Research findings indicate strong public support for teachers
Survey shows changes are needed in the teaching profession
Kelly Services announced last week the findings of its Education Pulse Survey, conducted to gauge the public’s perception of the state of education in the United States.
Kelly Services announced last week the findings of its Education Pulse Survey, conducted to gauge the public’s perception of the state of education in the United States.
The fourth quarter survey, conducted online in October of 2017 for Kelly Services’ educational practice group by Harris Poll, reveals strong support for teachers. Findings show that 85 percent of U.S. adults with or without dependent children in grades K-12 support pay increases for teachers to address teacher shortages. In addition, 75 percent support a change in requirements to make it easier for people with bachelor’s degree to become certified as a teacher.
“The Education Pulse Survey results validate our observations of how deeply Americans care about our education system,” said Nicola Soares, vice president and managing director for Kelly Educational Staffing. “It’s encouraging to see that parents and non-parents alike continue to have solid respect and esteem for educators and expect them to be qualified and fairly compensated.”
Compensation could be a top reason why professionals leave the field. Roughly six in 10 U.S. adults (62 percent) feel a main reason teachers leave the profession is due to being underpaid/ low salary. This sentiment is most prominent in the West and South (67 percent each) followed by the Midwest (60 percent) with fewer in the Northeast (49 percent) feeling the same.
But what about the growing teacher shortage? In a recently released research brief, the Learning Policy Institute found that currently there are not enough qualified teachers applying for teaching jobs to meet the demands in all locations and field.
One in four U.S. adults believe teachers exit their chosen field due to a challenging work environment (29%), lack of or difficult parent support/partnership (27%), ineffective district/school leadership (26%), and heavy workload (25%).
Perhaps surprisingly, three in four U.S. adults would encourage a young person to go into teaching as a career today and support a change in requirements to make it easier for people with bachelor’s degrees to become certified as a teacher (both 75 percent).
The Education Pulse Survey gauges the top issues and concerns among those with and without children or dependents in grades K-12. The survey provided an opportunity for adults to convey their thoughts on teacher compensation, retention, and why they believe educators are leaving the field.