Teachers Happiest They've Been in 20 Years
Topics: Teacher Quality and Compensation
Despite media flurry about how “No Child Left Behind” is leaving educators overwhelmed, a recent study shows that teachers are happier than they’ve been in years. The MetLife Survey of the American Teacher, which has been conducted every year since 1984, reports on the state of the profession and what it takes to prepare, support, and retain teachers.
The 2006-2007 school year’s report had surprises up its sleeve. Fifty-six percent of 1,001 teachers polled said they were “very satisfied” with their profession, a 70 percent increase over those polled 10 years ago. They feel better prepared to engage families, maintain a smoothly running classroom, and work with students of varying abilities, than did teachers before them.
That said, the profession faces some major challenges. Despite better overall satisfaction, one-quarter of teachers surveyed said that they plan to leave education within the next five years. Their reasons vary, but most complain about unrealistic expectations and lack of support. Sixty-five percent of teachers surveyed say they don’t have enough time to plan and grade, while 60 percent feel they don’t have enough time to help individual students. And 64 percent say that their pay is not fair for the work that they do.
When asked what it would take to retain them, teachers point to better salaries and more money for school systems. But they also point to something schools and society don’t need big bucks to supply... respect.
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Comments from readers
This will never happen.
NCLB looks good on paper, but in reality, it's a bunch of baloney.
The first comment is correct. It sounds great on paper, but it is unattainable. There is no way that every single child is going to master and apply every single skill at the same time.
I hate teaching now. All we do is teach to the test. Kids hate school because all they every do is state test prep and take practice tests. They test all the time to be prepared for ONE test that determines everything. And keep in mind that they are as young as 7 and 8 years old!
Don't get me wrong, I have no problem with being held accountable for teaching my students, but there needs to be a better way. Assess them in a VARIETY of ways SEVERAL times throughout the school year. Judge the percent of gain for each child.
If it is a math test, why can't we read the test to them? You are not assessing reading, you are assessing math! Almost every kid I know that struggles with reading is excellent in math. 2 is always 2. It doesn't sometimes do this or other times do that the way letters do in phonics. They are not able to show what they really know because they can't read well. How much sense does that make?
The other thing that drives me nuts about NCLB is that it does not hold parents accountable in ANY way! It also assumes that all kids are exactly the same. So what about the parents who never read with their kids at home? The kids that never have homework? The kids that are absent all the time despite intervention by social workers? The kids who are so exhausted because the heat is turned off at home and it was 25 degrees last night? The kids that have no real world experiences because they have never left a ten block radius? The kids that are living in a children's home because they still can't find a foster family? The kids that just became homeless... again.
Way to go politicians! Try stepping foot in a classroom before making laws that are unrealistic. I have an idea! I challenge you to be me for one month. Then let's see if you still think NCLB is appropriate.