A new teacher at my school quit this week. At the staff meeting last Friday, we REJOICED because he was actually fully certified to teach AND had years of experience...then this week, he quit.
I'm sure we could all speculate as to why he left (maybe he was already burned out, maybe he held unrealistic expectations, maybe he was dealing with extraneous issues that bled into his work life...) but this teacher's departure is just ONE symptom of a much larger issue.
Teachers are exiting the profession in droves, leaving students in classrooms with a different sub every day, under-qualified long term substitutes ill equipped to teach algebra or biology, or emergency or intern certified teachers trying to find their footing while balancing graduate school or certification courses.
Granted, I have very few reserves against throwing an emergency certified teacher or intern certified teacher in a classroom when the only other option is a substitute teacher. (Full disclosure, I am an intern certified teacher.) However, in the long run, putting untrained and in-training teachers in the classroom is a band-aid solution for the gaping wound that is the teacher shortage faced in America, let alone Arizona.
Alternate preparation programs like Teach for America, New York City Teaching Fellows and TNTP Teaching Fellows are great, but teachers don't always stay in the classroom after their commitment expires. Many find the pay unacceptable and leave. Many see bigger and brighter things in their future (like med or law school) and leave. Many face burnout within two years due to a lack of school support--and they leave.
So what is the answer? That's a trick question.
There isn't one answer. There is a slew of answers. The real question is "Which solutions work best together and get at the true root of the issue?
For starters...
Pay us. Pay public school teachers more. We shouldn't have to find a second or summer job to help us pay a $1200/month mortgage payment when school isn't in session.
Support us. Have our backs when it comes to finicky parents. Do what it takes to sustain a positive workplace environment--be that monthly potlucks, staff spirit weeks, or exciting professional developments. Better yet, allow public school teachers to grow by sending us to intriguing professional developments and providing subs for our classes.
Stock our classrooms. Make sure the Senior English teachers don't have to arm wrestle over who gets to borrow and read the class set of The Bell Jar with their kids. Make sure there are enough textbooks to go around. Better yet, stock public schools with textbooks that are up to date and include Obama's presidency--not the textbooks I used in high school.
Granted, a lot of this goes back to money. In fact, all of this--teacher pay, professional development, classroom supplies--is linked to money. So perhaps the issue truly stems back to, you guessed it, politics.
In Arizona, I'm sure teachers would be elated to receive the same pay raise Governor Doug Ducey gave to many of his staff in 2017, while teachers received approximately a 1% raise.
I am so blessed to say that my district is supportive. We have an education association representative who relentlessly requests raises for teachers. Through my district, I have received training, room and board for the Advanced Placement class I teach, and we have more than a modest amount of books available to read with our students, either on campus or via inter-district loan system. I'm not saying my district is perfect, but I am certainly grateful Teach for America placed me here. I intend to stay much longer than my two year commitment--but what about all of the teachers who don't feel as blessed as I do?
I am one teacher who plans to stay in the classroom for a long time. What can be done to replicate me?
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