Teacher Resignations Rising Among Those Who Feel Disrespected & Unsupported

Teacher resignations are on the rise, according to data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, as educators grapple with burnout, school shootings, low salaries, and little support.

“The role and responsibility that teachers have now are not what they signed up for initially, which has them changing course,” said life and business coach Angie Wisdom.

“Between mass shootings, COVID, and increased violence, teachers are feeling overwhelmed and under-equipped to fulfill their role,” Wisdom said.

More than a third of teachers, 35%, say they are likely to quit in the next two years, according to a recent annual survey by the EdWeek Research Center and Merrimack College.

Only 55% of teachers said they felt respected as professionals by the general public, up from 46% last year, but down from 77% in 2011.

“People choose their professions based on their values and when those values are no longer being met, discontentment creeps in and pushes them to find something that has value again,” Wisdom said.

And the professional demands on teachers are greater than ever. With fewer counselors and nurses in schools, teachers say students’ mental health needs and increased misbehavior are taking a toll.

More than half the teachers surveyed say students’ mental health is hurting both their academic learning and their social-emotional learning, and is negatively affecting teachers’ ability to manage their classrooms.

And teachers say the state of their own mental health is negatively affecting their work. Only 2 percent of teachers surveyed said their district offers extensive support for employees’ mental health.

Asked how districts could better support them, teachers suggested higher pay, better support for student disciplinary issues, smaller class sizes, and more or better substitute teachers.

“The environment for teachers has changed but salaries, training and support hasn't changed with it,” Wisdom said. “If we want to fix the problem and retain teachers, we have to compensate, train and support them in this new landscape.”