Retention of Staff in the Early Childhood Education Workforce

Abstract

What incentives can the administrators of early childhood education facilities offer their staff in order to retain them? In light of research identifying low staff turnover as a key component of high quality early childhood education, the answer to this question has ramifications beyond human-resources management. This paper presents the results of a statewide survey of early childhood educators, which indicate that both personal factors (age and experience) and the availability of benefits are associated with intent to remain in the field. The applicability of these findings to employment policies in the field of early childhood education are discussed.

Identifying baseline and ceiling thresholds within the Qualistar Early Learning Quality Rating and Improvement System

“…This finding is consistent with the notion that new teachers struggle during their first several years in their positions (Katz, 1972), but as the years pass, they gain greater competency with respect to understanding teaching and learning and may become more committed to the field, thus improving their practices. This finding may also reflect the possibility that teachers who are less suited to the work, or who do not receive sufficient mentoring, are more likely to drop out of the ECE sector (Holochwost, DeMott, Buell, Yannetta, & Amsden, 2009). Taken together, the result underscores the need for better compensation and other teacher supports that reduce staff turnover and enable staff to remain in the field and gain the experience needed to promote better quality (Whitebook & Sakai, 2004).…”

Recovery Experiences Moderate the Impact of Work Stressors on Well-Being: A Two-Wave Study of Preschool Teachers

“…Wells (2015) suggested that researching preschool teacher turnover is a complex task, as many factors have a significant impact on teacher turnover. Some of these factors include (1) personal factors such as little respect and appreciation from the public, low salary and benefits, low education, family sickness and death, and marital status (Goelman and Guo 1998;Hall-Kenyon et al 2014;Holochwost et al 2009;Wells 2015); (2) classroom responsibilities such as children's behavioral issues, high demands and responsibilities, and lack of control (Bullough et al 2012;Goelman and Guo 1998;Kaiser et al 1993;Rentzou 2012); and (3) relationship issues such as receiving little administrative support and communication, having a worse relationship with their supervisor, and lack of cooperation from co-workers (Cumming 2016; Goelman and Guo1998; Wells 2015).…”

A Study of Childcare Teacher Retention in the Childcare Service Industry

“…Early childhood education is important because it nurtures the rapid growth in the learning ability during the first 6 years of a child’s life. During these early years, the child starts his or her cognitive, social, emotional and physical development (Fenech, 2006; Holochwost, Demott, Buell, Yannetta, & Amsden, 2009; Siu & Lam, 2005). Research indicates that teachers with high-level competencies have a positive impact in providing quality early childhood care and education to meet the needs of young children and their families (Holochwost et al, 2009; OECD, 2012; Sylva, Melhuish, Sammons, Siraj-Blatchford, & Taggart 2004; Wertfein, Spies-Kofler, & Becker-Stoll, 2009).…”