Unfortunately, it’s no surprise that teacher turnover is happening at a very high rate.
In fact, a recent statistic showed that 54% of teachers said they will likely leave their job in the next couple of years. That’s a lot of teachers –and a lot of students lacking guidance in the classroom!
54% of teachers said they will likely leave their job in the next couple of years. Utilize these 5 strategies to help reduce teacher turnover rates at your school.
Why is teacher turnover so high?
Two years into the COVID-19 pandemic, the education space has taken a huge hit when it comes to teacher retention. Between schools shutting down, difficult hybrid schedules, and overall burnout, teachers have been through the wringer.
So, how can a school reduce teacher turnover rates and (hopefully) attract more?
There is no one-size-fits-all answer because each school and staff is different. The best way to improve your workplace culture is by surveying your team to gather actionable data.
In this blog, we'll discuss teacher satisfaction surveys, as well as other strategies schools, can use to increase retention rates.
1. Teacher Satisfaction Surveys
Want to know how your teaching staff actually feels?
You’ll find out finite details and factors causing teacher turnover rates with an employee survey.
It acts as a great channel for your staff to express their honest feelings and concerns because of the anonymity and confidentiality nature of market research.
However, in order to get this kind of response, we recommend partnering with an employee survey company.
One of the biggest advantages of using a third party for employee surveys is that teachers feel comfortable sharing their honest answers with an unbias party. If you send the survey in-house, teachers will hold back to prevent getting penalized.
Here are a few more reasons why you should be using a third party for teacher satisfaction surveys:
- Receive customized survey questions based on your unique objectives.
- Market research professionals responsible for designing, programming, fielding, and reporting your survey.
- A trusted source who follows the rules when it comes to teacher confidentiality.
There are many survey topics to include when measuring satisfaction and engagement.
Based on your goals and objectives, common themes in an employee survey include:
- Perception of management/administration
- Outreach for staff
- Compensation and benefits
- Work environment
- Career development options
Watch our quick video on the benefits of employee surveys for more insight.
💡 The Key Takeaway: Employee surveys are a fantastic way to gauge where your school staff is. With the demand for teachers increasing, and the number of teachers decreasing, now is the perfect time to conduct this survey. Not only could it help with your teacher turnover rates, but it can also lead to happier teachers that are already employed.
#2. Avoid the Overload
Burnout, burnout, burnout.
This is, unfortunately, not an uncommon term used to reference teachers.
Overloading your school staff with a chock-full agenda on a daily basis is draining and takes away from their teaching capabilities. This could be one of the reasons for teacher turnover in the recent past.
Not only this, it can turn them away from the profession entirely–and we need them now more than ever.
Just 9% of teachers stated they didn’t have job-related stress, according to recent research. That leaves a whopping 91% to make up for that lack of stress.
Let’s be real: kids (big or small) can be stressful.
While this is no shocker, imagine having to wrangle them five days a week! Not only do teachers deal with this daily, but they also are in charge of curriculums, parental relationships, and other administrative duties.
Understanding the weight of workload, from a school board or leadership position can be the first step in reworking heavy teacher schedules.
💡 The Key Takeaway: One of the reasons for teacher attrition can be workload amount. Aside from working with children, they are also in charge of a number of other duties, many of which can be high-stress. Consider inquiring about workload strategies on an employee survey to see what teacher feedback you receive.
#3. Offer a Space to Share
While we’re talking about burnout, let’s go over a couple of ways to combat it to cut down on teacher turnover rates.
Schools become the homes of teachers during the academic year. Meaning, that’s likely the place they’re spending the most time.
You can potentially use this as a way to offer outreach programs to teachers who are suffering from stress due to a heavy workload.
We all know stress is bad, so why not see if your school can ease that a bit?
Consider some of the following ideas:
- Providing weekly sharing sessions for struggling teachers
- Monthly Q&A with school administrators
- Employee pulse surveys
Again, these are just a few ideas out of many that could help your teaching staff. Get creative with it, and think about additional ways your teachers can de-stress, based on the needs of your school.
💡 The Key Takeaway: Discovering outlets to let teachers ask questions and voice concerns could be massively helpful to them. Much of the reasons for teacher attrition Whether it’s weekly meetings or consistent employee surveys, figuring out a way to successfully hear your employees can make all the difference.
#4. Take Salary Into Account
Another common complaint among teachers is salary.
In the recent past, a study found that teachers are paid 21.4% less than those who have similar education. This has undoubtedly contributed to teacher turnover rates in the past few years.
While each school has different financial needs and salary options, this is certainly something to consider.
If you decide to go ahead with a type of outreach program for your teachers, think about incorporating questions about pay. Keep an open space for this conversation, so your staff feels comfortable sharing.
💡 The Key Takeaway: Pay is a large issue that is another one of the reasons for teacher attrition. Referencing our aforementioned topic of holding open sharing spaces for teachers, think about having pay as a discussion point.
#5. Understand the Stress of a Hybrid Schedule
Hopefully, schools will not have to deal with the weight of a hybrid schedule much longer.
While it seems this method of post-pandemic schooling has mostly been phased out, COVID spikes could cause it to come back into place, temporarily.
Just because a teacher taught from home didn’t mean having to keep a class engaged online was easy. Talking to a screen all day and trying to keep things interesting can be a huge drain, for both the teachers and students.
It’s also tough for students to stay engaged all day long, especially if they’re younger.
Just like we’ve talked about in previous sections, incorporating open discussions about how teachers feel when it comes to a hybrid schedule could be eye-opening.
💡 The Key Takeaway: Discuss potential ways teachers can handle their hybrid schedules with less stress, should these be enacted again. Encourage your teaching staff to share their true opinions on the topic, and make sure to understand their needs.
Contact Our Education Market Research Company
Discouraged by teacher turnover rates? Don’t be. We have ways to help -- such as teacher satisfaction surveys.
Conducting this type of survey on a regular basis allows school administrators to track teacher satisfaction levels. By keeping an eye on this, schools can address and fix faulty systems that are pushing teachers away.
Partnering with a third-party research company, like ours, makes implementing regular employee surveys a simple, stress-free process.
Want to learn more about our market research services? Reach out through any of the ways below!
- Message us on our website
- Email us at [email protected]
- Call us at 888-725-DATA
- Text us at 315-303-2040
Lark Allen
As a Content Marketing Specialist, Lark has a strong background and passion for creative, professional, and journalistic writing. She is also a self-proclaimed music freak and 90s enthusiast.
Learn more about Lark, here.
