Every other year, public school teachers across the state of North Carolina are asked to fill out a detailed survey about their working conditions. In 2022, educators responded in full force.
"Teachers definitely wanted to get their voice heard," said Alessandro Montanari, of the Department of Public Instruction, in his presentation to the State Board of Education Wednesday.
The biennial 2022 Teacher Working Conditions Survey received a 92% response rate, with 112,000 educators in North Carolina participating during the spring semester.
“If any of you have ever worked in research or in surveys, you know that that's an incredible number,” Montanari said, adding that it was a record response in the 20 years the Department of Public Instruction has conducted the survey.
Here are some of the findings from the 2022 Teacher Working Conditions Survey:
- Teachers overwhelmingly said their schools have a plan for natural disasters and active shooter situations. Three of the top four survey questions that received the highest agreement from teachers this year involved school safety plans being in place.
- When asked about future plans, 78% of teachers said they plan to stay at their current school. That means about 1 in 5 North Carolina teachers intend to leave their school, either for another school or to exit the profession.
- Most teachers said they believe their students are 6 months to 1 year behind in academic progress compared to a typical year. This is also supported by the findings of a recent report by the Department of Public Instruction’s Office of Learning Recovery.
- Nearly 70 percent of educators say their students have greater mental health needs compared to a typical year.
- Teachers and principals raised concerns about cyberbullying. Only 36% of principals and 63% of teachers agreed with the statement that “Cyberbulling is not a frequent problem among students in this district.”
- Educators said the top two issues schools are facing during the pandemic are addressing disparities in student learning and school staffing shortages.
- Two of the things teachers say they used to have more of are time to focus on teaching and planning and community support.