Attracting teachers to remote Tasmanian communities and encouraging them to stay

Attracting teachers to, and retaining them in, remote and isolated areas has been an ongoing issue nationally and internationally. The literature shows the majority of strategies designed to address it have focused on attracting teachers. These strategies are commonly aimed at graduate teachers, and current practice in Tasmania is no different. This study used mixed methods to investigate why teachers choose to teach in remote Tasmanian communities, why teachers leave remote communities, strategies and practices being used to attract and retain teachers to remote communities, and how these strategies and practices might be improved or added to. Past teachers and principals, teachers and principals working in the communities in 2015, a non-school based Tasmanian Department of Education employee, University of Tasmania Faculty of Education pre-service teacher educators, pre-service teachers who were in their final year of their initial teacher education program in 2015, and remote community members in the remote communities were involved in this study. Data analysis revealed that the majority of teachers that go to the remote community are beginning teachers, are lured by permanency, and leave after 3 years. It was found that current practice does not attract experienced teachers (and principals) resulting in a lack of collegial support and mentoring for beginning teachers. A key finding was that responsibility for attracting and retaining teachers to remote Tasmanian communities does not lie just with the Tasmanian Department of Education. The University of Tasmania Faculty of Education plays a key role to influence attraction, and principals in remote schools, and the remote communities themselves play key roles in influencing retention. The study suggests improvement of practice and concludes with recommendations that have the potential to result in a different approach in thinking about these issues in Tasmania and beyond.