Teacher Attrition and Mobility: Results from the 2004-05 Teacher Follow-Up Survey. NCES 2007-307

The objective of the Teacher Follow-up Survey (TFS) is to provide information about teacher mobility and attrition among elementary and secondary school teachers who teach in grades K-12 in the 50 states and the District of Columbia. In pursuit of this objective, TFS examines the characteristics of those who stay in the teaching profession and those who leave, including retirees. By collecting information on respondents' attitudes about the teaching profession and job satisfaction along with demographic data, TFS can address questions such as the following: "What percentage of teachers leave the profession between one year and the next?" "What factors contribute to teachers' decisions to move to another school or to leave the profession?""How many teachers move from one school to another?" and "Where do teachers go when they move or leave?" TFS also allows comparisons of the characteristics and opinions of teachers who remain at the same school from year to year with those of teachers who either move to a different school or leave the profession. This First Look report provides some selected findings from the 2004-05 TFS along with data tables and methodological information. Appended are: (1) Standard Error Tables; (2) Methodology and Technical Notes; (3) Summary of Variables. (Contains 13 tables.)