May 28, 2024 • 12 mins
In today's episode, I discuss the teacher shortage and recent teacher stories in the news. The first step to overcoming an obstacle is admitting there is a problem. There is a huge problem with the state of teaching and although it will take time, I believe a solution is possible.
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
(00:00):
Hello teacher friends, Coach Zeehere.
(00:02):
And we need to talk.
My heart has been very heavylately as I've listened to the
news.
And I see what's going on withteachers around the country.
I dedicated 15 years of my lifeto teaching.
And I've just seen theprofession changed so
drastically.
And I'm so sad for teachers.
Luckily in my new profession, UXresearch.
(00:22):
I get to talk to teachers and Ican still hear the passion in
some of their voices, but at thesame time, I feel the tension
and the burden that they'recarrying.
Today.
I want to talk about whyteachers are not okay.
Let's get into it.
Welcome to the UX Teacher PrepPodcast.
The ultimate destination foreducators who aspire to break
(00:44):
into the field of userexperience and product design.
Your host, Zee Arnold, a 15 yearteacher turned UX researcher, is
here to guide, coach, and mentoryou through every twist and turn
as you make your careertransition into tech.
If you're ready for a moresatisfying career and lifestyle,
and you want the balance tounleash your creativity, this
podcast is for you.
(01:06):
Now, for the show! Before Istart, I want to announce that
starting next month, I'mchanging from weekly to biweekly
podcast releases so I canprovide even better content.
It takes a lot of time toresearch and technical skills to
(01:28):
produce a podcast.
And I want to make sure thispodcast is sustainable and
continues to bring me joy andyou have value in the process.
So starting in June, we'llswitch to a twice a month.
Cadence.
Okay.
So now to the show, Teachers arenot okay.
And the world is learning moreand more.
What's going on behind closedschool doors.
And that's why there's a teachershortage.
(01:50):
Teachers are leaving or beingforced to leave.
And no one wants to take on theburden of a teacher position.
Because they're hearing whatteachers have been going
through.
No sign-on bonus.
No stipend.
Is going to work to bring in newteachers and no promise is going
to retain those who are alreadyin place.
It's really a sad, sadsituation.
(02:11):
The teacher shortage isaffecting the education system
profoundly.
I did a simple Google search ofthe word"teacher".
Click to"News".
And these are the headlines thatcame up.
All news stories from this week.
"English teacher at posh Daltonschool.
resigns amid accusations of sexabuse by her former student."
(02:34):
"Former Pittsburgh public schoolteacher found not guilty of
sexually assaulting student.
"Maryland teacher underinvestigation, reassigned out of
classroom after video showsstudents un braiding hair,
painting his nails in class.""Arizona teacher retiring over
frustration of students notputting down phones; addiction
(02:56):
worse than drugs.""Woodglenteachers, parents frustrated
with district as severaleducators won't return next
school year.""North Carolinateacher turnover is rising; why
experts say pay alone isn't thesolution.""Las Vegas substitute
teacher accused of child abusedies after posting bail.""Visa
(03:19):
program draws foreign teachersto a rural Alaska school
district facing a staffingcrisis." Teachers are not okay
for so many reasons.
Every incident I just mentionedis a different situation.
And I'm no lawyer or aninvestigator, but it seems to me
that teachers are going throughit.
So it feels like with all that'shappening in the news about
(03:40):
teachers and all they're goingthrough.
The teacher shortage isinescapable.
It's going to take a lot morethan grit and passion to keep
teachers in the classroom.
So why are so many teachersleaving the profession and what
can be done to improve thesituation and retain more
teachers?
First of all the teachershortage has reached critical
levels, but it wasn't until thepandemic that people really
(04:02):
started to realize how bad itwas.
Here are some of the top reasonswhy there's a teacher shortage
according to a 2022 report.
By"The Learning PolicyInstitute".
The first is the most obviousreason, and that is low
compensation.
Teachers are underpaid comparedto other roles that require this
same level of education.
And by the way in New York City,you need a bachelor's degree to
(04:24):
teach.
But I know that's not true inevery city or state.
Then there's a burnout.
Teaching is an extremelystressful and demanding job that
involves long hours, high stakestesting.
Which is used to rate teachers.
And it's a job that you have totake home with you because
there's no way you're teachingfive periods a day, doing
coverages for absent teachers,eating lunch, et cetera.
(04:47):
And still having time to planprep and grade before 3:00 PM.
There was a survey done by theAmerican Federation of teachers.
