35 Important Teaching Statistics that Everyone Must Know

1. Private schools don’t have such a big gap in the teacher/student ratio.

The public schools in 2012 had 26.8 students per class on average. In 2015, the same survey  found out that the teacher/student ratio was 16, which means that there was one person on every 16 kids. In private schools, the teacher statistics show only 11.9 students in the same category. That, among other things, explains perfectly why private schools are more appreciated in the US.

(NCES)

2. The average teacher salary in public schools is $58.950 per year.

More than 3 million people doing this job have an average salary of almost $60.000 per year. If we take inflation and the current value of the US dollar, the teacher salary statistics say that they make around 2 percent less than they used to in 1991. 

(NCES)

3. On average, a teacher works 400 hours overtime during the year.

If you think that teachers enjoy the school break, you’re in for a surprise. They work around 400 hours more than everyone else which explains the teacher burnout rate statistics. The stats say that quitting rate in the first 5 years of their career is between 40-50% depending on the location they work. The urban area schools are obviously harder for working and the rate there is exactly 50% or the highest.

(Study)

4. 89% of people say only positive facts about the teaching job.

The teaching job is not easy. Common people understand this and they think that teachers deserve a medal. In fact, 89% of them are convinced that educating children is really hard. 9 in 10 Americans understanding that the difficulty of the profession should be enough of a reason for a better salary.

(We Are the Teachers)

5. Around 30% of all teachers have a second job.

The salary of around $5.000 is obviously not enough for the work these people have to do all year round. The stats show that a lot of them have a second job to earn more. The teacher employment statistics show that every 4th person under 30 works another job. Another 18% of all teachers work on other projects during the summer.

(Pew Research Center)

6. There are 3.6 million teachers in the USA.

According to teachers statistics of the National Center for Education, there are 3.6 million teachers in total. About 500.000 of them work in private schools on all levels. That’s around 1% of the entire US population.

(NCES)

7. Every year, teachers spend over $500 on supplies for work.

Just like every person, teachers need tools to work. They need notebooks, crayons, pencils, a good laptop, and all kinds of other supplies. They send over $500 every year out of their own pockets for supplies. For the rest of us, this might be just a part of the interesting facts about teaching, but for them, it’s a burden they choose to carry alone.

(We Are Teachers / YouTube)

8. Teachers work 50-hour workweeks.

Even though most people are convinced that teachers only have to work 6 hours a day and have free weekends, this is not true. One of the top reasons why teachers quit statistics point to this one. 

(NEA)

9. Teachers influence over 3000 students during their careers.

Over the career of an average person working in the education sector pass thousands of faces. A lot of them will see the teachers as role models and will look up to them. How important is the influence of a good teacher?

Well, according to college student statistics around 3000 students feel that some teachers had a deep influence on their lives.

(We Are Teachers)

10. In 2018 around 40.000 teachers quit their jobs in the UK.

Research published in The Guardian says that 40.000 teachers left their jobs in the UK. It’s no different in the States. The teacher burnout statistics say that 1 of 3 teachers quit in the first 5 years due to different reasons.

(The Guardian)

11. With $85.300, New York teachers are paid the highest.

Depending on the state and different conditions, teachers are paid differently. Those in New York receive the highest amount – $85.300. The facts about the teaching jobs also state that employees in the northeast parts of the country are mostly satisfied with their salary. However, in the Midwest and South, only 30% are satisfied.

(CNBC)

12. Even though 98% of people respect teachers, only 52% of them feel that.

We already said that according to the teaching facts, almost everyone thinks that teachers have a hard time doing their jobs and they respect them for that. However, only 52% of teachers feel like their community respects them.

(CNBC)

13. The teachers’ unemployment rate is 2.6%.

Why?

Because the job is hard and the money is not enough.

We know a lot of people know the feeling.

(USNews)

14. The expected teacher growth rate is 7%.

The estimates say that between the years 2016 and 2026, around 104.100 jobs are going to be available for elementary school teachers. That’s a number taken on the base of children that are being born and are supposed to start school during this time in the US.

