What’s leading to the teacher shortage and how does it impact the Mid-South
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MEMPHIS, Tenn. – Burned out, over worked and underpaid.
Between oversized classrooms and state mandates, about 90 percent of teachers have reported feeling tired and frustrated.
In fact, over 500,000 educators left the field after the pandemic, leading to massive teacher shortages.
In the Mid-South, unruly students only add to the equation.
FOX13 spoke with a teacher who had her glasses knocked off her face, another who was shoved to the floor and one who even had a can thrown in her face.
All the factors lead to educators leaving faster than qualified replacements can be brought in.
“There are fights in high schools, a lot of fights in middle school and some in elementary,” said President of the United Education Associated Danette Stokes. “So, the teachers are dealing with having to be security officers with fights in the classrooms. They have hunger issues, just rebellious, chronic absenteeism, testing, overtesting.”
About 70 percent of teachers and administrators polled said students had become disruptive and aggressive since the pandemic.
Stokes said that because there are fewer teachers, educators are responsible for teaching larger class sizes or to pick up another teachers classroom.
Both of those factors are contributing to teachers quitting or transferring.
But, most teachers who have left their classrooms said that pay was the determining factor.
“In the end, they’re leaving because of the workload and the salaries and the benefits,” Stoke said.
The National Education Association shows that teacher pay has failed to keep up with inflation for more than a decade. In Arkansas and Arkansas, teachers make around $53,000 a year. In Mississippi, educators earn about $48,000 a year. All of those pay wages are among the lowest in the country when it comes to educating your children and our future generations.
In 2023, 48 percent of teachers cited compensation as the top factor driving them to quit and 42 percent have already left for the same reason.
Unreasonable expectations, personal well-being and lack of leadership were also major factors for teachers leaving.
“A lot of testing. We’re having to test requirements from the state, you know, and we don’t have time to teach,” Stoke said.
And of that humble salary, many teachers spend hundreds out of their own pockets to provide resources for their classrooms and their students.
“Food. Socks. Shoes. I personally take some of my elementary kids to the store to get their feet sized because they need shoes,” Stokes said.
Chronic absenteeism and students experiencing homelessness also contribute to frustrating classrooms. But, of the students who do attend, many bring with them the baggage of unsafe homes and neighborhoods and issues with mental health.
“When the high school children are raising the elementary kids, being it’s a disconnect of really being disciplined and knowing how to behave,” Stoke said.
While our teachers strive to provide for the next generation, the burnout increases for those educators.
The reliance on uncertified teachers ballooned over the last decade. Many schools across the country are being forced to hire applicants without any teacher training to fill their open positions.
One report predicts that by 2020 as many as 16 million K-12 students will be taught by a teacher who is unprepared, inexperienced or teaching in a field they are not even certified in.
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