Why Teachers Quit – It Isn’t Just About The Money

When you hear of a teacher who has decided to leave the profession, it’s easy to assume the reason was related to salary. Teacher pay has been a hot topic for decades as it has not seemed to keep pace with inflation over time,  but usually, pay is very low on a list of reasons why a teacher wants to leave. Many other factors and stressors lead a teacher to make this important and difficult decision. 

1. Teachers wear a lot of hats, all at once. Coworkers of mine claim they were “just expected to teach” when they started teaching 15-20 years ago. Now, they’re expected to be the students’ teacher, therapist, nurse, and, in some cases, sole disciplinarian in that child’s life.
2.  Testing amps up the pressure. This extra load is shouldered while preparing students for a very specific, highly important set of standardized tests. These incredibly difficult tests not only evaluate the students’ growth but the results are often used to determine a teacher’s success and even their pay. Curriculum shifts are common and teachers must constantly adjust their plans to accommodate these ever-shifting standards. (Hence, why a recent  RAND Corporation Survey reported that, in states with Standards Adapted from the Common Core (SACC), 99% of elementary teachers and 97% of secondary educators reported using materials they developed and/or selected themselves. ETED is seeking to offset this additional load by offering a curated searchable library of FREE lesson plans and resources.)
3. Teachers don’t get paid overtime. The myth that teachers are only working from 8 – 3 has been busted wide open before, but it bears repeating. Planning a week of lesson plans during a single 45-minute plan time, on top of grading papers, lunch/bus/recess duties, after school programs, parent/teacher conferences, staff meetings, and more, all result in extra hours outside of the workday that teachers contribute to every week – with no extra benefits or pay. 
4. Teaching comes with a high emotional price tag. In most career choices, you can go to your place of employment, work your 8-hour shift and leave, not thinking about your job again until the next day when you punch the clock. Teachers? We are always thinking about our jobs. “What needs to get done? Did I plan a lesson for tomorrow? Does Johnny have food at home? Will Suzy come to school tomorrow in clean clothes?” The amount of nights we lay in bed trying to fall asleep with all these thoughts running through our minds is truly countless. Everyone’s job is worrisome, yes, but the stakes are not always as high. We’re worried about children, how to advocate for them, teach them, and protect them. It makes us excellent teachers. But we pay a high emotional price for that concern.
5.  Expertise and experience are actually limiting factors. In most professions, years and experiences equate better opportunities and higher pay, but it’s almost a punishment in teaching. Districts usually cannot afford to pay a veteran teacher their higher salary. Especially when they can get two, or sometimes even three, brand new teachers for the same price as a veteran. Even when educators have put in the years of work, added the extra college degrees and certifications, and elevated their teaching ability, they often find themselves “stuck” in their school district. Once a teacher has too many accreditations or years under their belt, they can be deemed “too expensive” and cannot move into another district. This feeling of being stuck and unable to grow any further in a job can send a teacher running from the whole profession.

There is a myriad of reasons why teachers leave the profession. The next time you see someone decide to leave the education field, please don’t just assume it’s the pay. The pay isn’t a great incentive to stay, but there are much larger issues behind a teacher’s decision. The problem is bigger than a paycheck, and the solution will need to be, too.