And it found that 61% ofteachers feel stressed.
Always or often at work.
Next is the lack of support andresources.
A lot of teachers rely onTeachers pay teachers and
(05:07):
similar websites.
to find resources and have tospend their own money to buy
resources like copy paperpencils, loose-leaf anchor
charts for their classroom.
Because the teacher's choicemoney just isn't enough.
And sometimes teachers have toturn around and build their own
curriculum.
Now imagine being a new teacherwith little guidance and having
to create your own curriculumfrom scratch.
(05:29):
Not good.
And honestly, a lot of the PDsthat teachers are sent to are
insufficient, the best PDs I'vebeen to, or the ones that were
hosted by fellow teachers andhandpicked by the teachers
themselves.
Another reason for the shortageis a large class sizes.
Classroom management is a skill.
It's an art.
When you have over 30 studentsin your classroom at once, it
(05:50):
becomes extremely hard to managethat while also teaching a
lesson.
You simply can't control thebehavior of so many students at
once.
Even 20 students is a lot tomanage.
Every child has a mind of theirown, and it takes time to
practice to become an expert atclassroom management.
And only a small percentage ofteachers get to that place.
(06:10):
Students are acting out in classfor so many reasons.
And some of those reasons areout of teacher's control.
Teachers are not guidance,counselors or therapist.
They're not trained to docertain types of work.
They were trained to teach andreport.
That's it.
And recently there's been aninflux of students with special
needs and differences.
(06:30):
And second languages and notenough trained staff to support
those students.
So what's causing all of this.
Schools are struggling to fillpositions.
Which leads to those large classsizes, because you don't have
enough teachers to cover theclasses.
And honestly, a lot of districtsare hiring unqualified people to
teach.
or lowering the standards forincoming teachers and.
(06:51):
even substitutes.
No offense to substitutes, but alot of them are not qualified to
teach in the classroom.
But it's like a catch 22,because how rigorous can your
hiring process be?
If no one wants to take the job.
It's just crazy.
And this obviously affects thequality of education that
students receive.
So now you have teachers gettingfrustrated because there's not
(07:12):
enough support for them.
Or students.
And students are failing andthen teachers are leaving
because they're being blamed forit all.
High turnover rates means thatschools are constantly in hiring
mode, which is costly anddisruptive.
New teachers need time to becomeeffective.
So that constant turnover stopsschools from developing
experienced teachers.
(07:33):
I think back to when I was ateacher and in my experience,
teacher shortages led to a badschool climate.
That was always the result inthe end, because those of us who
were left.
Had to take on extra periods andthere was more burden on us,
which is stressful.
And honestly, that's why I heldoff on leaving.
The classroom until closer tothe end of the school year.
When I finally decided to leavethe classroom, I waited until
(07:55):
after I had prepped my studentsfor their state exams, because I
didn't want to leave thatburden.
on one of my colleagues.
It's a lot and it didn't feelright.
If you're a teacher listeningright now, you know that these
factors are affecting you andmight be the reason why you're
thinking about leaving as well.
Now there's nothing that you orI can do to change the situation
right now.
But there are some things thatcan be done in the longterm to
(08:17):
make things better foreducation.
I say this over and over again.
Teaching is no longersustainable.
Yes.
You'll still have some newteachers joining the workforce,
but they won't stay for longerthan a few years.
So there are four things thatcan be done in the meantime.
And I sincerely hope thesethings happen sooner than later
for teachers.
(08:38):
The first is increasing teachersalaries.
Competitive salaries are crucialfor educators.
States and districts need toallocate funds to make sure that
teachers are paid fairly.
This is a big factor.
That's going to attract newteachers and retain experienced
ones.
The second is improving theworking conditions for teachers.
(08:59):
The first part of this isreducing class sizes.
And I know there's already beensome movement towards this in
New York City with the help ofthe union, which is great.
Also providing adequate planningtime during the school day and
making sure that teachers havethe resources they need.
To support students and to gettheir job done effectively.
Teachers shouldn't have to hideand hoard copy paper.
(09:21):
Third is meaningful professionaldevelopment.
Investing in ongoingprofessional development helps
teachers grow in their careersand stay engaged.
But admin needs to ask teacherswhat they want to learn more
about and let them self reflectand choose the PD.
That's most meaningful to them.
They're going to be more likelyto implement what they learned.
When they can choose their ownlearning paths.
(09:44):
And the fourth change isaddressing student behavior and
mental health.
