First Year Teachers

A study led by Dr. Ingersoll of the University of Pennsylvania showed the staggering reality of the American education system; 15% of teachers leave the profession every year and 45% of new teachers leave within the first five years. The burning question behind these results is why?

When talking with educators, a common discussion topic is the soul-crushing, depressive, and futile nature of the profession. Now, many teachers are lucky enough to be in school districts where they are supported, listened to, valued, and not scapegoated by the administration, parents, and students for items that are not under their control but it seems this is becoming few and far between. In Ingersoll’s study, he focused one portion on first-year teachers who left their current school and polled them on the reasons why. The results, as seen in Figure 15 of the study linked above, are as follows:

• 32% → School Staffing Action
• 39.7% → Family or Personal
• 31.7% → To Pursue Other Jobs
• 44.4% → Dissatisfaction

Ingersoll and Perda state “On the other hand, high levels of employee departures are worrisome not only because they can be a symptom of underlying problems in how well organizations function, but also because departures can entail costs and other negative consequences for organizations and for the larger system (Ingersoll & Perda, forthcoming).”

Understanding the Difference

The important distinction to make is that these statistics are focusing more on teacher burnout than teacher demoralization. At first glance, these words may seem to be two ways to say the same thing but there is an important distinction to be made. When a teacher is burnt out it more than likely means that they are done. Gassed. Finished. Nothing left. Whether this burnout happened within those first five years of entering the profession or is the culmination of decades of their willpower, desire, and love of teaching being ground down the result is the same; leaving the profession. Ingersoll’s study focuses primarily on this issue.

What is not often discussed, is teacher demoralization which is really what goes on before teacher burn out happened. Teacher demoralization results in teacher burnout. This distinction is vital in addressing the problem within the profession because it allows intervention to be focused on the problem, teacher demoralization, instead of the symptom of the problem which is teacher burnout. 

Doris A. Santoro, an associate professor of education and chair of the education department at Bowdoin College, in her publication Is It Burnout? Or Demoralization? addresses this sentiment by saying “we know that teachers are experiencing dissatisfaction (Keigher, 2010), but, like doctors, we must be careful to look for the true source of the problem in order to properly treat it. […] similarly, school leaders need to get to the root of teacher dissatisfaction so it can be diagnosed and treated properly.”

Finding the Cause

The underlying problems that Ingersoll and Perda refer to are precisely the issues that result in teacher demoralization whether it is unruly parents with no administrative support, absurd class sizes with no mandated support, low pay, general lack of administrative support, forced to follow a rigid curriculum, overarching desire for better test scores at all costs, lack of autonomy, etc. The list is nearly endless and is what results in teachers having self-reported stress amounts equal to nurses and physicians according to Gallup’s 2013 State of America’s Schools Report. 

Once the difference between teacher burnout and teacher demoralization is made more clear, it can be more easily addressed. It will not be a quick change nor one without growing pains as the profession continues to suffer from these systemic problems but as the reality of these problems become more apparent and felt more by those outside of education, the policies and legislation hamstringing many of these ailments felt by teachers can be changed. 

The transition from middle school to high school is a big step, so most students get overwhelmed and stressed as they go through the process. This can cause them to be less successful at school, and it can cause their grades to drop significantly. So, how do we reduce this stress?

What is the ‘Toxic Stress’ of Starting High School?

Each student has a different mindset and a different way of handling stress, but it is no secret that the start of freshman year is a rough transition for most high school students. These stress levels can actually be tracked by looking at the hormone cortisol of students, which is also commonly referred to as the ‘toxic stress’ hormone.

Students with a fixed mindset, meaning that they believe fixed traits cannot change, were found to have higher stress levels than students with a growth mindset, which is an individual that believes skills can be developed. This is because students with a fixed mindset were not prepared for the drastic changes of high school, which made them not want to adjust their ways of learning.

Why is Starting High School Stressful?

Even though many middle schools try to create an environment that prepares students for a high school setting, it is usually much easier and less stressful for students, so when they get to the actual high school, they are usually hit with a surprising amount of work.

When starting high school, students are given more difficult assignments and a larger workload. This alone is a huge factor as to why students get so stressed. Since the work is more difficult, they have a fear of failure and may work themselves too hard while trying to do something that shouldn’t even take much time.

Plus, high school is also more stressful socially. Teenagers work so hard to fit in and be popular, which can often distract them from focusing on their classwork. Students work hard to be someone they’re not just to fit in, which can easily become exhausting.

On top of everything else, high school is a step closer to college. A lot of high school students still have no idea what they want to be when they grow up, so trying to decide where to go to college can be a huge cause of stress for them, even if it is still years away.

