Project Overview
Campbell University is one of three independent universities in the state to be awarded a grant from the North Carolina Collaboratory as part of the N.C. Research and Recovery effort.
The N.C. Department of Public Instruction and North Carolina Collaboratory are leading a joint $6.73 million effort to spur research on the impact of COVID-19 on student learning in the state, with the goal of helping educators and students recover from pandemic-related disruptions and lost instructional time. Based on priorities identified by NCDPI’s Office of Learning Recovery and Acceleration , the partnership will fund 20 academic research teams (which includes Campbell) to understand the effectiveness of existing state and local programs and policies that were supported through federal Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief legislation.
This research-practice partnership will take place over the next two years. The 19 teams of grant awardees met in December at the Department of Education in Raleigh to start a network of scholars, policy makers and school leaders. At the kickoff meeting, Dr. Jeni Corn, director of research and learning at the Department of Public Instruction, noted that this effort is the largest allocation of research dollars for education in North Carolina since Race to the Top.
Research Questions
This study seeks to examine the inhibiting and supporting factors related to teacher retention by examining the school districts with the lowest and highest teacher attrition. The five research questions are:
1. How did the pandemic affect staffing at public schools?
2. How did the pandemic affect school climate?
3. What were the reasons cited by educators for staying or leaving their profession?
4. How do patterns of retention vary by educator characteristics and contextual factors?
5. What are the most promising strategies and policies at the district, school, and State level to recruit and retain staff and fill vacancies?
Methods
This is a mixed methods study that will draw on existing data sets in combination with newly collected interview and focus group data. We hope to have 8-10 rural school districts represented.
The qualitative data will be collected during through in-person site visits and zoom meetings. Three focus groups with teachers are planned in each school district. Between 50-70 interviews are planned. Semi-structured interviews will be conducted with:
· School Superintendents (N=10)
· Human Resource Directors (conduct exit interviews and onboard/orientation) (N=10)
· 3-5 principals of schools in the LEA, with at least one from each school level (elementary, middle, high) for interviews with 30-50 principals.
Campbell University
PO Box 369
Buies Creek NC 27506