America’s Teachers Believe Public Education is Getting Worse - Horowitz

America’s Teachers Believe Public Education is Getting Worse - Horowitz

America’s public school teachers are significantly less satisfied with their jobs than the rest of the workforce, according to a national survey unveiled last week by Pew Research Center.

Only 1-in-3 (33%) teachers say they are extremely or very satisfied with their jobs. This compares to a little more than half (51%) of the rest of the workforce.  In fact, 52% of teachers “say they would not advise a young person starting out today to become a teacher,” reported Pew.

More than 3-out-of 4 (77%) teachers say that their job is “frequently stressful.” More than 2-in-3 (68%) say it is “frequently overwhelming.” And 7-in-10 (70%) say their school is understaffed, according to Pew.   

GET THE LATEST BREAKING NEWS HERE -- SIGN UP FOR GOLOCAL FREE DAILY EBLAST

Teachers also believe they are underpaid. “Only 15% are extremely or very satisfied with their pay, while 51% are not too or not at all satisfied,” documents Pew.

It is the case that nearly 6-in-10 (56%) teachers still find their job to be fulfilling.  But the fraught overall perception of the job, unless improved, is not a recipe for retaining good teachers or recruiting promising new ones to the profession.

Even more troubling, 82% of teachers “say the overall state of public K-12 education has gotten worse in the past five years,” Pew finds.  A contributing factor to this perception is undoubtedly the lingering effects of the COVID pandemic.  “About eight in ten teachers (among those who have been teaching for at least a year) say the lasting impact of the pandemic on students’ behavior, academic performance, and emotional well-being has been very or somewhat negative,” according to Pew.

Additionally, most teachers don’t see the situation improving any time soon.  Only 1-in-5 (20%) teachers “say public K-12 education will be a lot or somewhat better five years from now,” while more than half (53%) “say it will be worse,” reports Pew.

Teachers are split on the current academic performance of their students. About half of teachers (48%) say the academic performance of most students at their school is fair or poor while the other half (50%) say it’s good or excellent.  Given that it is in the first 12 years of schooling that children learn the basics that will be foundational for whatever they do next, these are concerning results.

In a competitive global economy where we already lag behind many other developed nations in school performance, these findings should serve as a wake-up call. We must prepare our children for a world where jobs will require more, not fewer, skills — and the ability to be a life-long learner will be vital to economic success. 

Our public school teachers are essential to this task.  They are sounding an alarm we should all heed.