School districts have to provideteachers with training and
resources to handle diverseclassroom behaviors and student
mental health issues.
This is something that you don'tlearn when you're getting your
degree to be a teacher.
You have to learn in the fieldas things come up.
That's when you learn how todeal with them.
(10:05):
And something has to changethere.
I taught middle school for 13years.
And let me tell you.
When it came to student behaviorand attitudes, the students were
teaching me.
I was not equipped to handlehalf of the incidents.
I found myself facing in theclassroom.
So this type of training isgoing to alleviate some of the
stress that leads to teacherburnout.
One thing that comes to my mindright away is something that I
(10:27):
hear in the news over and overagain.
And that is teachers dealingwith students.
Inappropriately using cellphones during class time.
How do you address that as ateacher, without getting into a
standoff with a student?
The truth is every situation isdifferent and it really comes
down to knowing your students.
Personally, I believe cellphones should be left at the
door.
When students enter the schoolbuilding to avoid these types of
(10:48):
confrontations.
But not every school has thiskind of policy.
It's a lot.
You have to have adequate staffand procedures in place to make
this work smoothly.
One thing's for sure.
Schools definitely need moreguidance counselors to alleviate
the burden.
On teachers.
The teacher shortage is a verycomplex issue, but it's not an
(11:08):
issue that can't be solved.
It's going to take some time andstrategic planning from
educators, administrators,parents, policy makers, and the
entire community.
I really hope to one day see amajor overhaul of the education
system and for teachers to beproud of the work they do and
the pay they receive for all oftheir hard work.
I also hope to see more positivenews in the media about teachers
(11:31):
and all the great things they'redoing for students and their
communities, because greatthings are happening.
If you're considering a careerchange, remember that your
skills as an educator arevaluable and transferable.
You're more than a teacher andyou deserve to work in a place
where your expertise is valued.
(11:53):
Hey, thanks so much for tuningin.
If you liked this podcast, hitfollow and scroll down to leave
a five star rating, then shareit with a friend.
If you're looking for resourcesto help you on your tech
transition journey, head over touxteacherprep.
com.
Follow us on LinkedIn andInstagram at uxteacherprep for
daily tips and motivation.
(12:13):
Have a topic you'd like to hearaddressed on the show?
Send us a DM on Instagram.
If you're listening on YouTube,like, subscribe, and share.
Until next.
Next time, be well.
Hello teacher friends, Coach Zeehere.
(00:02):
And we need to talk.
My heart has been very heavylately as I've listened to the
news.
And I see what's going on withteachers around the country.
I dedicated 15 years of my lifeto teaching.
And I've just seen theprofession changed so
drastically.
And I'm so sad for teachers.
Luckily in my new profession, UXresearch.
(00:22):
I get to talk to teachers and Ican still hear the passion in
some of their voices, but at thesame time, I feel the tension
and the burden that they'recarrying.
Today.
I want to talk about whyteachers are not okay.
Let's get into it.
Welcome to the UX Teacher PrepPodcast.
The ultimate destination foreducators who aspire to break
(00:44):
into the field of userexperience and product design.
Your host, Zee Arnold, a 15 yearteacher turned UX researcher, is
here to guide, coach, and mentoryou through every twist and turn
as you make your careertransition into tech.
If you're ready for a moresatisfying career and lifestyle,
and you want the balance tounleash your creativity, this
podcast is for you.
(01:06):
Now, for the show! Before Istart, I want to announce that
starting next month, I'mchanging from weekly to biweekly
podcast releases so I canprovide even better content.
It takes a lot of time toresearch and technical skills to
(01:28):
produce a podcast.
And I want to make sure thispodcast is sustainable and
continues to bring me joy andyou have value in the process.
So starting in June, we'llswitch to a twice a month.
Cadence.
Okay.
So now to the show, Teachers arenot okay.
And the world is learning moreand more.
What's going on behind closedschool doors.
And that's why there's a teachershortage.
(01:50):
Teachers are leaving or beingforced to leave.
And no one wants to take on theburden of a teacher position.
Because they're hearing whatteachers have been going
through.
No sign-on bonus.
No stipend.
Is going to work to bring in newteachers and no promise is going
to retain those who are alreadyin place.
It's really a sad, sadsituation.
(02:11):
The teacher shortage isaffecting the education system
profoundly.
I did a simple Google search ofthe word"teacher".
Click to"News".
And these are the headlines thatcame up.
All news stories from this week.
