The purpose of the educational system is to equip students with the informational tools necessary for civil engagement and the knowledge needed to enter the workforce. However, that mission is undermined when teachers, who have the responsibility of educating the next generation, no longer feel supported in the profession.
The support factor may be why we see negative reflections in teacher retention with rates declining sharply throughout the past decade. The University of Houston highlighted these frustrations in a report from their College of Education titled the 2024 Texas Teacher Workforce Report. The report noted that overall teacher retention has been declining over the past decade, decreasing 6.4% between 2012-13 and 2021-22, during the reopening of schools in the post COVID-19 months.
In a post-pandemic world, we have seen teachers heavily impacted by the stress that has been associated with the teaching profession due to the demands of the job outside of the description. Data from the University of Houston’s report notes the number of teachers teaching three subjects went up from 23,536 during the 2012-13 school year to 27,275 during the 2022-23 school year. To make matters worse, increased workload is not shown to be linked to instances of teachers receiving higher pay as the report shows Texas teacher pay has decreased throughout the decade going from $64,638 to $61,336.
This may also explain the trend of more teachers leaving the classroom for careers other than teaching in educational fields where there is more certainty regarding the job’s demands and pay allows educators to have greater security in their role.
Because of the high turnover in the teaching profession, effects include more uncertified public school teachers in important roles, teaching core curriculum courses in an effort to keep up with the demand of teachers needed. This is affecting kids’ education in terms of developmental learning as teachers aren’t specialized in the courses they are teaching. Toni Templeton, senior research scientist at the University of Houston’s Education Research Center explains that this leads to a paradox in the school system.
“We have seen trends that those who are uncertified leave the classroom at higher rates. It’s creating this circular problem.” Templeton said. “As far as the students are concerned, we are unsure that teachers who are uncertified come to the classroom with a specific set of skills they need to best support students.”
The data supports this as the University of Houston’s study notes 89.8% of Texas public school teachers held a teacher certification during the 2012-13 school year compared to the 2022-23 school year when that number declined to 83.2%. Similarly, the number of uncertified teachers saw a 6.7% increase from 7.8% to 14.5%.
As retention rates are steadily declining in those with four-year degrees relating to teaching fields and certified teachers, at the other extreme, there is an increase in teachers getting certified in ways other than the traditional college or certificate programs.
Texas specifically has added more measures for teachers to get certified including a new initiative called the Grow Your Own teacher certification program which allows school districts to build education pipelines for teachers within the community.
This doesn’t change the fact that the majority of teachers are prepared through four-year college degrees or certification programs which include student teaching. 90% of bachelor’s degrees focused on teacher instruction for specific grades or subjects, says the American Association of Colleges for Teacher Education. However, this data can also be misleading as in today’s age, specifically in graduate programs, more teachers are entering the profession through alternative programs which place an emphasis on those looking to change careers, or move up to administrative / curriculum roles.
Since many of these alternative programs don’t offer mentorship or clinical practice before a teacher enters the classroom, studies show that teachers enrolled in these alternative programs are more likely to leave the profession (AACTE). This isn’t saying that these alternative programs are bad – they provide an essential service by providing ways for a greater number of paraprofessionals and people of color to enter the profession.
Solutions to this problem which has seen a correlation between the rise in uncertified teachers and declining teacher retention rates include increasing teacher preparation programs at the higher education level and making that a top priority, along with making sure funding is directed to public schools for students’ educational resources and financial / support resources for educators.
More simply, the problem boils down to the additional stress that has been placed upon teachers to not only focus on teaching students’ curriculum, but provide assistance throughout the school day and outside of school hours. According to the Pew Research Center, over 8 in 10 teachers say there is not enough time in the day to get all their work done, with the highest percentage being found in elementary school teachers at 88%. In this study, teachers noted the increasing workload as a challenge, as they have to do jobs which they aren’t compensated or expected to do like bus/lunch duty, and helping students outside class time.
AACTE also highlights how a large majority of the teaching profession finds their job to be stressful (77%) or overwhelming (68%). Part of this increased stress and workload in the teaching profession was brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic which required teachers to work in person, at high risk to themselves and their families, and asked them to become technologically savvy as the world began to shift to online learning.
With all this turmoil within the profession, teacher pay has been a topic that has become a greater concern, as many are deciding the tradeoff between the essential work educators do and the pay gap doesn’t align. Although teacher pay initiatives are growing with states like New Mexico and Mississippi reporting large increases in teacher pay, on average, teachers are making 5% less than 10 years ago, a figure adjusted for inflation according to a 2024 National Education Association Rankings and Estimates Report.
