School systems have long faced teacher shortages, with high turnover rates exacerbating the shortage, particularly in Career and Technical Education (CTE). Teachers who enter CTE through alternative licensure (AL) face unique obstacles transitioning from industry to teaching. This study addressed the retention challenge among AL CTE teachers by…

The attrition of classroom teachers has garnered significant attention due to its impact on education. While past discourse focused on pay as the driving force behind departures, our study delves into the qualitative aspects of attrition. Reviewing a dataset spanning 40+ years, we explore multifaceted reasons behind teachers considering leaving…

Israel suffers from a severe STEM teacher shortage. To mitigate it, two retraining projects were developed: one recruiting academic high-tech professionals and the other -- practical engineers. This study evaluated both projects by exploring stakeholders' perspectives and examining graduates' retention. Applying a mixed-methods case study design,…

The transition from industry to academia can present unique challenges for new faculty members in STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) fields. Considering high drop, fail, withdraw (DFW) rates in undergraduate STEM courses and the need to increase the number of well-prepared graduates in these areas, it is important to better…

In Sweden, upper secondary vocational education and training (VET) teachers must have high relevant vocational experience from a previous career, but 44% do not have a teaching certificate and thus are not formally qualified. However, there are significant differences between the 12 national VET programs in this respect. For example, 68 percent of…

This dissertation explores the link between doctorate holders' job mobility, which is defined as a change of employers, and their knowledge production. For this, three research questions have been addressed: (1) Does job mobility affect doctorate holders' research productivity? (2) Does the effect of job mobility on research productivity differ by…

Through a narrative study of three second-career teachers who started their professional lives as English-as-a-second-language (ESL) teachers and then became Chinese-as-a-second-language (CSL) teachers, we examine how the participants constructed their professional identities across their trans-professional experiences. In this study, we define…

In Ireland state funded support services provide Continuing Professional Development for teachers and school leaders. These services are staffed with teachers seconded from their schools on an annual basis for a maximum of five years. This study investigated the learning and experience of teachers seconded to a national support service, the…

Recruiting and retaining vocational education and training (VET) educators is an increasing challenge in countries across the world. So understanding their transition and retention is vital to the development of a sustainable workforce. This paper draws on interviews with senior administrators of Australian training providers and survey data from…

Irish Further Education and Training (FET) is presently undergoing a period of transformation after years of experiencing issues related to identity and precarious employment, among others. This paper explores the experiences and motivations of 16 student teachers who, despite the sectoral challenges, have chosen to teach in FET as a second…

University graduates have invested significant time, money, and effort into completing their studies, with many discovering that their chosen discipline is not what they were expecting, nor the right fit for their individual values or goals. Transition between disciplines is particularly common in the helping professions, but little is known about…

As more K-12 educators leave their teaching careers, it is unclear why they decide to depart from teaching. Retention is an ongoing problem, particularly with special education inclusion teachers (SEITs). A qualitative narrative analysis was conducted with four SEITs to determine why they departed from their profession. Each participant was…

This dissertation examines why teachers shift into hybrid teacher leadership positions as well as the systems and context that make such a shift possible. Hybrid teacher leadership positions have the potential to enable teachers to lead without leaving the classroom because the teachers spend a portion of their day in the classroom and the rest of…

Special and disabled services are important issues for improving teaching practices and the provision of facilities for disabled people. Disabilities among military-veteran teaching staff are not widely discussed, despite the importance of the experiences that veteran STEM teachers can bring to the classroom. The purpose of this study is to…

"Crossing over to the dark side" is a popular reference to someone's decision to leave the supposed "good, pure, and honest" side of something to go to its "bad, evil, and suspicious" side. This idiom is typically used when an administrator moves into a faculty position or vice versa. While there is a plethora of…