Our Trajectories as We Leave the Teaching Profession: Pláticas with Former Bilingual Teachers on the U.S.-Mexico Border in Texas- An Explanatory Sequential Mixed-Methods Study

Teacher attrition has had a negative impact on the educational system for many years. New and experienced teachers have been leaving the classroom. Although the reasons appear repetitive, we know relatively little about what teachers must go through when deciding to leave the profession and what happens to them afterward. A teacher shortage is occurring along the U.S.-Mexico border, as in many other cities across the United States. Despite undergoing a lengthy certification process, teachers continue to leave the classroom. This research employed an explanatory sequential mixed-methods design to explore how new and experienced teachers navigate their transition out of the classroom and transform their futures. Guided by Schlossberg’s Transition Theory and the following questions, this mixed-method study examines how teachers navigate out of the profession: 1) How do new and experienced former bilingual female teachers on the U.S.-Mexico border in Texas describe their transitions and transformations once they decide to leave the classroom? 2) What influences former bilingual female teachers’ perspectives of identity, transformation, and life after teaching? 3) How do former bilingual female teachers feel about their decision to leave the profession now that they have moved on to another career/job? The researcher employed a mixed-methods design. Quantitative data were collected from 25 participants through a pre-survey, and 6 participants were selected through homogeneous sampling to participate in a pláticas and a follow-up post-plática survey. Qualitative data were collected through pláticas, a bilingual conversation rooted in informal conversations with six participants. The post-plática survey was used as a triangulation tool to confirm, contrast, and extend on what participants shared during the pláticas. Through the integration of a joint display, convergence emerged across both strands: teachers faced different kinds of situations, reconstructed their sense of self, relied on family-based supports, and adopted strategies for renewal. Findings revealed that participants identified family, skills, and a sense of eagerness to transform their professional and personal lives as critical supports that gave them the impetus to transition out of the classroom. Pláticas gave participants the space to reflect and retell their stories in a way that made them feel leaving the classroom was a transformation, not the end of their professional life. The post-plática survey results added evidence that the pláticas had an impact on participants’ thinking. This study contributes to the literature on teacher attrition, working conditions, retention, transitions, and related topics that influence the teaching profession. The study highlights that a successful life can follow teaching, and that methods such as pláticas can encourage teachers to discuss their transitions and transformations with purpose, dignity, and resilience.