The Tennessee Department of Education released a report based last week on its recently concluded teacher retention listening tour. The report’s top findings were better professional development (PD), better pay/benefits, a desire for more collaboration, and more leadership support.
In compiling its report, TDOE had over a thousand Tennessee teachers express interest in providing input and feedback. The department used a random sampling method to talk with 100 teachers, placing them in 10 different cohorts. TDOE secured representation from each region, grade level, district and school type, and years of service.
“We are thankful for the over 1,000 teachers who expressed interest in participating in the listening tour and to all of the participants who took time out of their busy schedules to have very honest and transparent conversations with the department over the past several months,” said Interim Commissioner Sam Pearcy. “We look forward to seeing how we can continue to support our educators and make Tennessee the best state to become and remain a teacher.”
Among the findings, the department found that teachers felt their current PD options were repetitive and needed to be more customized.
“I’m told I need to differentiate instruction to fit different students,” one participant in the listening tour said. “Yet all PD is the same thing over and over. We partnered with a private company and they did a great job with PD because they differentiated and had data on what each instructor needed.”
Increased salaries for teachers were a priority for Governor Bill Lee throughout his first term. However, teachers still feel underpaid.
A change in the state’s salary schedule that would have increased the minimum to $42,000 was slated to go into effect on July 1. A lawsuit filed by the Tennessee State Education Association (TEA) temporarily puts that increase on hold while the court considers the suit’s merits.
TEA filed suit in objection to a portion of the law prohibiting districts from collecting payroll deductions for labor unions. A three-judge panel is scheduled to hear case merits on July 13th.
Teachers also told the TDOE during the listening tour that they could benefit from lower costs for healthcare, additional time off for illness or mental health, and additional planning time.
Further mentioned areas of concern were mentorship and collaboration. Participants said that after the first few years of teaching, they had limited opportunities for mentorship or convening with other seasoned educators for collaboration. Teachers expressed their belief that additional mentorship and collaboration opportunities would benefit both individual teachers and the profession.
Respondents also expressed a desire for more support from school and district leadership.
“I would like for us to be supported and feel like someone has our back,” said one listening tour respondent. “When a directive comes from the district or state, a leader says they are doing their job. I want someone to have my back in my district. This would help with a lot of issues.”
Teacher retention is a growing concern, with fewer people interested in pursuing teaching as a career while more teachers are leaving the profession.
“We are in an acutely serious and severe moment for the health of the teaching profession,” said Matthew Kraft, a Brown University researcher who co-authored a recent study titled “The Rise and Fall of the Teaching Profession” to Chalkbeat. The study showed across various metrics that the profession was “at or near its lowest levels in 50 years.”
JC Bowman, executive director for Professional Educators of Tennessee, told The Tennessee Star, “Money alone will not stop teacher attrition nor serve as a reason people will choose to enter the field of education. In education, there is never a shortage of issues we need to address.”
The TDOE’s report is designed to share Tennessee teacher input on how to improve their classroom experience.
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TC Weber is a reporter at The Tennessee Star and The Star News Network. He also writes the blog Dad Gone Wild. Follow TC on Twitter. Email tips to [email protected]. He’s the proud parent of two public school children and the spouse of a public school teacher.
