Leading Us Out of the Teacher Recruitment Crisis

Renee Gordon, Jodi Rath, and Michael White

Our teacher recruitment system has been blinking red for a long time, with the past decade catapulting the United States into crisis mode. In 2016, the nonprofit Learning Policy Institute reported that teacher education enrollment dropped from 691,000 to 451,000, a 35 percent reduction, between 2009 and 2014. The U. S. Department of Education (2015) reports that a majority of states have identified teacher shortages in mathematics (47 states and the District of Columbia); special education (46 states and D.C.); science (43 states); world languages (40 states and D.C.); career and technical education (32 states); teachers of English language learners (32 states); art, music, and dance (28 states); and English (27 states).

Here's an example of how things are playing out in one midwestern state. In 2003–04, Ohio's public and private, nonprofit colleges and universities awarded 55,207 bachelor's degrees, of which 12 percent were in education. By 2014–15, the number of bachelor's degrees had risen to 69,592, but only 7 percent were in education. The number of newly awarded bachelor's degrees in education has dropped by more than one-fourth in Ohio since the 2003–04 school year, challenging the state's reputation as a font of new teachers. Furthermore, prospective new teachers aren't seeking degrees in the specialties in which they're needed most (Edwards, 2016). In the early 90s, Ohio's department of education reported teacher shortages in physical science (grades 7–12), and for students with visual needs and students with severe behavioral needs (K–grade 12). In comparison, for the 2016–17 school years, Ohio reported shortages in virtually every area of teaching.

What Can School Leaders Do to Reverse This Trend?

The first step is to admit that the teacher shortage is a huge problem in schools, so leaders need to do something dramatically different to recruit teachers. We have surveyed school districts across the country, asking school leaders to describe how they recruit new teachers. Their responses indicate that many school systems have not kept pace with the recruitment process and best practices of other fields. Our conversations with educators revealed persistent problems in teacher recruitment and retention, but also possibilities for positive reforms:

• Most leaders' recruitment strategies are hyperlocal, untargeted, or nonexistent. School districts should devote more time and resources to intentional recruitment and begin the process with college first- and second-year students while they are still considering college majors.
• School districts' application and selection processes often emphasize static application materials—such as written applications, résumés, and proof of certifications—over performance-based measures. This is a place where administrators could create surveys or personality inventories that look for emotional intelligence/tolerance to help determine the right fit for their district. For example, this blog post lists ten interview questions to help leaders assess candidates' emotional intelligence.
• Most school systems do not have a clearly defined value proposition that convincingly lays out the reasons—beyond money and benefits—why teaching in their district is attractive. Leaders can challenge their recruitment team to lay out 25 reasons why a person would enjoy living and working in your community. Brainstorm these reasons by asking questions like: How can the teacher retirement system can make up for a lower salary? What types of training and professional growth opportunities does your school provide that may attract candidates?
• Recruitment and retention starts with treating teachers with respect. What is the professional culture in your school and district?
• Consider creating teacher residency programs that provide apprenticeships in high-need schools under the wing of expert teachers. Recruited teachers who complete their training would be hired and paid for their training time with years of service. "Grow-your-own" programs also create a pathway for young people to stay and serve in their community's schools.
• Given that 20 to 30 percent of all new teachers nationwide leave the field entirely within the first five years of their career, alternative certification programs and schools need to prepare with two-year staff on-boarding and induction programs (Sutcher et. al, 2016).
• Current certification and mentorship programs leave too much to chance and depend on the quality of the mentor. Administrators need to actively recruit the best mentors that not only want the extra money but that have the excellent social and emotional skills, so they can relate to new teachers and their specific needs as they begin their career.
• Leaders can lobby at the national level to make teacher certification national instead of state by state. A national certification exam would give teachers more mobility to go where they're needed. Leaders can also raise their voices against the constant churn of legislative mandates that can confuse and hit new teachers the hardest.

We can no longer maintain an outdated model of teacher recruitment. As educators, we can point to what's wrong, but we can also elevate innovative solutions.

References

Edwards, M. (2016, March 30). "Drop in education majors sends Ohio schools scrambling for teachers." The Columbus Dispatch.

U.S. Department of Education, Office of Postsecondary Education. (2015). Teacher shortage areas nationwide listings 1990–1991 through 2015–2016. Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Education.

Renee Gordon has worked with Amazon, recruiting IT professionals and building Amazon's data warehousing system and logistic teams. She is the founder of E Square and works internationally designing, implementing, and monitoring recruitment and retention systems for business and education. Michael White is a licensed pediatric psychologist, author and director of Educational Consulting Services in Clemson, South Carolina. He has served as a lead consultant for the Ohio department of education's Center for Accountability and Continuous Improvement. His latest book is It's Not About the Test: Understanding Data and Creating Assessment that Actually Works (2015). Jodi Rath is in her 18th year in education. She currently owns her own business, Mys. Ed. She has taught a range of topics in 9–12 grade English language arts in a traditional district in Carroll, Ohio. In 2008, she was named teacher of the year in her district. She taught 10th grade at an online school for five years and is currently an adjunct professor for Ashland University in Columbus, Ohio. Find Jodi on Twitter @jodirath. The authors are currently collaborating on an educational book titled Where Are All of Our Teachers: Teacher Recruitment and Retention in the K–12 Educational System.

ASCD Express, Vol. 13, No. 18. Copyright 2018 by ASCD. All rights reserved. Visit www.ascd.org/ascdexpress.