This post is a tribute to the master teacher. It is also a recognition of the concerning numbers with regards to teacher attrition these days. In the post we will look for a way to preserve our masterful teachers and keep teachers in the field long enough to achieve that status…
As I write this, it is Friday of Teacher Appreciation Week. Before I go any further, I personally want to thank teachers throughout the world. You have my utmost respect. In my humble opinion, as trusted guides of our future adults, you do some of the most important work that there is to be done. Thank you for ALL that you do! Truly…
If you’ve read any of my stuff before, you know that the teaching profession got the best of me (hopefully only temporarily). Unfortunately, I know I am not the only one. I’m merely one casualty in a sea of fallen teachers. We may have different reasoning that we cite for leaving, but the fact of the matter is, we’re dropping like flies.
It used to be, because the job of ushering 20+ children from differing backgrounds, crammed into one room, and convincing them to do work is actually harder than it seems (All outsiders ever see is the vacation time), that mostly only the teachers new to the profession would be leaving. Their is a trial by fire in this job, and a lot of people decide it’s not from them. Usually, If you could get through those first 3-5 years, you would learn many of the necessary tricks of the trade, and could keep an even keel with a steady breeze at your back. Never easy, but much more feasible.
Not so anymore. This article, from Psychology Today, absolutely nails the problems with the teaching profession and it pre-dates (2016) the pandemic. In fact, if I could appoint a “Supreme Chancellor of Education” it would be her (the author of that article)…
Now, burnout is afflicting so many more teachers(I’m a 12-year “veteran” of teaching for example). People point to the pandemic (incorrectly in my opinion) as the root cause. I just think that the pandemic was a catalyst. Whatever the case, it’s starting to rear it’s ugly head throughout the teaching ranks.
Most alarmingly, we’re seeing our masterful teachers exit years earlier than they planned to. This is why I write today…
Ode to the Master Teacher
Oh Teacher, how do you do such masterful things?
Stop. I’m not going to embarrass myself any more than I need to. But if any of you out there are poets, I am open to submissions…
I alluded to the master teacher in my post entitled The 1-Week Substitute Teacher Challenge where I argued that everybody should have a civic obligation (like jury duty) to be a substitute teacher for a week. In this way, people could begin to understand the gravity of the situation and the implications the loss of teachers has on our future (among other things).
And just so there is no confusion, I do NOT consider myself masterful. I have my moments, but master teachers are in a rarefied air.
They have a marvelous combination of experience, enthusiasm, tirelessness, empathy, caring, and the list goes on and on…
I liken the master teacher to an expert drummer. When you first start out drumming, it takes most of your bandwidth to try and keep the bass pedal going at a steady beat. Then, eventually, you can put a drumstick in your hand and tap the snare. With each progression, you add a new element.
After years and years of practice, combined with natural talent, you have the chance to become an absolute phenom. All 4 appendages are whirling about in a frenzied, yet artful, bombardment of rhythmic genius that bring your drum kit to life.
And all the while you calmly sing into the microphone with a smile on your face. La la la la la…
This is the master teacher. They are working thousands of controls instantaneously, but you would never know it by looking at them. Everything is calmly orchestrated to perfection. And all with a smile on their face.
In this daily orchestration, the master teacher somehow makes every child feel important and that they have a voice. They ensure that every student’s needs are being met and that they’re challenged at an appropriate level. All the while they bring joy, enthusiasm, organization, experience, know-how, calmness, leadership and so much more to every minute of each day.
It is a marvel to watch. And we’re losing them.
The Concerning Statistics for Experienced Teachers
If you read current reports on the current state of teaching (after the start of the pandemic) you commonly see the statistic that 55% of teachers are planning to leave their position or retire early.
55%.
This is clearly clouded by the pandemic “catalyst” and hard to sift through. Nevertheless, that is a VERY high number.
I’m part of that statistic, but I’m going back. Still, I have a new plan to retire way earlier than previously thought and I think I can do 5 – 9 more years (vs. 18) and comfortably retire. This has given me much needed hope and I wish the same for you.