"English teacher at posh Daltonschool.
resigns amid accusations of sexabuse by her former student."
(02:34):
"Former Pittsburgh public schoolteacher found not guilty of
sexually assaulting student.
"Maryland teacher underinvestigation, reassigned out of
classroom after video showsstudents un braiding hair,
painting his nails in class.""Arizona teacher retiring over
frustration of students notputting down phones; addiction
(02:56):
worse than drugs.""Woodglenteachers, parents frustrated
with district as severaleducators won't return next
school year.""North Carolinateacher turnover is rising; why
experts say pay alone isn't thesolution.""Las Vegas substitute
teacher accused of child abusedies after posting bail.""Visa
(03:19):
program draws foreign teachersto a rural Alaska school
district facing a staffingcrisis." Teachers are not okay
for so many reasons.
Every incident I just mentionedis a different situation.
And I'm no lawyer or aninvestigator, but it seems to me
that teachers are going throughit.
So it feels like with all that'shappening in the news about
(03:40):
teachers and all they're goingthrough.
The teacher shortage isinescapable.
It's going to take a lot morethan grit and passion to keep
teachers in the classroom.
So why are so many teachersleaving the profession and what
can be done to improve thesituation and retain more
teachers?
First of all the teachershortage has reached critical
levels, but it wasn't until thepandemic that people really
(04:02):
started to realize how bad itwas.
Here are some of the top reasonswhy there's a teacher shortage
according to a 2022 report.
By"The Learning PolicyInstitute".
The first is the most obviousreason, and that is low
compensation.
Teachers are underpaid comparedto other roles that require this
same level of education.
And by the way in New York City,you need a bachelor's degree to
(04:24):
teach.
But I know that's not true inevery city or state.
Then there's a burnout.
Teaching is an extremelystressful and demanding job that
involves long hours, high stakestesting.
Which is used to rate teachers.
And it's a job that you have totake home with you because
there's no way you're teachingfive periods a day, doing
coverages for absent teachers,eating lunch, et cetera.
(04:47):
And still having time to planprep and grade before 3:00 PM.
There was a survey done by theAmerican Federation of teachers.
And it found that 61% ofteachers feel stressed.
Always or often at work.
Next is the lack of support andresources.
A lot of teachers rely onTeachers pay teachers and
(05:07):
similar websites.
to find resources and have tospend their own money to buy
resources like copy paperpencils, loose-leaf anchor
charts for their classroom.
Because the teacher's choicemoney just isn't enough.
And sometimes teachers have toturn around and build their own
curriculum.
Now imagine being a new teacherwith little guidance and having
to create your own curriculumfrom scratch.
(05:29):
Not good.
And honestly, a lot of the PDsthat teachers are sent to are
insufficient, the best PDs I'vebeen to, or the ones that were
hosted by fellow teachers andhandpicked by the teachers
themselves.
Another reason for the shortageis a large class sizes.
Classroom management is a skill.
It's an art.
When you have over 30 studentsin your classroom at once, it
(05:50):
becomes extremely hard to managethat while also teaching a
lesson.
You simply can't control thebehavior of so many students at
once.
Even 20 students is a lot tomanage.
Every child has a mind of theirown, and it takes time to
practice to become an expert atclassroom management.
And only a small percentage ofteachers get to that place.
(06:10):
Students are acting out in classfor so many reasons.
And some of those reasons areout of teacher's control.
Teachers are not guidance,counselors or therapist.
They're not trained to docertain types of work.
They were trained to teach andreport.
That's it.
And recently there's been aninflux of students with special
needs and differences.
(06:30):
And second languages and notenough trained staff to support
those students.
So what's causing all of this.
Schools are struggling to fillpositions.
Which leads to those large classsizes, because you don't have
enough teachers to cover theclasses.
And honestly, a lot of districtsare hiring unqualified people to
teach.
or lowering the standards forincoming teachers and.
(06:51):
even substitutes.
No offense to substitutes, but alot of them are not qualified to
teach in the classroom.
But it's like a catch 22,because how rigorous can your
hiring process be?
If no one wants to take the job.
It's just crazy.
And this obviously affects thequality of education that
students receive.
So now you have teachers gettingfrustrated because there's not
(07:12):
enough support for them.
Or students.
And students are failing andthen teachers are leaving
because they're being blamed forit all.
High turnover rates means thatschools are constantly in hiring
mode, which is costly anddisruptive.
New teachers need time to becomeeffective.
