Teachers still want “apples”

An apple for a teacher is the education cliché, but do you know why? As far back as the 16^th century, parents of students in Scandinavia, and eventually in the United States, gave fruit to their child’s teacher to show their appreciation. But it was also, in part, a form of payment to help low-salaried teachers feed their families. Today, the salary scale remains, but the appreciation seems lost, resulting in U.S. schools having a harder time than ever keeping good teachers. In fact, according to a McKinsey & Company study, 14 percent leave teaching after only one year, and 46 percent leave before their fifth.

 

Why teachers leave

 

When teachers enter the field, they have high expectations of making a difference. Too often, however, they quickly realize that they don’t have the professional support, feedback, resources, or modeling of what it takes to help their students succeed. Instead, teachers must teach to the tests, fight bureaucracies, and monitor cafeterias and hallways in addition to their daily lesson planning, classroom management, and administrative tasks.

 

But it’s not just the heavy workload. In a July 2011 speech, as reported in The Huffington Post, U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan said that teachers should earn between $60,000 and $150,000 a year. In reality, however, teachers earn an average $39,000 a year. But because salary is often indicative of the value society places on the profession, the emphasis on compensation may point to another issue. According to the McKinsey & Company study, the top-ranked education countries in the world—Singapore, Finland, and South Korea—“bestow enormous social prestige on the profession” (p. 6). Based on the current state of the profession, can we say the United States does the same?

 

How to get them to stay

 

Give teachers time. Many schools are adjusting their school schedules to create more instructional and non-instructional time for teachers, such as extended school days or half days for students. Hiring paraprofessionals can also assist teachers with administrative tasks or small group activities. The U.S. Department of Education is offering states the ability to waive some NCLB requirements, which eases the stress of testing requirements.

 

Address the compensation gap. To raise the quality of the entire teaching workforce, the level of teacher compensation is critical. However, changing the composition of the salary scale (e.g., merit pay, pay-for-performance) isn’t a cure-all; all levels of compensation need to be initially raised to recruit and retain high-quality teachers, according to an Economic Policy Institute issue brief.

 

Establish supportive work environments. In a report from the Center for Comprehensive School Reform (2007), teachers commented that they derive greater satisfaction from their work when they are empowered by school leaders to make decisions about scheduling, selection of materials, and professional development. In addition, regularly scheduled observations that coach teachers to higher levels of performance promote better teaching and higher student achievement.

 

Teachers, have you stayed or left and why? If you decided to leave, what would have changed your mind?

 

Do you agree or disagree that these are appropriate “apples” to keep high-quality teachers? If not, what are?

 

Read our hot topic on teacher retention for more information and other resources.

Comments

[debbie]

I agree that teacher burnout is an issue given all of the challenges we face each and every day. It was interesting to learn the reason teachers have been given apples in the past!

[Mike C]

...I certainly didn't become of teacher for the money. I think many people are aware of the salary structure before joining the profession. Of course, everyone would like to get paid more, but their are also many additional opportunities to make money through extracurricular activities.

[Mike C]

I completely agree with the idea of teacher burn-out being a growing problem. Students with ever-changing needs ceratinly keeps teachers busy searching for new ways to motivate and inspire. I love the challenge that you meet head on each day. It's what made me want to teach.

[Sherice Alford]

Teaching is my calling and my ministry. I agree with the "apples" because it would be great to ahve more time and creatvity within my class instead of teaching to the test. Many teachers do leave the profession because of the stress and lack of appreciation. Of course, the lack of money plays a great deal. I know that I have stayed because I owe it to the teachers who made a difference in my life.

[Ashley]

Teacher burn-out is common problem. Teachers are fed up with disruptive students who lack the readiness skills to succeed (or survivie). The world around us is changing quickly and we continue to leave behind low achieving students thus causing teacher to leave their profession. This is my 12th year teaching and i can honestly say that I could not see myself doing anything different. I am in control of my classroom and I want all my students to succeed. It makes me very angry when outsiders think that all kindergarteners do is play all day. I invite you to join us for one day and tell me how fast it takes you to fall asleep at the end of the day. Teachers are exhausted everyday and I, personally, love my job.

[A. Qualls]

I think your blog is very interesting and I love to knoe the history of why teachers use to get apples. I think teachers need to feel that they are appreciated and that they are doing a great job. I hope to always be a teacher, and I did not go into teaching for the money. I have been teaching for five years and only make 35,000.00 a year.