Influential others: Infant/toddler teachers’ perspectives on entry into and retention in the infant/toddler workforce

ABSTRACT This qualitative descriptive study was designed to answer the following questions: How do infant/toddler teachers (ITTs) enter the infant/toddler workforce? What motivates teachers to work in the infant/toddler workforce? What recruitment strategies are identified by experienced ITTs? What retention strategies are identified by experienced ITTs? Ten experienced ITTs participated in sixty-minute interviews. Their responses reveal five themes that point to the influences of others – including faculty, supervisors, coworkers, and infants themselves – in supporting teachers’ entries into and tenure in the infant/toddler workforce. Implications and directions for future research on the influences of others in the infant/toddler (I/T) workforce are discussed.