Cost of Teacher Turnover

Teacher turnover has been identified as a major obstacle in staffing the nation's schools with qualified teachers. Excessive turnover and shortages make it difficult to build strong teacher learning communities within schools. Some states and districts have begun developing financial and other incentives to increase teacher retention. Anthony Milanowski and Allan Odden from the University of Wisconsin explain their recent research and a new estimation of the cost of teacher turnover in their working paper titled A New Approach to the Cost of Teacher Turnover.

This study brought forth the complexities involved in estimating the cost of teacher turnover. Loss of productivity and training costs (both induction and continued professional development) is difficult to estimate, however it is imperative that they are both in the equation when determining the cost of teacher turnover and previously they were not. Loss of productivity seems to be most difficult to estimate since not all teachers teach subjects that produce test scores linking them with student achievement. However, it is agreed upon that the costs can be high when a relatively new teacher replaces an experienced teacher.

Prior research indicated that the approximate cost of turnover was between $3,400 and $5,200. Milanowski and Odden suggest that separation processing, replacement staffing, and induction costs between $6,829 and $8,273 per vacancy. This study concludes that it is most costly to lose teachers who have some experience, not those at the end of their career or those completing their first year.

To read the entire paper A New Approach to the Cost of Teacher Turnover by Milanowski and Odden please go to University of Washington's School Finance Redesign Project website at http://www.schoolfinanceredesign.org/pub/pdf/wp13_milanowskiodden.pdf