Preparation, Professional Development, and Retention of Quality English Teachers It is well understood that "few experiences in life have such a tremendous impact on the personal and professional life of a teacher as does the first year of teaching" (Gold, 1996: 548). Yet, despite the acknowledged significance of the 'early years', there is a clear lack of systematic longitudinal research into the experiences of these teachers: research that seeks to understand both what inspires teachers to remain within the profession, and address the alarming attrition rates of early career teachers, with one in five, or more, choosing to end their careers - to leave the profession for good - in their first three to five years of service (Ewing, 2001; Hardy, 1999; Gold, 1996) This paper reports on the interim findings of an international, longitudinal study of the experiences of beginning secondary English teachers. Reported here is stage one of the research study. Conducted in the United Kingdom and Australia, the research set out to trace the professional development and career profile of beginning English teachers from the initial teacher education phase, through the early years of employment. One of the fundamental aims of the study has been to understand and recognize the forces which shape and influence beginning teachers' career decisions, and thereby more fully address the pressing, internationally relevant issues of teacher retention and attrition.