Dive Brief:

• "Listen to Us: Teacher Views and Voices," a new survey from the Center on Education Policy, found that only half of U.S. teachers are satisfied in their classrooms, while their peers report feeling diminished enthusiasm, high stress levels and a desire to leave the profession if they could get a higher-paying job.
• Some 94% of teachers surveyed said their voices were not typically factored into state or national decisions, while 77% said their opinions were not considered in district-level decisions.
• Locally, feelings about inclusion increased, with 53% reporting that they felt their opinions were considered "most of the time" at the school level.

Dive Insight:

American teachers are far from alone in their frustration. In the UK, British author and teacher Emma Kell surveyed 1,400 teachers, revealing that many reported having too much work, a high stress level and general dissatisfaction with their job. Kell called those findings "alarming," saying that "workload is the tip of the iceberg" for teacher's problems, and some reported also being bullied by managers, facing discrimination and seeing a lack of recognition.

Better supporting teachers, especially new teachers, is critical for districts and school leaders when it comes to addressing teacher shortage, retention, and attrition issues. Some,like Kristi Cole, the COO of the Milwaukee College Prep charter network, has called for schools to focus more on teacher feedback and observation in order to keep turnover down. Her charters use "observe4success," a cloud-based observation tool, to record and share observations, with staff receiving two to three observations a month — though teachers who are struggling can get weekly visits.

Recommended Reading

eSchooNews: Survey: Teaching demands taking toll on educators