Racial and Ethnic Disparities in Adolescent Teaching Career Expectations

Research on the dearth of teachers of color has focused on disparities in college enrollment, completion, and academic major. The present study examines whether disparities may begin earlier. Analyses of nationally representative longitudinal data show that students of color are 2 to 4 percentage points less likely to hold teaching career expectations than White students in Grade 9—a pattern that remains stable during high school and 7 years later. Controlling for academic and socioeconomic backgrounds reduces the gap between Latinx and White students, but the gap persists for students of other racial and ethnic minority groups. Additional findings show early teaching career expectations relate to racial and ethnic disparities among college students who major in education. The study has implications for improving teacher diversity and rethinking pipeline challenges.