Early-Career Teacher Perceptions: Trends from the 2024 Tennessee Educator Survey

About the Brief

The early years of teaching are often the most challenging, as new teachers work to balance instruction and classroom management, making effective preparation and support critical for their growth and retention. The 2023 Tennessee Educator Survey found that early-career teachers who felt well-prepared and received supports like mentorship were more likely to plan to remain in their schools. In response to a national and statewide shift away from traditional certification routes, Tennessee has expanded alternative pathways such as its Grow Your Own initiative to diversify and strengthen the teacher pipeline.

Data from the survey’s Early-Career Branch offers valuable insights into the experiences of teachers in their first three years, helping inform strategies to recruit, prepare, support, and retain new educators.

Key Findings

1. More than half of first-year teachers reported that they entered teaching through a non-traditional pathway.
2. About two-thirds of earlycareer teachers reported that they were assigned a formal teacher mentor in their first year of teaching, and those who had a mentor reported positive mentorship experiences.
3. Early-career teachers had similar retention plans to non-early-career teachers.
4. Early-career teachers more often cited school culture and encouragement from administrators than more veteran teachers when making retention decisions for the next school year.

Suggested Citation

Kaitlin Binsted. (2025). Early-Career Teacher Perceptions: Trends from the 2024 Tennessee Educator Survey. Tennessee Education Research Alliance.