Math Teacher Retention

Last weekend to celebrate my birthday I went to Los Angeles for a math education symposium. The big wigs of the math world have been researching how to increase math teacher retention and this was a forum designed for all parties to share what they have learned. The goal was to come together in an effort to learn how to keep more math teachers in the field.

For the last few years I was one of the case study teachers. I was observed and interviewed. That is how I managed to get invited to the show. It was a three-day event; I was slated to speak in a panel on the final day. I was told I had 16 minutes. I wasn’t a major player in this ordeal, but was big enough that they paid for my airfare and hotel.

I didn’t plan much ahead of time, because I knew I was speaking the third day so I would have time to feel out the conference, learn my audience, and pinpoint my focus. I spent the first two days attending sessions and compiling some thoughts in an effort to answer the question: How do we keep math teachers in the field? I outlined my thoughts Friday night so I was ready to speak Saturday morning.

I told a couple different stories about the way my principals have responded to me. I shared some examples about how I have had a somewhat transient path. I even mentioned that each year I think about quitting and each year I come back. I posed the question:

“I don’t care too much about money, and I don’t have history of stability. I’m a perfect case study. How are you going to retain me?”

I spent the weekend asking myself that very question: What makes me choose to come back each year?

I even made a list to share with the audience:

• Do I feel needed?

• Do I feel appreciated and valued?

• Are my opinions/suggestions heard? Respected? Implemented?

• Does my work matter? Am I impacting the lives of the children?

Basically everything on my list related back to feeling like what I am doing is worthwhile. I was able to examine myself, a case study of one, and rephrase the essential question to, “How do we make the teachers we want to retain feel appreciated?”

From there I went on to discuss some of the benefits of being part of the California Math Project (CMPSTIR). Among these included: being part of a community and team, increasing job competency, receiving positive feedback, developing a network in the area, and learning to be a teacher-coach.

Through my reflections while attending this entire symposium, I was able to come up with my own solutions. I closed with three pieces of advice for teacher retention: (I will admit that when I got to this part it was nice to see everyone in my small audience pick up a pen and record my words).

1. Set up a system where teachers are developing their competency and confidence in classroom instruction.

2. Create a collaborative environment where teachers feel they are an important part of a community.

And most importantly…

3. If you have a teacher of high quality that you want to retain, let them know.

You can write that last one down, I told them, and put my name after it. It is simple, and should be obvious, but it is what keeps me going.