Due to the increased cost of living, teachers need to receive increases in pay proportional to the rate of inflation. Since many aren’t able to get by on a teacher’s salary, they are forced to take on second jobs, find higher paying jobs outside the teaching profession, or even move to higher paying districts. Teachers moving to higher paying districts is significant because of the fact that if well-qualified teachers are leaving lower-income districts, those students – who already don’t receive the best educational resources – are put at a further disadvantage as retention rates decline and more non-specialized educators assume those teaching positions.
Although teachers are paid more than some other professions, the disparity also lies in comparisons with essential professions. “Over the past two decades, teacher pay has fallen further and further behind similarly qualified professionals,” said Sylvia Allegretto, a senior economist at the Center for Economic Policy and Research. What Allegretto described is known as the ‘teacher pay penalty’ or gap.
The teacher pay penalty is the percentage by which public school educators are paid in comparison to essential fields. The gap reached its highest point ever at 26.4% in 2022. This disproportionately affects women in the field, specifically in subsidiary roles like coaching, where women experience inequities in pay despite the fact that they make up 77% of the teaching profession.
Figures show the lowest teacher salaries in Virginia ($52,870), Florida ($53,098) and South Dakota ($53,153). However, the gap and disparities in pay may not be as evident as for educational support professionals working in school settings but who aren’t considered teachers. This includes bus drivers, cafeteria and custodial workers and even clerical (office) jobs. Almost 38% of K-12 educational support professionals (ESP’s) earn less than $25,000 a year. In Texas, the numbers are $30,382 for ESP’s with the state having an average minimum living wage of $54,731.
Another reason for discontention in the teaching profession is seemingly essential benefits not given to teachers in paid maternity leave. A study from the National Council on Teacher Quality found that only 18% of the country’s biggest school districts provide paid parental leave for mothers giving birth. Although educators can qualify for up to 12 weeks of unpaid leave under the Family and Medical Leave Act, for many, that isn’t an option as the affordability aspect comes into play. Along with this, even after maternity leave, teacher salaries don’t make it possible to afford childcare costs for many, creating a domino effect of teachers in this position either being forced to leave the classroom or find remote options to deal with these struggles.
This is in part because of the policies of decision makers and politicians who talk about the importance of education, but who aren’t allocating the current funding and resources to public schools for students and teachers. These funding and support resource needs go beyond monetary values and stretch to mental health and family support.
In a state like Texas, which has seen a variety of legislative policies taken to effect relating to schools, most of it seems to be allocated towards the removal of things in the curriculum that state politicians and their constituents are opposed to, as seen in book bans and anti-LGBTQ+ legislation. However, no resources are being allocated towards mental health support for teachers and students.
The growing pattern of restrictive policies can be seen nationwide and sets the precedent for the political climate affecting curriculum and students. An example of this legislation can be found in Florida’s “Don’t Say Gay” law, which does exactly what it says; the policy has been loosely copied in other states including Texas with their own version of the bill, Senate Bill 12, which prohibits teachers from using students preferred pronouns and restricts teachers’ abilities to discuss sexual orientation.
Another piece of legislation in the state which has restricted the rights of educators in public schools is Senate Bill 3 which limits how teachers can discuss race in an effort for many state legislatures to prevent critical race theory from being talked about in school curriculum, even going as far to expand that reach to talking about current event topics. Teachers not only are restricted in terms of their first amendment rights, but the fear of backlash for addressing these topics due to potentially losing their job also silences educators.
And if educators want to speak out about these issues, they are severely limited. The state of Texas prevents collective bargaining and teacher strikes statewide meaning teachers unions have essentially no power to negotiate for higher pay, improved benefits and better working conditions.
Throughout these policies we can see how although many Texans value education and providing support for teachers and students, these policies show how we are failing in the school system by not putting in place initiatives which support individuals in the school system.
Texas AFT (American Federation of Teachers), a union of over 66,000 members in K-12 and higher education fields, released a survey in 2024 highlighting educators’ frustrations in terms of statewide legislation. “The teacher retention crisis is here, and Texas educators are ringing the fire alarm. They’ve heard a lot of promises from politicians but little action.” said Zeph Capo, president of Texas AFT. “What should gall every Texan is how loudly their children’s teachers and counselors and nurses and librarians and bus drivers are begging for support and how little regard this state’s leadership has for them.”
Current students are struggling under state mandated legislation while aspiring teachers now face additional challenges at the federal level.
Recent legislation may pose a problem to graduate students aiming to join the teaching profession due to the implementation of the proclaimed ‘Big Beautiful Bill’ by the Trump administration, which states fields including education and nursing are no longer considered ‘professional’ degrees in higher education. The legislation would also affect those applying for student loans at the graduate school level as the law would set caps depending on if the degree falls under a graduate or professional degree.
If the teaching profession becomes one centered around affordability and accessing financial support, the profession risks becoming diluted further – as students who are looking to pursue teaching are not able to get financial support at the graduate level – and the advancement of disparities which have impacted education throughout history in terms of race, sex and class.
