dominant agenda conflicted with the intrinsic motivations of the participants, their ideology and their desire for professional autonomy in their managerial roles, as well as in their classrooms. The study concludes therefore that performance based policy, the support given to this agenda by their school leaders, as well as the effect of the participants' own career development had the greatest impact on their decision to leave the profession, despite their success and experience within it.
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spelling nottingham-282312017-10-15T11:03:48Z https://eprints.nottingham.ac.uk/28231/ 'Hard Times': A narrative investigation into the retention of outstanding teachers. Peel, Sarah Abstract This study employs both written and spoken narratives to unearth the factors underpinning the decision made by five outstanding teachers to leave the profession. Despite teacher recruitment numbers increasing turnover rates remain high, provoking calls for further research into the retention of the most successful teachers. This research asks whether the success and experience of the participants, including their promotions to managerial roles, negatively impacted upon their efficacy and commitment. It also considers the role played by their political and institutional leaders in their retention. In listening to and analysing the participants' stories, a series of tensions are arrived at regarding the factors found to have affected their decision to resign. The most significant of which is the emphasis placed on performativity by their political and institutional leaders. This dominant agenda conflicted with the intrinsic motivations of the participants, their ideology and their desire for professional autonomy in their managerial roles, as well as in their classrooms. The study concludes therefore that performance based policy, the support given to this agenda by their school leaders, as well as the effect of the participants' own career development had the greatest impact on their decision to leave the profession, despite their success and experience within it. 2014-09 Dissertation (University of Nottingham only) NonPeerReviewed application/pdf en https://eprints.nottingham.ac.uk/28231/1/Peel_Sarah_Dissertation_Townsend.pdf Peel, Sarah (2014) 'Hard Times': A narrative investigation into the retention of outstanding teachers. [Dissertation (University of Nottingham only)]
spellingShingle Peel, Sarah
'Hard Times': A narrative investigation into the retention of outstanding teachers.
title 'Hard Times': A narrative investigation into the retention of outstanding teachers.
title_full 'Hard Times': A narrative investigation into the retention of outstanding teachers.
title_fullStr 'Hard Times': A narrative investigation into the retention of outstanding teachers.
title_full_unstemmed 'Hard Times': A narrative investigation into the retention of outstanding teachers.
title_short 'Hard Times': A narrative investigation into the retention of outstanding teachers.
title_sort 'hard times': a narrative investigation into the retention of outstanding teachers.
url https://eprints.nottingham.ac.uk/28231/