Everyone can name teachers who changed their life for the better.
Mrs. Brock gave me the confidence to do Math in 2nd grade.
Mr. Henry helped me find my voice in 6th grade chorus.
My high school social studies teacher, Mr. Milligan, he taught me how to become an engaged citizen.
I am forever grateful for their intellect, skill and kindness. And I shudder to think how different my life would be if they hadn’t become teachers, or if they’d quit teaching before I met them, due to the longstanding challenges facing educators.
Teachers are the backbone of our society. Our children’s cognitive, physical and mental health requires good teachers – as does our nation’s economic, civic and social health.
No other job affects so many people in so many ways. And yet, the crisis in education continues and has escalated since the pandemic. Teachers are in short supply and this is having dire consequences on entire communities.
At the beginning of this school year, 45 percent of our nation’s schools had at least one teacher vacancy. Math teachers, science teachers and special education teachers are particularly hard to find. It seems just about every district is struggling to staff their schools not only with teachers, but also teaching assistants, substitute teachers, secretaries, bus drivers and cafeteria workers.
Talented and experienced educators are leaving the classroom at an alarming rate. At the same time, fewer young professionals are choosing to become teachers. In the last decade alone, the number of college students choosing to enter the profession has dropped by over 50%.
This puts our children, communities and our entire country at risk. In order to address this pressing issue, we need to begin to ask ourselves tough questions:
What is driving current teachers out of the profession AND why are fewer young people interested in becoming teachers?
As I travel around the state, here’s what I’m hearing from educators:
One, the job is hard and it keeps getting harder.
The pandemic caused students to have more academic and emotional needs than ever before. Teachers have also seen an increase in the number of kids struggling with poverty, unstable housing and insufficient food. These challenges – made worse by chronic understaffing, underfunding and insufficient resources – have led some teachers toward retiring early or even resigning.
Two, teacher salaries, when adjusted for inflation, have remained stagnant while the cost of college has grown exponentially. If we want more people to consider a career in education, we need to significantly raise starting salaries, while also providing incentives for those willing to teach in underserved communities.
Three, excessive high-stakes testing is dehumanizing for teachers and students alike. Rather than creating thoughtful, reflective lessons based on student needs, our teachers are forced to spend months preparing kids for tests that don’t give teachers useful data to improve their own instruction. Nor do they give students exciting lessons or significant learning. The mandated “Drill and kill” test prep removes both joy from the classroom and autonomy from our profession.
Four, school safety is a significant concern. The increasing number of shootings and other violent incidents at schools is simply unacceptable. More lockdown drills and hardening the schools will not solve the problem. Nor will it help kids develop into healthy adults. We need to address our nation’s violence problem head-on.
Five, the demonization of teachers for political gain is disheartening. Across the nation, extremists have been attacking schools for the lessons being taught and books available to students on a variety of topics. Citizens have every right to discuss their concerns with school leaders. But, in a civil society, we cannot cede important decisions about curriculum and learning to those who shout the loudest. Concerns must be expressed with civility or more teachers will leave the profession. Educators are civil servants, not political scapegoats.
Educators are essential for our nation to thrive. It is our duty to make their jobs sustainable. That’s why, at NYSUT, we’re focused on creating workplaces where students and educators can thrive, and ensuring our professions are enticing and viable career choices.
If we can do that, we will have teachers willing and able to change students' lives for the better, just like Mrs. Brock, Mr. Henry and Mr. Milligan did for me.
Melinda Person is president of the nearly 700,000-member New York State United Teachers.
The views expressed by commentators are solely those of the authors. They do not necessarily reflect the views of this station or its management.
