Why teachers quit
The trend is alarming. Why has nothing has changed?
Here’s why nearly half of teachers quit within 5 years: Behavior:
One leading cause of teacher burnout is an inability to manage and correct behavioral challenges in the classroom. Between 22-33% of teachers leave the profession due to problematic behaviours including disrespect and inattentiveness (Friedman, 1995). Furthermore, a 2015 longitudinal study published by the US National Center Education for Statistics (NCES) found this figure to be 17%. Whichever way you look at this problem, when 17-33% of professionals spend tens of thousands of dollars (or pounds/euros) in tuition to enter a profession and then leave it due to one single issue, the problem demands addressing.
How big of a problem is behaviour?
The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation conducted a large-scale survey of inner-city teachers – 65% of whom reported that behavioral challenges were a significant concern. This statistic was slightly lower in high-income areas (56%) but no less challenging. A study of the summary, also released by Scholastic, can be found here.
Scores of programs (and many millions of dollars) promoting family engagement, resilience, trauma-based instruction, effective school discipline, social-emotional learning (SEL), and mindfulness have been implemented around the world in attempt to solve this global problem. Many of these programs take aim at underlying structural issues with trauma, family and the basic hierarchy of needs, but Legacy Education will steer clear of focusing on broader sociological or psychological issues and instead emphasize systemic strategies that can make a difference for teachers and those seeking to join in the profession.
The problem with college
With behavior as one of the leading causes of teacher burnout, one might balk at the prospect that a major study found that less than 3% (!) of college programmes address this issue in their coursework. This same study conducted a meta-analysis that found the following:
58% of teachers said that behavior disrupted instruction “most of the time or fairly often.”
Nearly half indicated that “quite a large number” of new teachers need more training on effective ways to handle students who have discipline problems.
More than 40% of surveyed new teachers reported feeling either “not at all prepared” or “only somewhat prepared” to handle a range of classroom management or discipline situations.
Classroom management was “the top problem” identified by teachers.
Tools to address the problem
Keen to learn more? Get in touch today and find out how Legacy Education can support your school or family with any challenging situations you find yourself having to wrestle with. We provide practical ideas for busy teachers, and aim to help you discover meaningful answers that you can begin using immediately.
References
Friedman, I. (1995). Student Behavior Patterns Contributing to Teacher Burnout. The Journal of Educational Research, 88(5), 281-289. Retrieved January 1, 2021, from http://www.jstor.org/stable/27541987
Other references can be found by clicking on hyperlinks in the article
