To Switch or Not to Switch? The Influence of School Choice and Labor Market Segmentation on Teachers’ Job Searches

Abstract

Informal and institutional barriers may limit teacher movement between charter schools and traditional public schools (TPSs). However, we know little about how teachers choose schools in areas with a robust charter school sector. This study uses qualitative data from 123 teachers to examine teachers’ job decisions in three cities with varying charter densities: San Antonio, Detroit, and New Orleans. Our findings illuminate different types of segmentation and factors that facilitate and limit mobility between sectors. We find that structural policies within each sector can create barriers to mobility across charter schools and TPSs and that teachers’ ideological beliefs and values serve as informal, personal barriers that reinforce divides between sectors. This study offers implications for policy in districts with school choice.

School choice, teachers’ work, and professional identity

“…We focused on teachers working and seeking employment in the public sector (charter and TPSs) since it employs a larger share of teachers than the private school sector. Although there is significant variation within each sector, some research has shown how charter school workplaces are characterized by lower wages, longer and more unpredictable work hours, and higher turnover, while TPSs often have greater job stability, predictable career paths, and higher salaries (Cannata, 2011;Gulosino & Ni, 2018;Jabbar et al, 2019).…”

“…Although current research has largely neglected the job search as an important channel shaping teacher professional identity, studies examining differences between how teachers in TPSs and charter schools select jobs offer some insight. Evidence suggests teachers who choose to work in TPSs seek work environments with positive reputations, job security, geographic location, unionization, and school context familiarity (Boyd et al, 2008;Cannata, 2010;Jabbar et al, 2019), while charter teachers place higher value on school mission, autonomy over teaching, small school size, influence over school policies, type of instructional approach, and tuition/loan forgiveness (Cannata, 2011;Cannata & Peñaloza, 2012). Additionally, since new teachers will likely seek out employment opportunities consistent with professional identities developed in their teacher education programs (Boswell et al, 2012;Thomas & Mockler, 2018), job search effort and intensity may also differ by preparation pathway.…”

“…Although a choice policy context, along with an array of marketplace options for teacher preparation, intensifies competition for teachers (Carruthers, 2012;Hoxby, 2000;Jabbar et al, 2019), it also affords teachers greater flexibility to pursue jobs in line with their professional identity. However, teachers' job options are moderated by labor market factors like salary and benefits, systems for hiring (i.e., centralized or decentralized), information transparency, or licensure and certification requirements (Jackson, 2012;Parding et al, 2017).…”

“…However, teachers' job options are moderated by labor market factors like salary and benefits, systems for hiring (i.e., centralized or decentralized), information transparency, or licensure and certification requirements (Jackson, 2012;Parding et al, 2017). Scarcity, or the availability of jobs, may also force teachers to compromise key job preferences related to their professional identity (Cannata, 2010;Jabbar et al, 2019). At the same time, shortages may draw teachers to contexts they previously undervalued or did not consider (Williams et al, 2021).…”

Innovation to what end? Exploring the dynamic landscape of Texas teacher preparation pathways

“…When teachers are not adequately prepared to serve, the disconnect between teacher education and practice is linked to long-term academic, relational, and workforce outcomes such as lower expectations for students of color, limited or static understanding of students' cultures and identities, reduced motivation or job satisfaction, and increased turnover and attrition (Domínguez, 2019;Ingersoll et al, 2014;Redding & Smith, 2016). A humanistic frame of innovation centering equity, coupled with the tangible and intangible aspects of innovation (i.e., technological tools, improved strategies, or culturally-relevant and justice-oriented approaches) can lead to greater system-wide changes (Serdyukov, 2017).…”