2024 Update: What’s the Cost of Teacher Turnover?
High teacher turnover undermines student achievement, and replacing teachers consumes valuable staff time and resources. Turnover also has an important impact on teacher shortages because most open positions each year are created by teachers leaving the profession before retirement.
The research used to create the teacher turnover calculator indicates that larger districts can, on average, spend nearly $25,000 on replacing a departing teacher when school and district expenses related to separation, recruitment, hiring, and training are factored in. High turnover can have additional fiscal impacts, as the investments made for hiring do not pay their full dividend when teachers leave within a few years.
This tool can be used to estimate the cost of teacher turnover in a school or district and to inform local conversations about how to attract, support, and retain a high-quality teacher workforce. High-leverage strategies are highlighted below. For more details on the methodology of the calculator and the underlying studies used to estimate the cost of teacher turnover, please see the technical supplement.
Ways to Reduce Teacher Turnover
Local, state, and federal education leaders and policymakers all have an important role to play in addressing high teacher turnover and perennial staffing difficulties. Research points to the following strategies as key to building a strong and stable teacher workforce.
View the interactive tool on the Learning Policy Institute’s website.
Tags: AACTE partner organizations, policy, resources