So that constant turnover stopsschools from developing
experienced teachers.
(07:33):
I think back to when I was ateacher and in my experience,
teacher shortages led to a badschool climate.
That was always the result inthe end, because those of us who
were left.
Had to take on extra periods andthere was more burden on us,
which is stressful.
And honestly, that's why I heldoff on leaving.
The classroom until closer tothe end of the school year.
When I finally decided to leavethe classroom, I waited until
(07:55):
after I had prepped my studentsfor their state exams, because I
didn't want to leave thatburden.
on one of my colleagues.
It's a lot and it didn't feelright.
If you're a teacher listeningright now, you know that these
factors are affecting you andmight be the reason why you're
thinking about leaving as well.
Now there's nothing that you orI can do to change the situation
right now.
But there are some things thatcan be done in the longterm to
(08:17):
make things better foreducation.
I say this over and over again.
Teaching is no longersustainable.
Yes.
You'll still have some newteachers joining the workforce,
but they won't stay for longerthan a few years.
So there are four things thatcan be done in the meantime.
And I sincerely hope thesethings happen sooner than later
for teachers.
(08:38):
The first is increasing teachersalaries.
Competitive salaries are crucialfor educators.
States and districts need toallocate funds to make sure that
teachers are paid fairly.
This is a big factor.
That's going to attract newteachers and retain experienced
ones.
The second is improving theworking conditions for teachers.
(08:59):
The first part of this isreducing class sizes.
And I know there's already beensome movement towards this in
New York City with the help ofthe union, which is great.
Also providing adequate planningtime during the school day and
making sure that teachers havethe resources they need.
To support students and to gettheir job done effectively.
Teachers shouldn't have to hideand hoard copy paper.
(09:21):
Third is meaningful professionaldevelopment.
Investing in ongoingprofessional development helps
teachers grow in their careersand stay engaged.
But admin needs to ask teacherswhat they want to learn more
about and let them self reflectand choose the PD.
That's most meaningful to them.
They're going to be more likelyto implement what they learned.
When they can choose their ownlearning paths.
(09:44):
And the fourth change isaddressing student behavior and
mental health.
School districts have to provideteachers with training and
resources to handle diverseclassroom behaviors and student
mental health issues.
This is something that you don'tlearn when you're getting your
degree to be a teacher.
You have to learn in the fieldas things come up.
That's when you learn how todeal with them.
(10:05):
And something has to changethere.
I taught middle school for 13years.
And let me tell you.
When it came to student behaviorand attitudes, the students were
teaching me.
I was not equipped to handlehalf of the incidents.
I found myself facing in theclassroom.
So this type of training isgoing to alleviate some of the
stress that leads to teacherburnout.
One thing that comes to my mindright away is something that I
(10:27):
hear in the news over and overagain.
And that is teachers dealingwith students.
Inappropriately using cellphones during class time.
How do you address that as ateacher, without getting into a
standoff with a student?
The truth is every situation isdifferent and it really comes
down to knowing your students.
Personally, I believe cellphones should be left at the
door.
When students enter the schoolbuilding to avoid these types of
(10:48):
confrontations.
But not every school has thiskind of policy.
It's a lot.
You have to have adequate staffand procedures in place to make
this work smoothly.
One thing's for sure.
Schools definitely need moreguidance counselors to alleviate
the burden.
On teachers.
The teacher shortage is a verycomplex issue, but it's not an
(11:08):
issue that can't be solved.
It's going to take some time andstrategic planning from
educators, administrators,parents, policy makers, and the
entire community.
I really hope to one day see amajor overhaul of the education
system and for teachers to beproud of the work they do and
the pay they receive for all oftheir hard work.
I also hope to see more positivenews in the media about teachers
(11:31):
and all the great things they'redoing for students and their
communities, because greatthings are happening.
If you're considering a careerchange, remember that your
skills as an educator arevaluable and transferable.
You're more than a teacher andyou deserve to work in a place
where your expertise is valued.
(11:53):
Hey, thanks so much for tuningin.
If you liked this podcast, hitfollow and scroll down to leave
a five star rating, then shareit with a friend.
If you're looking for resourcesto help you on your tech
transition journey, head over touxteacherprep.
com.
Follow us on LinkedIn andInstagram at uxteacherprep for
daily tips and motivation.
(12:13):
Have a topic you'd like to hearaddressed on the show?
Send us a DM on Instagram.
If you're listening on YouTube,like, subscribe, and share.
Until next.
Next time, be well.
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