In spring 2024, nearly twice as many public pre-K teachers reported frequent job-related stress compared to similar working adults.
According to a new survey from the RAND Corporation, 18% of public school pre-K teachers intended to leave their jobs by the end of the 2023-24 school year, compared to 22% of K12 teachers, citing multiple job-related stressors as reasons why.
Pre-K teachers rank issues like managing student behavior, inadequate pay, supporting student mental health and well-being, and administrative work outside of teaching as their top stressors.
On average, pre-K teachers earn nearly $7,000 less than their K12 peers, and about $24,000 less than similar working adults. Moreover, only 38% of pre-K teachers believe they’re paid enough.
Their workload is also higher than expected. The average pre-K teacher works 47 hours per week, despite being contracted to work 39 hours.
The findings are comparable to another survey published by edtech company Prodigy Education, which surveyed teachers of all grade levels and found that nearly 50% of educators say it’s their most stressful year yet.
According to the survey of more than 840 K12 teachers, 95% say they’re experiencing some level of stress, with nearly 70% reporting moderate to very high stress levels. Teachers in kindergarten through fifth grade were the most likely to feel extremely/very stressed (33%).
Here’s what’s driving teacher stress, according to the Prodigy Education survey:
- Student behavior and discipline challenges: 58%
- Low salary for the work required: 44%
- Administrative demands: 28%
- Unrealistic workload: 27%
- Parent and guardian expectations or interactions: 25%
- Large class sizes: 19%
- Pressure to meet standardized test goals: 17%
- School safety concerns: 13%
- Lack of classroom resources: 11%
- Technology challenges: 11%
“The fact that stress levels for so many teachers have exceeded those of the pandemic era should be a wake-up call,” said Josh Prieur, director of education enablement at Prodigy Education. “Teachers need tangible, meaningful and sustained support alongside our appreciation.”
Here are the top three solutions offered in the report for improving teacher stress, according to teachers:
- More pay: 59%
- Implementing four-day school weeks: 33%
- Stronger classroom discipline policies: 32%
More from DA: Teacher burnout is still a problem. Here’s how to fix it.
