Teacher Longevity and Career Satisfaction in the Secondary Agricultural Education Classroom

Abstract

This study investigated the characteristics and rationale for teacher longevity and success in the secondary agricultural education classroom. The population was 7,300 (N = 7,300) secondary agricultural education teachers in the United States instructing grades 6-12 during 2017-2018. The sample frame was obtained through the National Association of Agriculture Educators membership list and a random sample (n = 187) of the population was selected using the Cochran’s (1977) formula for continuous variables. The instrument used to collect data for this study was developed from a review of existing literature and consisted of 80 statements organized in four categories: influencers for career choice, employer characteristics, role of the FFA Advisor and FFA involvement, personal characteristics and professional growth, and personal characteristic questions. Participants who identified the overall characteristics which reflect their classroom longevity and success were feeling secure in their employment, developing their program, high satisfaction levels received from teaching and the variety of the lessons, and indicated former teachers having the greatest influence on their decision to pursue secondary agricultural education. The findings indicated that there are significant areas of success that should be investigated and revisited to determine the motivation for teachers to remain in the field.