How Can We Fix This?

There is no way to remove the stress of every student completely, but there are ways that parents and teachers can help to reduce the stress of students. The easiest way to do this is to make sure you are accessible to them.

However, many parents are so worried about reducing the stress of their kids that they hold them back and don’t allow them to be challenged enough. But no matter what, there will be challenges in life that kids have to face, so instead of holding them back, the best thing to do is to be there to help students face these challenges.

Conclusion

Yes, high school can be stressful for incoming freshman, but with the help and support of those around them, they can ease into the process better.  Stressful situations are much easier to get through when you have someone by your side to help out. Parents need to teach kids that change is okay and teach them how to adapt to their new high school schedule.

Where once we lived in a world where there were stark differences between privatized and public education, we are now shifting into an era of grassroots determination to provide quality education to children in public schools.

And part of that upward shift requires giving educators the quality treatment that they deserve, first. Time and again, it seems apparent – underpaid teachers and under-funded schools result in lackluster public education for students because educators fall short when they don’t have the resources they need. And when they don’t have the resources they need, students tend to underperform, making the teachers look bad. As you can see, it’s an ultimately frustrating and cyclical problem.

How educators are doing it

Educators are changing education, though, by taking to lobbying themselves, striking, and calling physical attention to the nature of poverty in the American education system. In the past two years alone, media coverage has increased as teachers began striking from their towns and the front lawns of the state capital to demand fair pay for the hard work they put into the public school systems.

This process of educator lobbying is complicated because children suffer in multiple ways. They suffer when they have to stay home from school for weeks on end because their teachers have to make the difficult decision of picketing. And they also suffer because the effort teachers make to create change often barely comes close to making the government budge, or worse, their efforts create temporary change followed by stricter regulations from the government.

The aim of educators’ strikes is that they can prove a point of how crucial it is to fix the public education sector, rather than allowing more and more money just to be poured into private education, which is seldom available to anyone other than the wealthy. It’s the public schools, teachers demand, that have needs to be met, and that starts with the teachers who show up to make students’ education possible every day.

So, the problem arises that, while educators are taking matters into their own hands, and trying to reinforce a sense of quality in public education, there still remains a lack of total government support for the public education of America’s youth. And the fact of the matter is that the majority of children in America will attend public school, and only a small percentage attend private school.

So, what will the next few years bring in terms of potential change? It will depend upon how much of a difference teachers and financially endowed persons are capable of making within the government. Because up to this point, it seems that, without the additional support of the people in office, the efforts to revolutionize education on behalf of educators will sadly fall short.

To make it in the fast-paced, stressful world of K-12, you must be able to hold your own. This means having the skills and knowledge that it takes to impact student learning and outcomes positively. As a K-12 teacher, what do you need to know? Don’t worry, we have you covered.

In this short piece, we will discuss the 34 questions that that K-12 teacher should be able to answer. Some questions will be basic terms and concepts that you must understand, and others will be pedagogical strategies that you must be able to employ, such as balanced assessment and co-teaching.

What is Balanced Assessment? A philosophy of educational assessment that recognizes that a variety of measures must be used for the teaching and learning process to help students reach their intellectual potential. This includes the use of formative assessments, summative assessments, authentic assessments, standardized assessments, etc.

What is Connected Learning? Is a form of personalized learning where a person pursues something of interest to them, with the aid of a caring support system. In the process of pursuing connected learning, new opportunities and possibilities open up for them.

What is Co-Teaching? Is having two or more certified teachers in the classroom sharing responsibility for teaching all or some of the students assigned to the classroom. These teachers work together to plan and deliver instruction, assessment, remediation, etc.

What is Critical Literacy? Is a collection of dispositions and skills that cultivate innovative teaching, critical thinking, and active inquiry. Critical literacy assists students in thinking critically about the things that they read, instead of just brushing the surface.

What is Education Research? An organized strategy for asking, answering, and effectively reporting a question that is related to the field of education.

What is an Exit Exam? An assessment that students must pass to pass a course, be promoted to the next grade level or receive a diploma.

What is GED? Is an assessment that is made up of four subject area test which if passed, signifies that the test taker has high school level academic skills.

What are Multiple Measures? The use or varied indicators and sources of evidence of student learning. This evidence is gathered at intermittent times, within and across subject areas.

What is a Pacing Guide? A document created by school district administrators to assist educators in staying on track and ensure the continuity of curriculum across schools within the district.

What is a Paraprofessional? An educator who is delegated to perform certain educational tasks within and outside of the classroom but is not yet licensed as a teacher.

