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Teacher turnover has become a growing concern in many countries around the world because of the associated staffing shortages and the unavoidable impact on educational quality. This study aims to better understand teachers’ motivation to leave or to stay in the profession in the context of English language teaching in the Vietnamese university sector. Data collected from 30 semi-structured interviews with EFL teachers from 14 universities in Vietnam revealed an array of factors driving attrition. Findings reveal that Vietnamese university EFL teachers’ turnover intentions included a desire to pursue a passion other than teaching, job enthusiasm erosion, job-related stress, workplace conflicts, heavy workloads, and personal-related reasons. However, not all teachers translated their leaving intentions into actual behaviours. A negotiation process involving different mediators was undertaken before teachers decided to leave or to remain in teaching. Findings also highlight the importance of intrinsic motivation in keeping teachers engaged and committed to teaching.

This study examined the degree of teacher autonomy that Vietnamese university English as a foreign language (EFL) teachers have in selecting their own courses, as well as their perceptions of their freedom, or lack thereof, in course selection and course allocation. Using self-determination theory as a theoretical framework, this study found that Vietnamese EFL teachers had little say in what courses were allocated to them to teach. Rather, the courses were assigned to them by their leaders or course coordinators. The analysis of participating teachers' (N=20) responses in semi-structured interviews revealed that participants were ambivalent in relation to the course allocation process. Some teachers preferred their leaders to assign courses to them, while others were not happy with the course allocation but chose to compromise; there was also a group of teachers who were disappointed with the course allocation process and would prefer to select their own courses. The study concludes that teachers' need for autonomy varies between individuals. The findings also support the application of self-determination theory in investigating teacher autonomy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]