Would you urge someone to become a teacher today? Fewer than one in five Americans would encourage a young person to become a K-12 teacher, according to a 2022 survey by the nonprofit National Opinion Research Center at the University of Chicago.
This is just one sign of a persistent challenge we’ve been facing in K12 districts over the past decade, and one with which our progress will have significant implications for education in 2025: the teacher shortage.
Although this problem has improved lately, teacher shortages persist, with one recent example being that while there were 290,000 job openings in state and local education jobs in June 2024, only 152,000 hires were made, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
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The teacher shortage is being driven by several factors of different urgency and complexity. There are three factors, though, vitally important for us to act on next year to address this problem in school districts.
1. Job satisfaction and an empowering work environment
One factor contributing to the shortage is dissatisfaction. A 2022 survey by Merrimack College found only 12% of teachers are very satisfied with their jobs, and more than 40% of teachers said they were very or fairly likely to leave the profession in the next two years.
The renowned psychiatrist Dr. William Glasser pointed out that all people have basic psychological needs of freedom, fun, belonging, power and safety. People, including teachers, are more engaged and satisfied when they’re in an environment that maximizes the chances of meeting those needs.
Practically speaking, the internal questions becoming top-of-mind for teachers are, “Do I have the autonomy that professionals in similar fields have to enable me to be the best I can be,” and “Do I have the support and resources I need to maximize my effectiveness?”
Many teachers do not feel empowered to make decisions that other professionals make, including choosing which resources they teach with and how they address controversial subjects. Similarly, teachers consider the investments in their career development and resources inadequate. This includes access to professional conferences, upskilling in the latest technologies and, especially, personalized and ongoing coaching and mentorship.
The bottom line is that to expect teachers to stay, they must be in a needs-satisfying environment and see a pathway for them to reach their highest potential, a way to be everything they want to be as professionals.
2. National conversation on teacher pay
One of the biggest factors in teacher shortages is low teacher compensation. As of October 2023, according to an ADP Research Institute report, the average annual teacher salary in the U.S. was $68,000, 8% less than the average salary for all workers.
Ultimately, teaching is a profession that people enter to fulfill a higher calling and help the world become a better place, and not necessarily to seek a high salary. At the same time, especially with the start of a new presidential administration, 2025 is the year we need to initiate a national conversation to determine what a minimum standard of living should be and what a salary base should be that we need to honor to enable teachers to attain that.
Making ends meet should not be the top-of-mind concern for educators. We all benefit when an educator can concentrate on their empowering lessons and the needs of their students more than their personal checkbook and household budget.
The conversation could be driven by the president, Congress or the Department of Education, but it’s necessary. We’re long overdue with a federal initiative to alleviate their concern about cost of living so they can place their top focus on being excellent educators and empowering students to be the best they can be.
3. AI conundrum
A final area to address to help check the teacher shortage involves today’s most-talked-about technology.
Although the debate about integrating AI is wide-ranging, educators must embrace the opportunity to teach students all that AI is to prepare them for the world outside the classroom. We also must embrace AI’s potential to remove tedious work and allow us space to innovate and empower students.
I remember sitting in “unpacking standards” workshops for days if not weeks. AI can now unpack these standards in minutes, complete with key vocabulary, learning targets and slide presentations.
AI allows teachers to open a new world of more engaging learning experiences. For example, gamification offers a dynamic way to educate students through the fun of games. AI can also employ more advanced technologies, like augmented and virtual reality, to make complex concepts, like animal anatomies, more accessible.
But we must alleviate teachers’ fear that their jobs may be replaced because of AI. Teachers are and always will be at the core of the learning experience, and AI is not intended to replace them. To attract new teachers and encourage current teachers to stay, we must help them understand that AI will empower them to deliver higher-quality learning.
