Chapter 3: Recruitment and Retention in PETE: Foundations in Occupational Socialization Theory

Abstract

Chapter 2 overviewed the teacher pipeline and documented some of the challenges faced by the physical education profession in relation to teacher education recruitment and retention. Given declining program enrollments and the elimination of some once-prominent programs, a theory of action is recommended for understanding how the field can better recruit and retain diverse, highly qualified preservice teachers. In this chapter, we argue that occupational socialization theory presents one such theory of action. We begin with an overview of the theory in a general sense and then discuss possible implications for preservice teacher recruitment and retention. Recommended recruitment efforts focus on leveraging both physical education teacher education faculty members and in-service teachers as agents of recruitment; retention strategies relate to developing field-based teacher education programs that adopt a constructivist approach to teaching and learning. We conclude by describing how occupational socialization theory relates to guide research presented within this monograph.