(PatriotWise.com) — Minority teachers are leaving their jobs in increasing numbers, citing stress, low pay, and “politics in the classroom,” the Associated Press reported.
In Philadelphia, the number of black teachers has dropped over the last twenty years, falling below 23 percent by last fall.
According to data from Penn State education professor Ed Fuller, after the 2021/22 school year, black teachers in Pennsylvania were twice as likely as white teachers to leave the job. Similarly, Hispanic and biracial teachers are also around twice as likely to leave.
Fuller told the Associated Press that minority teachers are less likely to be certified and more likely to be teaching at underfunded schools.
According to UC Berkeley education professor Travis Bristol, the high attrition rate among minority teachers has been increasing over the last 20 years after federal policies encouraged closing schools with low test scores.
Minority teachers in schools with predominantly minority students say they are expected to take on more responsibilities with fewer resources and tend to have more students affected by poverty and violence.
In the last few years, teachers have also been struggling to deal with the aftermath of COVID lockdowns, including behavioral problems affecting students returning to the classroom.
But the greatest obstacle for teachers has been the pay as teacher salaries have fallen far behind other professions.
In a recent interview with Fox News, school choice advocate Corey DeAngelis said teachers’ pay has not increased much in the last fifty years.
DeAngelis said while the per-student cost for public education has increased over 150 percent from 1970 to 2019 adjusted for inflation, teachers’ salaries have only increased by 8 percent.
DeAngelis told Fox that enacting school choice policies would be a win, not just for students and parents, but also for teachers as it will create competition. He said having to compete for good teachers would incentivize school districts to spend money on attracting quality teachers rather than wasting it on “administrative bloat.”
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