What is Remediation? A form of education that is provided to students who need more instructional support to master the competencies in subjects such as math and reading.

What is School Choice? Is an education policy that permits education funds to follow the pupil to the K-12 school or service provider that best fits their needs. Possible placements include public schools, private schools, charter schools, homeschools. Any learning environments that parents feel meet the educational needs of their children.

What is a School Within a School? Is a concept that is used for reorganizing schools, especially high schools, and the dynamics within them. Also called small schools, their optimal size varies, they are usually defined as schools with enrollments between 500-900 students.

What is Socioeconomic Status (SES)? Is a collective assessment of a persons economic and sociological standing. Many students from low-SES backgrounds face socio-emotional instability.

What is a Student-Led Conference? Is a type of parent-teacher conference in which the student gives their parents updates on what they have been learning, what their goals are, and provides insights into what type of learner they are.

What is Cognitive Development? Is the creation of increasingly complex thought processes, including self-regulation, remembering, perceptual skills, language learning, problem-solving, and decision-making, from childhood through adolescence to adulthood.

What are Wraparound Services/Programs? A fluid collection of social services provided to severely at-risk children in the criminal justice system. Theoretically, it is tailored towards building confidence, promoting safety and success in the home, school and the community.

What is Classroom Management? The various strategies and skills that educators employ to keep pupils structured, docile, attentive, motivated, and academically successful during a class or school day.

What are Co-Curricular Activities? A K-12 school or university activity that is pursued in addition to a student’s academic core. This could include sports, the arts, etc.

What is Community-Based Learning? Various instructional strategies that teachers employ to correlate what is being taught and what is going on in a student’s community, which includes institutions, literature, history, cultural history, etc.

What is a Community of Practice? Is a group of educators who share a passion or affinity for something that they do or a type of work that they perform. They band together to learn how to become the best they can be. Also, know as collective learning or a personal learning network.

What is a Computer-Adaptive Test? A form of assessment where the rigor or questions is adjusted based on the student’s response. For instance, if the student a question correctly, the next question will be harder; if a student answers incorrectly, the next question will be easier. In essence, the assessment adapts to accommodate the test takers ability level. This customization provides a more accurate assessment of a student’s present level of academic functioning. The learning potential is endless, as the best computer-adapted tests pull from a large pool of test items designed to both assess and improve a student’s knowledge of a particular subject or skill.

What is a Content or Subject Area? Describes a defined area of knowledge or skill in a curricular program. For example, reading, language arts, math, science, and social studies are all content or subject areas.

What is a Cut-Off Score? Is the lowest possible score on an assessment that a student can make to obtain mastery or pass.

What is Data Masking? The process of concealing or encrypting certain information in school performance or assessment datasets and reports to protect the privacy of education stakeholders.

What is Data Suppression? The process of removing or deleting certain information in school performance or assessment datasets and reports to protect the privacy of education stakeholders.

What is a Learning Experience? Describes any class, activity, or experience in which learning takes place, whether it’s a typical school setting or outside of the school location.

What is Achievement Growth? Academic progress that is accomplished over a period, as assessed at the onset and end of a specified time. It can be calculated for countries, states, cities, schools or students, and many variables and strategies can be used to determine if “growth” has occurred.

What is a Learning Pathway? Describes the classes, programs, and learning activities that students complete during their high school matriculation. Learning pathways can be academic and vocational in nature.

What is a Block Schedule? Is a system for scheduling junior high or high school days, usually by replacing the historical scheduling method six or seven 40-50 minute class periods with class periods that are longer in duration and meet fewer times during the week. For instance, a traditional block schedule class period may have 90-120 minutes and convene every two days instead of every day.

What is an Opportunity Gap? Illustrates the ways that race, SES, familial situations, or other variables work in concert to facilitate anti-intellectual sentiments and behaviors in certain segments of students. This in turns leads to low academic and skills attainment which can perpetuate the cycle of generational poverty that caused the opportunity gap in the first place. It truly can become a never-ending cycle that affects generations.

What are Weighted Grades? Are letter or numerical scores that are given an advantage when calculating a GPA. Usually, these scores were attained in higher level, honors, advanced placement or international baccalaureate courses. Thus the advantage is received because of the challenging nature of those courses. Think of it as a reward for tackling courses with increased rigor.

What is Student-Level Data? Is any information that school officials or states collect on students who are enrolled in public schools in their jurisdiction.

What is a Common Planning Time? A block of time that is scheduled for several teachers to work together to plan instruction.

What did we miss?