Uncategorized | Mar 14, 2011
Why Great Teachers Quit (book review)
By Angela Watson
Founder and Writer
Why Great Teachers Quit (book review)
By Angela Watson
Teacher attrition is a topic that’s constantly on my mind. The primary reason I maintain my website and write books is because I’m passionate about helping teachers overcome energy-draining setbacks and actually enjoy the profession. So, when I read this post, I was immediately intrigued by the book’s title and asked the representatives at Corwin Press for two copies: one for me and one for a blog reader. I rarely do that because there’s no guarantee the book will be any good, and I don’t want to give away something I wouldn’t recommend. However, I could tell from the online reviews that this book was going to be a worthwhile read…and I wasn’t disappointed.
Why Great Teachers Quit And How We Might Stop the Exodus is written by Katy Farber, a classroom teacher currently grappling with this subject on a daily basis. She interviewed dozens of teachers and includes their experiences as she explains the various issues faced in the classroom. I found it simultaneously comforting and distressing to know that teachers all across the country are dealing with the same problems. In nearly every quote from classroom teachers (and there are hundreds), I found myself nodding along and thinking, Yes! Thank you! Yes! That’s it, exactly! The problems described in this book will undoubtedly ring true.
Farber organizes the book into eight primary reasons why great teachers quit:
- Standardized Testing (including effects on students and the school climate)
- Working Conditions in Today’s Schools (i.e. violence and small problems that add up, like not being able to use the bathroom)
- Ever-Higher Expectations (including useless professional development on new mandates)
- Bureaucracy (committees, closed budgets, and scheduling constraints)
- Respect and Compensation (the martyr system and paying for supplies)
- Parents (unrealistic demands and no limits)
- Administrators (the pressure cooker of principalship)
- School Boards (uses and abuses of power)
There was one reason I expected to see and did not: there is no section on students. As much as I’d like to assert that children are the reason why we teach, they’re also frequently the reason why we quit. Is Farber pretending that “it’s all about the kids” and that our little darlings are never a source of stress? Nope. Instead, she accurately assesses the root problem: teachers quit over their powerlessness to place students in an appropriate academic setting and enforce appropriate consequences. These problems fall under the categories of Respect and Compensation and Working Conditions (as well as Parents, to an extent.) The underlying assumption is that it’s NOT the students, it’s the system that has given teachers too little power to meet the needs of the students and maintain order in the learning environment.
After explaining each overarching reason why teachers quit, Farber includes Recommendations for Teacher Leaders and Administrators (practical, proven suggestions), Words of Wisdom From Veteran Teachers (advice from teachers to teachers), Success Stories and/or a Silver Lining (which keep the problems from seeming hopeless) and Additional Resources you can read online and in print to address the issues of that section.
I wish this was required reading for school board members and legislators…parents would benefit, too. Often educators complain that no one really knows what’s it’s really like to be a teacher, and this book does an excellent job summarizing the main challenges of the job and the type of solutions that are needed. Katy Farber has written a powerful resource for everyone who cares about education. It’s my hope, as well as hers, that this book will make a difference in teacher retention and help great teachers maintain their efficacy and enthusiasm.
WIN A FREE COPY OF THIS BOOK! Simply leave a comment to this post that briefly shares your experience: why do you think great teachers quit, and/or what can be done to encourage them to stay in the classroom? On Sunday, March 20th, I’ll choose a comment randomly to win a free copy of the book, courtesy of Corwin Press.
3/20/11 Edited to add: CONTEST CLOSED.
Angela Watson
Founder and Writer
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I feel good teachers quit because of unrealistic expectations, unreasonable parents who feel we need to be the “all” for their children and admin that doesn’t have a backbone
I ordered this book based on what I read on your blog post. Although I am close to being able to retire (1 1/2 years to go) I would like to read the book to find out whether the reasons for teachers leaving the profession are common across the U.S. or are there differing reasons in large cities vs. small, rural cities. I’ll be passing this book along to my administrator when I’m finished with it in hopes that it can and will he helpful for her in hiring and retaining the wonderful professionals that have come and gone at my school due to a variety of reasons. Our profession is definately in need of changes and with those changes, the pay increase that we are sooooo deserving of. I read a quote that seems to sum up for me why our education system is failing: “You cannot fail to parent your child at home, then expect me to work miracles with them in the classroom”.
Just this week, two fabulous teachers that teach with me resigned their positions. They are wonderful teachers, but the stress has wore them down. I understand their reasons for leaving. If things don’t get better, it will be very difficult to get quality teachers!
Several of those reasons were indeed my motivation to quit-instead of quitting the profession, though, I moved to a school in another county where I have found my enjoyment for the teaching profession fostered and appreciated. I had a student whose father wouldn’t allow his child to be discipline by the administration, and an administration who stopped handling said child when he was sent to the office for violent demonstrations. When I no longer felt safe in my own classroom, and neither did my students, I knew I needed to take action. Sadly, for me, that meant leaving the school. I have since regained the passion that had begun to fade, and feel like I’m in a school that acknowledges my talents and encourages growth, open communication, and positive interaction between school and community.
I LOVE the quote Julie printed above! Teachers are becoming increasingly frustrated with the political take-over of the classroom. The emphasis is no longer on the child and his/her individual needs. Instead it is teaching to pass standardized tests, and testing, testing, testing! This is not what brought us to this profession! We can no longer meet the needs of children as individuals. Programs to help the struggling child are being dropped due to budget cuts. As we work to give more of ourselves to these children, the high ability children are getting less and less. I could go on and on….