If you are interested in incorporating this into your own career goals, check out my post entitled Retire Early on a Teacher’s Salary – An Outline or just visit my early retirement page and find something that suits you.
Articles that pre-date the pandemic still paint a bleak picture. They show that about 14% of teachers were leaving the profession each year.
This far outpaces the rates of teacher enrollment. And it certainly does when you consider that 40 – 50% of teachers leave the profession within the first 5 years (pre-pandemic stat).
Put it all together and the picture gets bleaker. First, you have your most experienced teachers leaving much earlier than expected. Second, you have a dearth of new teachers filling that void. Finally, of the ones that do take up the career, half of them quit within 5 years.
Put it all together and you have more masterful teachers leaving and far less teachers filling those vacancies. If it continues this way, it will lead to even more taxing conditions and the downward spiral could continue.
If you believe in the power of experienced (even masterful) teachers like I do, than you know this does not bode well for our future…
What Can Be Done?
Look, I’m not going to pretend to have all the answers. I don’t. But, I have ideas, which I’ll share with you. That being said, if you have other ideas, I am certainly open to hearing them.
Basically, I think we need to address some major issues plaguing education, and specifically teachers. Here are some issues that need addressing.
- Teachers are extremely overworked – Paperwork, surveys, data entry, accountability measures, communication, continuing education, ever-changing curriculum, and on and on and on it goes. I could sit here and write for hours on this. I tried mapping it all out in this post, if you’re interested, but I’m certain I missed many things as well. All this results in a lack of time to actually focus on teaching and a constant feeling that you can never catch up to the mountains of work. It’s exhausting and demoralizing and it’s sending teachers to the turnstiles in droves.
- Teachers are disrespected– Whether it’s a lack of respect from students, admin, parents, politicians or society as a whole, teachers take it on the chin. This is incredibly disheartening and driving teachers away. (note: I do want to recognize there are plenty of people that do still respect what teachers do, but I believe it’s trending in the wrong direction).
- Lack of Belief in the System – Many of us, myself included, feel as though education has lost it’s way. Whether it’s high-stakes testing and the resultant curriculum that teaches to it, or the myriad other problems within, there’s a loss of trust on the part of teachers. The end result is that teachers feel they are constantly swimming upstream and it takes its toll.
There are more reasons, including poor pay (“You’re going to treat me like crap and pay me like crap too? Peace I’m outta here! Good luck!” ), that paint a more complete picture as well. But, if we could create far better working conditions that would be a start. Blend in more engaging curriculum that is co-created by master teachers and easier to implement as well. Then, start treating teachers with the respect they deserve, and I do believe it would go a long way towards creating working conditions that don’t push teachers away en masse.
What if Michaelangelo were instructed to do the same with painting and micro-manage the exact amount of each paint that was mixed together and document it for a board to critique? And under no circumstance would he be allowed to paint upside down.
It’s not completely apples to apples, but teachers are leaving partly because they are being hamstrung by ridiculous time-sucking measures that inhibit them from doing their jobs the way it should be done. Worse, these teachers feel (add me in as well) that these measures are actually hindering productive learning conditions…
We need to start trusting that our teachers know what’s best for their students and put education back in their hands…
Mastery Can’t be Taught
This is just my opinion but I was always of the mind that I’d get through my teaching degrees and then actually learn how to teach on the job. Another way of saying this is that “there is no substitute for experience.”
Along the way, of course we can be guided and helped. I just fear that today’s “training methods” miss the mark by a mile. Teachers are getting bogged down in endless minutiae. That which is devised to help, only stretches them too thin.
To illustrate, I make an analogy to the famous blues guitarist BB King. BB King is famous for being unable to read music. And yet, he is widely regarded as a genius, especially in improvisation. What would have happened, however, if BB King were asked to pre-plan each note he would play at each fraction of a beat within a given song? Worse yet, in this hypothetical, he would have been told it was a prerequisite to getting on stage?
Would we even know who BB King is today? I highly doubt it.
