Determinación de Carbono Orgánico en el suelo 82

location. Another reason stated was that they have been raised not to give up whatever the challenges. Teacher 11 shared that, “If they say I have to go to a different school, I wouldn’t have a problem with that. But my passion is right here at this school.” Teacher 4 replied that, “I have been asked why wouldn’t I teach in the district in which I live?” Her reply is that “I would rather teach here.” Teacher 6 explained that:

My parents brought me up to not be a quitter. They instilled in me that you finish what you start, and I consider my career a start and a finish. So, even when things get hard – things are going to be hard – you have to put on your big-girl pants and keep going. When asked what, if anything, might make them consider leaving their position, the types of factors cited were mainly personal or family related (4) or retirement (2) rather than factors relating to the job or the school. Teacher 3 expressed the view, for example, that:

If I did leave it, I would probably leave it because of my health. It wouldn’t be anything to do – because I tell people now, they’ll say Miss xx when are you going to retire? How many years are you going to work? I’ll say, I hope (when) I die I’ll be working.

Teacher 11 stated that, “I guess with the distance too. I travel about 40 minutes every day from the interstate and it’s a long ride. That’s the only thing, distance.” Teacher 6 explained that:

I have not thought about leaving until recently now that it’s getting close to retirement. Still, that decision is so hard because this is part of my life. This is my life. It’s hard to make that decision to finally end it. I was supposed to end it last year and I’m still here and I’m supposed to end it this year and I’m still coming back next year.

Three teachers cited school related factors as possible reasons for considering leaving: one had previously considered leaving due to workload pressures but had decided to stay. Others

indicated they might consider leaving their current position if attracted by a promotion or higher salary. Teachers 8 expressed a concern about pay step increases:

Step increase, that’s what I was thinking, the step increase. Our district, when you reach 23 years, it stops. I’ve contemplated that, and also, in our neighboring district, I know that they base your salary on those last five years for retirement. I know a neighboring district, it’s like $10,000 more a year to teach, so those have been the only two things that have made me think would I want to look somewhere else, and it’s simply the financial. Another teacher indicated that teachers in her school may consider leaving due to the lack of community development and future opportunities for their own children. Teacher 12

explained:

Lately the county has not been growing like I think they should, and I’m hoping we can bring some more industry here. And if we don’t bring any more industry, I was thinking about maybe leaving – because I have younger children; I have a 6 year-old and an 8 year-old and I want them to receive the best education possible. So I’m hoping the town can grow some. And if not, that’s the only way I would leave, only if the town won’t show it in prosperity.

To provide additional insights into the reasons for retention difficulties faced by rural and high poverty schools, the participants were also asked for their perceived reasons as to why other teachers had left their schools. The most commonly cited factor, reported by three teachers, was lack of support from school administration in dealing with challenges such as student behavior, a factor which is at least partially within the control of schools. Interviewed teachers also

Probably (why) some of these other people would want to leave is the behavior. I know they say that behavior is a factor in having that administrative support. Some of them feel lack of support with the heavy issues.

Teacher 6 also reported that there is “No support with behavior,” and stated:

We hear a lot of – if someone goes wrong in our classroom, it’s classroom management, which … it’s not always the case. There’s a lot of behaviors that have to – when you have a child who’s in second grade and seven years have passed by, it’s hard to change that behavior now, and it’s not always classroom management.

She further explained:

Most veterans that you find, I think, are willing to work with those kind of children. It’s just that the first year teacher has to love teaching before they want to keep doing it, and I’ve seen teachers walk out of this school after their first year and go into something else. They don’t want to teach, they don’t want anything to do with teaching. That can’t be. We can’t do that.

Three of the interviewed teachers indicated either that other teachers had left their schools due to low salaries per se (2) or low salaries combined with workload pressures (1). Teacher 1 stated:

If the state would pay teachers – we all came into this position for a reason. I feel like everybody that was really good at it has moved out of teaching because of stress and getting underpaid … And just the stress of day-to-day stuff like paperwork. I mean, when I first started, we had to do paperwork, but it’s nothing like it is now.

Teacher 8 recounted an example of a long-serving teacher known to be leaving for a higher salary:

We have a teacher who was leaving who’s been here the whole time. She’s leaving for next year to go to the neighboring district because of the salary … she’s going to have, I think, a 45-minute drive, but she wants to base that last five years for her retirement. Research Question 3

What incentives could be added to impact the recruitment and retention of teachers in rural, high poverty, districts?