Craig Carmoney’s BLOG

The Educator Shortage Crisis

It appears every single sector of the economy is facing a significant shortage of workers. In many instances, there are few concrete explanations for these issues. At least ones that are widely accepted. However, many of the challenges have been forecast for quite some time and are now becoming more of a reality. The data in certain fields those leaving and entering certain sectors is alarming. The requirements to enter certain professions is very specific and time-consuming. For example, we know that there is already a significant shortage of physicians and health care workers and this will only become worse over the next decade. This is especially true in rural areas where it’s difficult to attract employees who have lots of choices on where they want to work and live. Those same issues are also found in education where a shortage of employees is creating a crisis.

Over the last several years it’s become increasingly more difficult to fill positions in education, especially certified staff positions. At one time, you could use the 1/3 rule. You were excited about 1/3 of all applications, and excited about making an offer to around 1/3 of those interviewed. That has changed significantly in many ways in the last few years. First, there are perhaps only 1/3 of the applications and for some positions that are difficult to fill you may be lucky to receive an application. The number interviewed goes down accordingly and it is sometimes difficult to make an offer. This puts school leaders in a difficult position as every student deserves caring, skilled, and well-prepared teachers and staff.

There are many possible explanations and contributing factors that have all been part of creating this issue. Many of these issues were present long before Covid as most education programs at the university level saw dramatic decreases in enrollment numbers of over 60%, but these issues have certainly grown since the start of the pandemic.

A Look at the Underlying Issues­- The Why and Fixes

There should be no question that there is a shortage of educators across the country. What that looks like may differ significantly based on the location and resources of each school. Schools that are in desirable locations and that have the resources to support students and pay educators are not seeing the same level of staffing issues that are found in urban and rural areas. In fact, because of the shortage, many of those experienced educators have left those areas creating huge voids that are often unfilled. Over the course of the last decade, many issues have been identified which have ultimately led to the decline of available educators.

The educator shortage was recently made worse thanks to the federal government providing schools significant additional funds through ESSER. With additional funding, school districts added staff, which was needed, to address issues such as unfinished learning, classroom size, and other student supports. These were all welcomed and needed positions and supports, but when there was already a shortage of staff, this accelerated an existing problem and disproportionately harmed many rural and urban schools. Many educators found that they were able to move school districts because schools were forced to pay for years of service to fill positions which in the field of education has significantly prohibited educators from leaving their previous employer. The result was educator flight from certain areas which were often less desirable because of location and wages. The result was more positions were created than educators available to fill them. There are just not enough students in the education programs at the University level to fill the available openings.

So why did fewer people stop choosing education as a career? This is certainly where things get complex. Many issues are contributing to this issue. Issues often cited are that educators are undervalued, the perceived lack of respect for the profession, the focus on testing, safety and security concerns, lack of student supports, wages and benefits, and the lack of encouragement to enter the profession.

Attacks on education is nothing new, but it has certainly grown over the last decade with social media and politicians making education one of their talking points without actually knowing what they are talking about. You see in many instances the push for vouchers or other ideas that promote funding to private and for-profit schools that further erode the public school system. This certainly has caused educators to feel a lack of respect and unappreciated. It’s a shame that education has become so political for politicians and parents.

The focus for many years has been on accountability and test scores which have done little to improve outcomes. The amount of time required for testing and the stress created does more harm than good. Many states have an accountability system that rates schools based on these test scores which always favor areas with a higher per-capita income. The equity is true in many areas even if it appears that per-pupil funding might be equal. More money flows to the classroom in more fluent areas because their buildings require less maintenance, have lower utility bills, and often have less costs in transporting students because of population density. This means that more money can go to attracting high-quality staff and providing more student opportunities and support.

Wages and benefits have long been a roadblock to the profession. This is especially true for inexperienced staff who often have starting wages below $40,000/year. Schools have budget constraints which require them to often choose between compensation and the number of positions. The limited number of students support positions such as counselors, social workers, aides, and administrators mean that many more issues end up on the plate of classroom teachers and make teaching and learning more challenging.

When all of this is put together, fewer educators and parents are promoting a career in education to their own children or to the students they serve. In a 2018 Phil Delta Kappan (PDK) poll of the Public’s Attitudes Toward the Public Schools, 54% of Americans indicated that they did not want their children to become teachers. This is a large hurdle to overcome, and, in some instances, students are steered away from education into other professions because of their own experiences or by their perceived opportunities that exist in other occupations. This is unfortunately true in many professions today as health care workers, those in law enforcement, and several other front-line workers would not recommend their profession to others. This is something that must change if we are to fill the needs in all of these professions.

There are certainly other factors contributing to the shortage, but that continue to stand out. This begs the question, what can be done about this? Some things are in the works with increasing wages, programs that support college debt relief, and teacher cadet programs in schools. The teacher cadet programs are a fantastic way for schools to grow their own and create interest and support for the profession. Can this move the needle? Only time will tell, but one of the best signs that progress is being made is when current educators once again encourage their own children and their students to enter the profession and the wages increase enough to become attractive. If we value our future and want the best for our children, we must find a way to do this.