This is akin to what we’re asking of teachers. We are bogging them down with so much extraneous work that they can’t give their craft the time it needs to breathe.
In my opinion, teaching, in large part, is an exercise in trial and error that you build upon over time. Day by day, week by week, month by month and year by year. Eventually, after many trials and tribulations you continually add to your bag of tricks. What was once difficult becomes natural. Many of the things you had to focus on early now come naturally and automatically. This allows you to focus your energies on even higher-order teaching skills. Eventually given enough time, support, hard work, encouragement, and talent, you can reach the highest levels of teaching.
You can even become a master.
This, of course, can (and should) be guided and mentored. In this current climate, however, it doesn’t feel as though the teacher is being guided in a supporting way at all.
With conditions so poor, and trainings so far off the mark, far fewer people ever reach the higher levels. Teachers are leaving early and often. There are also far fewer coming through the pipelines.
In short, the master teacher is going the way of the dinosaur. In this equation, we all lose…
Listen To Teachers (Before it’s too Late!)
Teachers are telling you, with their words and actions, that the conditions are untenable.
Listen to them, before it’s too late!
I don’t go into surgery and tell the brain surgeon how to do their job. Why? Because I don’t have a freaking clue! That’s why!
Similarly, why do we have so many people that have never taught influencing education? Seriously, does that make any sense?
Sure, it’s always good to have balance and outside perspective. But right now it feels like the scales are tipped way out of whack. I’m just going to make this stat up, because I don’t even want to try to find it and I’m making a point…
(It feels like) 95% of the teaching profession is dictated by people that have never taught before.
Hopefully Google picks that stat up and puts it at the top of every search for “teacher burnout”.
But seriously, it is too much to ask that we have experienced, amazing teachers heavily influencing the direction of the profession? Is that so outrageous of an idea?
Maybe then teachers could actually grow and do their jobs in a sustainable way… Maybe then we wouldn’t be losing so many good to great teachers, past, present and future…
Thank Your Teacher!
If you happen to be reading this, and you’re not a teacher but you have a kid in school, then take a moment to thank that teacher.
Let them know you appreciate all they do for the students AND behind the scenes as well. Who knows, maybe that one note keeps one more teacher from dropping from the ranks.
If you feel the need/want to get that teacher a gift, then I’m sure it will be appreciated. But please, no mugs! No signs from Target that say things like “Teachers teach the future,” either. I won’t get derailed but we have too many of that those things and it just becomes stressful. Eventually, it just goes to a landfill as well…
If you feel the need, get them a gift card to a local restaurant/coffee shop. Let them know in the note how much you appreciate all the hard work they do. Tell them that you want to treat them to dinner/coffee because they deserve that and more.
Teachers don’t go in for the money. They go in to make an impact and help. Teachers want to feel like they are actually making a positive impact. Your recognition, even if it’s a note, can go a long way!
In Summary
There is a teacher shortage happening in our country. Teachers are leaving the profession earlier than expected. There are also fewer future teachers enrolling
This means that not only is there a teacher shortage, but it also means our best and brightest teachers are fading from the ranks as well.
This does not bode well for the future of our society. Students benefit from the guidance of highly trained, experienced teachers. With the dwindling numbers of these teachers, less and less students are having access to their expertise. This presents problems in the immediate future and down the road as well.
At some point, the piper has to get paid…
Efforts need to be made to wrest control from outside forces and put education back in the hands of its trusted teachers.
Then, maybe we can make working conditions more sustainable and begin reversing the disturbing trend in departing educators. In that scenario, we all benefit.
I just hope we can figure it out before it’s too late.
Thanks for reading everyone. As always, I’m interested in your reaction/feedback. Also, if you have questions on this or anything else (like personal finance for example) please feel free to contact me. Also, I invite you to come along for the ride and subscribe (right margin or “contact me” page). As I write this, I’m about 3 months into the writing process and am showing no signs of slowing. Subscribe and I’ll deliver my content to your doorstep (or inbox) as soon as I submit it.
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