It is well established that teacher attrition in the first five years is high, but we must be careful in asking why. I know that one reason for some is the stultifying, unionized environment that the brightest and most dedicated new teachers find themselves in. They may have gone into teaching anxious to motivate and inspire, and find they are lumped in with tenured deadwood that are merely putting in their time toward a nice pension.
The sad fact that tenure protects the incompetent as well as the competent is why the teacher corps has such a sullied reputation. The really best and brightest teachers really don’t particularly like their unions. In a meritocracy, they would be paid much more, and the deadwood would be driven out if they did not improve. So high teacher attrition in the first few years may be eliminating some of the very best potential talent.
