New Study Reveals What Stresses American Teachers Out The Most
Educators are dealing with a lot both in and out of the classroom these days. GiphyNews that is entertaining to read
Subscribe for free to get more stories like this directly to your inboxWe’ve seen many reports over the past several years regarding the impact that COVID-19 had on students, but pandemic shutdowns also threw educators for a loop … and that’s not the only thing that has public school teachers worried these days.
A litany of challenges
According to a report compiled by the Pew Research Center, teachers are considerably less satisfied with their jobs than the average of all U.S. workers. Just over half of American employees say they are extremely or very satisfied, compared to just one-third of kindergarten-to-12th-grade educators.
In addition to the learning loss associated with COVID-19, the common concerns voiced by teachers involve chronic understaffing and simmering partisan disputes about what goes on in the classroom.
Researchers identified a few key metrics that reflect the opinion teachers have about their chosen profession.
- Seven in 10 teachers say there is a teacher shortage at their school.
- Roughly two-thirds describe teaching as overwhelming.
- More than three-fourths say the job is a frequent source of stress.
Making matters worse in the long run, more than half of current teachers surveyed said they would not recommend their career path to those in younger generations.
Performance and behavior
Not only are most teachers struggling to ensure their students are meeting educational milestones, but they’re also increasingly concerned about behavioral problems that disrupt the learning environment.
Just 17% of teachers describe their students’ academic performance as either excellent or good and only 13% say the same about behavior. Nearly half give their students either fair or poor marks in both categories.
While the pandemic was a big factor, educators also say parents are not doing enough to address issues at home. Nearly 80% of respondents said parental involvement is insufficient when it comes to holding students accountable for misbehavior at school.