The Public School Teachers Questionnaire from the 1987-88 Schools and Staffing Survey was analyzed to produce a descriptive portrait of vocational and nonvocational teachers of grades 9-12 in public schools. The sample consisted of 3,863 vocational and 14,315 nonvocational teachers. Almost 90 percent of each group classified themselves as white.…

The California New Teacher Project (CNTP) has demonstrated that intensive support, continued training, and informative assessments of teachers in their first professional years result in better instruction for students and higher retention rates for teachers. The 37 projects of CNTP were funded on the basis of their plans to implement alternative…

Interviews with 74 Maori teachers in New Zealand who had resigned from teaching and with 23 other educators examined issues in the retention of Maori teachers. Former Maori teachers are described in terms of: (1) gender and geographical distribution; (2) type of teacher training; (3) colleges of education attended; (4) level of educational…

In 1991, a study was conducted to provide a demographic profile of Colorado's community college faculty; to determine their retirement intentions; to predict the percent of faculty retiring over the next 14 years; to ascertain those incentives most favorable for retaining the services of faculty beyond their retirement eligibility; and to…

Since l984, the Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD) has been operating the California Mentor Teacher Program (MTP), initiated and supported by the state, to give special help to new or inexperienced teachers and encourage competent teachers to continue teaching. The study reported in these two volumes evaluated program effectiveness and…

A small group of Boston Public School teachers met for a year to explore the question of what keeps teachers going, a question that bears asking because of the precarious situation of public education today. In this article, I describe the work of the What Keeps Teachers Going? inquiry group as a way to challenge current notions of what it means…

This paper explores the lack of vitality among community college mid-career faculty, arguing that this may be an even more severe problem at two-year colleges than at four-year institutions. Emphasis is placed on the role of community colleges and the institutional changes required to revitalize mid-career faculty. The problem of faculty vitality…

This newsletter reports research findings from 31 rural New York school districts on teacher recruitment and retention. Of 31 superintendents interviewed in September 1987, 55% reported rising elementary enrollment; 61% had difficulty filling positions; 84% had too few applicants; and 68% reported a scarcity of appropriately certified applicants.…

A survey of 539 graduates of Iowa State University Agricultural Education Department from mid-1964 through 1981 was conducted. The graduates were grouped according to their experiences related to the teaching of vocational agriculture: those who decided not to teach, those who taught vocational agriculture and subsequently left the teaching…

This study describes the changes in demographic characteristics of beginning teachers who entered the profession between 1956-57 and 1976. Existing literature on beginning teachers is examined to construct an image of the changes that have occurred among those choosing teaching careers. National and statewide samples are reviewed; however,…

A study investigated the effects on the labor market of various proposed retirement options for teachers in South Carolina. First, questionnaires were sent to personnel officers in the 91 South Carolina school districts eliciting, first, facts and estimates relating to the supply of and demand for teachers and, second, their opinions on the ways…

The shortage of qualified mathematics and science teachers is a problem likely to grow in the coming decade, reflecting teacher shortages in other subject specialties. In 1981, almost five times more science and mathematics teachers left to take nonteaching jobs than did teachers in other disciplines. Replacements for these teachers are often…

In considering the problem of recruiting and retaining the most able candidates for teaching, five dilemmas facing the profession are discussed. They are: Equity vs. Excellence; Egalitarianism vs. Differentiation; Teaching: Art or Science; the Curriculum--Standardization vs. Individualization; and The Focus of Instruction. The following problems…

A survey was conducted of 2933 University of Michigan graduates who had obtained teaching certificates from 1946 to 1976. Information was sought on teacher career patterns and what teachers see as important criteria for professional success. An attempt was made also to ascertain how many graduates have persisted as teachers and, if they have not,…

The drop-out rate of new vocational agriculture teachers and the necessity of a method to determine problem areas that affect the success of beginning teachers were two important concerns of the Southern Research Conference in Agricultural Education. Therefore, a study was conducted to determine what, if any, changes need to be made by teacher…