Abstract
Teacher retention remains a pressing challenge in many education systems worldwide despite the many longstanding policy and research initiatives aimed at addressing the challenge. The study had three objectives. The first objective was to provide a comprehensive summary of factors that previous research has associated with teacher retention decisions. Following Cochrane guidelines, a systematic review of research reviews was conducted to accomplish this first goal. Based on a critical analysis of theories used to guide teacher retention research, the second objective was to explore the potential of Social Cognitive Career Theory (SCCT) to better explain how and why teachers decide to stay in or leave their schools. The third objective was to interpret the retention factors identified by the review of reviews through the lens of an education-specific adaption of SCCT we label Ed-SCCT. Results demonstrate that a large proportion of the most consequential factors associated with teacher retention are found within the school organization. Furthermore, Ed-SCCT demonstrated that retention factors, as they manifest themselves in schools, form a complex web of distal to proximal relationships potentially influenced by those in school leadership roles. Teacher retention policies and practice are likely to be much more successful when they acknowledge the complex interactive nature of most retention factors, as well as the central role of the school organization and its leadership in influencing how these factors connect to impact teacher retention.