Modeling Teacher Retention and Attrition in Alberta: An Intersectional Analysis of Demographic, Work Environment, and Labour Market Factors

Across Canada, teachers in the Kindergarten to Grade 12 (K-12) education system are leaving the profession within their first five years at historically high rates (e.g., in Alberta, most recent estimates are 43% up from 30% a decade ago). Many teachers who decide to make an early exit say they left because of an unreasonable workload and unsupportive management. K-12 classrooms are becoming more complex as class sizes grow, students of all abilities and capacities are in classes together, and educators are expected to respond to diverse learning needs (e.g., social, emotional, behavioural, cultural, political). Given the many different possible factors in why a teacher may decide to leave the profession permanently before reaching retirement age, as well as current resource constraints across the K-12 education system hindering data collection and monitoring efforts, there is an unmet need to understand the sociodemographic and region-specific reasons for teacher attrition. In this study, we plan to conduct an online survey of people who have worked as teachers in Alberta within the past five years. The survey has questions about participants' demographics, work environment, employment conditions, burnout risk, and career intentions. We will analyze the data to see if there are certain factors that have a strong relationship to respondents' career outlooks and intentions. This knowledge could help to inform decision-making amongst education stakeholders, including school division leaders, politicians, and postsecondary institutions.