Exploring Expatriate Teachers’ Contract Renewal in International Schools: A Case Study

Teacher turnover in international schools is high, and recruiting new teachers is a costly endeavor. The purpose of this qualitative, exploratory case study was to examine the personal and professional experiences of expatriate international teachers at international schools to develop a deeper, more heuristic understanding of the international teaching experience, particularly how the experiences might affect their decision to remain at a school past their initial contract period. The conceptual framework used in this study was a model of multi-level cultural influences that impinge on an individual teacher in an international school. The purposive sample was 20 international school teachers who have taught in two or more countries outside of their home country. The data collection included a questionnaire answered by the 20 teachers, 10 of whom agreed to be interviewed. The in-depth, semi-structured interviews took place in Google Meet and were recorded and transcribed using Otter.ai software. Transcripts were member checked. Thematic analysis and triangulation were used to identify and support the findings. The findings revealed that international school teachers follow a progression of life goals when deciding which school to teach at. International school recruiters and administrators can use these findings to inform policy and practices to mitigate the challenges associated with high turnover and costly recruitment, like offering longer contracts and encouraging confidential feedback on administrators’ performance. More research surrounding diversity, equity and inclusion in international schools is required, as well as understanding how the pandemic affected international school teachers.