What Are the Main Problems New Teachers Deal With?
The first year of a teacher’s career holds immense significance as it can set the tone for their future success or challenges. Remarkably, statistics reveal that 1 out of every 3 teachers decide to leave the teaching profession entirely within their first five years. This fact underscores the noticeable issue schools face in retaining their teaching staff. However, the specific causes behind this problem tend to spark discussions and differing viewpoints, which can sometimes sidetrack school leaders from finding effective solutions.
New teachers often face significant challenges that revolve around unrealistic expectations coming from both school administrators and parents. Teachers are expected to be experts of their content and master teachers from the first day they step into the classroom. These expectations put a lot of pressure on new teachers.
Teachers experience an unending amount of pressure from various sources. This includes the expectations set by school administrators, the demands of parents, the dynamics of the student body they interact with, and even the weight of their personal aspirations. These combined pressures can become quite overwhelming, impacting a teacher’s capacity to excel in their role and maintain their commitment to teaching.
Expectations on Teachers Are Unrealistic
When teachers start their new careers, they are filled with optimism and aspirations for success. The desire to excel is strong, but this enthusiasm can sometimes fade as efforts go unnoticed and the workload becomes tedious and pointless. School districts make an effort to allocate work days for teachers, intended to aid them in getting ready for the upcoming school year and their forthcoming lessons. Unfortunately, these workdays can easily dwindle into mere scattered work hours. It’s quite common for teachers to find themselves tied up in mandatory meetings and training sessions during these designated days.
It’s during these training sessions that various expectations begin to accumulate. These expectations encompass details like how lesson plans should be structured. Merely submitting a personal lesson plan is often insufficient, as administrators often mandate the use of a standardized planning format. This form can change from year to year. These documents can span up to two pages for a single lesson and demand meticulous information that, while valuable, is time-consuming to put together. In addition, schools frequently require specific information to be posted on the walls of the classroom, such as lesson objectives and state standards. One year I worked for a school that required a “print rich environment” in the classroom, which meant you had to decorate and have a word wall. These are best practices, but they shouldn’t turn into another requirement.
Teachers are also often obligated to formulate a series of goals for the academic year, covering both personal goals and student achievement targets. Crafting these goals can consume an entire day, especially as they need to be measurable, a process that requires careful consideration. During this preparatory phase, teachers must also organize their workspace, not just lesson planning, but also by printing documents and arranging classroom resources to ensure they’re all set for the arrival of students.
Teacher Workload is Unbearable at Times
One of the primary challenges confronting educators is the relentless and perpetually escalating workload they face. Each day presents new lessons and often impending deadlines for various tasks. Adding to this, there’s a slew of paperwork that accompanies behavior-related issues. For new teachers, the demand is even more daunting, as they’re tasked with crafting entirely novel lessons daily. This burden is amplified for those teaching in secondary schools, where it’s not uncommon for new instructors to be assigned two distinct courses, effectively doubling their workload. In some instances, like the case of a new teacher I once had, they might even find themselves responsible for three different courses, a situation that can lead to burnout and deter them from returning the following year.
Teachers frequently find themselves grappling with mental exhaustion, a situation that holds especially true for new educators. This isn’t to suggest that new teachers lack the capability to manage stress and workload; rather, it underscores the reality that no one should have to shoulder such burdens. While the passage of time might ease some of the job’s challenges, it remains an arduous and mentally draining task, even for seasoned professionals.
Teachers Need Help With Student Behavior
The task of effectively managing student behavior can swiftly evolve into the primary reason for educators to consider leaving their profession and not returning. Navigating a classroom of young individuals is far from simple. Essentially, you take on the role of managing these students the moment they step into your classroom. You must provide instructions, set boundaries, and guide them through their tasks with precision, leaving no room for oversights or errors. Any omission or rule-breaking can trigger issues that repeat throughout the learning environment. The classroom becomes a continuous battlefield where maintaining order is a constant struggle. New teachers find themselves compelled to swiftly master the strategies required to maintain control of their classroom.
Beyond the challenges of student behavior management, teachers often grapple with the reality that they’re frequently in this endeavor alone. Administrators and experienced teachers are quick to advise new instructors to handle minor infractions independently. They often inquire whether the teacher has contacted parents or held serious discussions with the students. Administrators readily offer guidance on how to handle such situations. This scenario poses a challenge; teachers shouldn’t be burdened with juggling numerous factors simultaneously, especially during their first year of teaching. When a teacher seeks assistance, it’s essential to provide direct support without overwhelming them with extensive step-by-step instructions. They’re already familiar with the established procedures. If the teacher is asking for help, just help them, period. This lack of support is the primary reason for teachers leaving the profession.
Teachers are Tired of Being Evaluated
Teachers experience continuous pressure throughout the academic year, which intensifies significantly during designated evaluation periods. Yes, teachers are subjected to formal evaluations, which stand in contrast to the multitude of routine classroom observations. These official evaluations encompass a comprehensive assessment of teachers’ performance, spanning from the outset of the lesson—covering how they welcome students at the door and arrange the classroom—to the execution of the lesson plan and every nuance in between. Even student behavior is scrutinized as a reflection of a teacher’s effectiveness. Administrators may even go to the extent of noting the number of students using their phones during the class lesson. While planning all those details of the lesson, don’t forget to have an accurate date on the board. Lastly, a teacher will be judged on how promptly they address any distractions that arise.
For new teachers, cultivating resilience and adaptability is imperative and needs to occur quickly. Having a meticulously crafted and executed lesson subjected to detailed examination and grading can prove taxing even for the most resilient spirits. It can evoke feelings of inadequacy and not measuring up. What exacerbates the situation is the frequency of these evaluations, often conducted by multiple individuals including administrators, department heads, and mentors. While these evaluations are intended to offer guidance, I suspect that they often prove more discouraging than beneficial. Some of those in the role of observers can exhibit a somewhat unyielding and indifferent approach toward the challenges teachers contend with.
The pressure stemming from these observations need not be a prevailing factor. It’s possible to reduce their regularity and invasive nature, alleviating the associated stress.
Next Steps
The journey of a new teacher is marked by a multitude of challenges, a reality that contributes to the concerning statistic of 1 out of 3 educators departing the profession within their first five years. While these challenges are inevitable to an extent, there is room for improvement in how they are managed. It’s apparent that certain expectations placed on teachers can be impractical and excessive, leading to unnecessary strain. It is imperative for school leaders to step up and provide more effective support systems that empower teachers without overwhelming them. By fostering an environment that recognizes and addresses these challenges, we can work towards ensuring that the teaching profession becomes not only sustainable but also fulfilling for those who embark on this noble journey.
What are some of the challenges you faced or are facing as a teacher? What are some sustainable solutions for relieving stress on teachers? Share them with us below!