Collective pedagogical teacher culture, teacher–student ethno-racial mismatch, and teacher job satisfaction

•White kindergarten teachers less satisfied with jobs than teachers of color.•White kindergarten teachers especially less satisfied when teaching diverse classrooms.•Professional community moderates effects of teacher–student ethno-racial mismatch.

Teacher job satisfaction is critical to schools’ successful functioning. Using a representative sample of kindergarten teachers from the Early Childhood Longitudinal Study, we investigate the association among professional learning community and teacher collaboration, teacher ethno-racial group, teacher–student ethno-racial mismatch, and teacher job satisfaction. We find that White teachers are significantly less satisfied than African–American and Latino teachers, especially when they teach in majority non-White classrooms. However, the existence of a professional community moderates the negative influence of teacher–student ethno-racial mismatch on White teachers’ job satisfaction. In effect, strong professional communities serve as a cushion to bolster teacher job satisfaction.