(PRI)

15. Between 2009 and 2014 the teacher education enrollment dropped with 35%.

The teaching trends in college enrollment continue to decline. During the Great Recession years, when the safest job in the country was exactly this one, people decided that it’s not smart to enroll as teachers. 

(National Department for Education)

16. The trends suggest that 8 of 10 of them stay in their workplace.

There’s an interesting rule of 8 in this section of teacher stats. Roughly 84% of them are staying in the same position, or better said, the same school after the end of the school year. 8% transfer to another school and another 8% abandon this profession completely.

(NCES)

17. 79% of students say teachers encouraged them to follow their dreams.

The teacher impact on students is obvious. Almost 8 out of 10 students say that their teachers supported them in their dreams. They made them chase their ideas of life and encouraged them to become what they are today.

(We Are Teachers)

18. 83% of students say a teacher boosted their confidence.

All statistics about teaching come down to this in the end. It’s important if teachers managed to turn a child into a brave grown person or did nothing for them. 83% of students confirm that a teacher managed to touch them and boost their self-esteem and confidence. 

(We Are Teachers)

19. Almost 9 of 10 people wish they told their teachers they appreciate their work when they had the chance.

Another one of the We Are Teachers tutoring statistics that explain how precious their work actually is. A total of 87% of grown people wish they told their teachers how much they appreciate what they’ve done for them in the past.

(We Are Teachers)

20. Teachers have their own national day in the first week of May.

The first Tuesday of the first week of May is the official Teacher’s day. That’s the day when all the negative statistics on teaching are being put aside and teachers celebrate the teacher’s appreciation week. Some of the most notable ones get to meet the president, and all around the country, there are projects to show people’s gratitude for their work.

(Wikipedia)

21. The average teaching payment rate is at least 3.1% lower than the rest of the jobs in the US.

No wonder people decide not to become teachers. No matter how notable this profession is, it seems that low wages are cooling people”s ambitions off. The smallest gap between the average pay in education and all other industries is in Wyoming. Teachers there receive 3.1% less than everyone else. However, in Arizona, it’s 36.4%. It’s not strange that the teaching unemployment rate is getting bigger every day.

(Money)

22. The actual teacher growth rate is 3%.

Even though predictions from 4-5 years ago were that the job growth is going to be 7% in the next 10 years, it turned out that the actual growth until 2028 is set to only 3%. This makes the business a lot different than the teaching career statistics showed previously.

(BLS)

23. Private tuition is a business that’s worth over $5 billion.

We already mentioned that a lot of teachers get additional jobs. Some of them are staying in the industry and offering tutoring services. The tutoring statistics in the US show that this industry is worth more than $5 billion back in 2011.

(Market Watch)

24. Tutoring can turn average students into excellent ones.

Based on research from the University of Columbia, it is said that tutoring can make every student perform better at school. The statistics on tutoring effectiveness show that after taking additional classes, students manage to become straight A-graders. 

(Varsity Tutors)

25. The statistics of effective teaching show students having a better performance of up to 45%.

We’ve all had some good and some bad teachers. Those that were boring and we didn’t like had no impact on us in a positive way. However, those that tried to teach us more are the ones we remember. The teaching statistics show that teachers who were effective in what they do manage to raise the students’ performance for up to 45%. They made us smarter and more interested in certain matters.

(ASCD)

26. Around 44% of the new teachers quit.

This is among the most important facts about a teaching career. Roughly 44% of the new American teachers quit their job in the first 5 years. They invested time and money in their own education, but most of them couldn’t take the burden and quit. The reasons are many – low wages, long working hours, etc.

(Rand)

27. 2 million teachers work in elementary schools.

The teaching elementary students statistics say that there are around 2 million teachers working with the youngest generation. Same number of teachers work in secondary schools. 

(NCES)

28. In elementary schools, more than 90% of teachers are female.

If we take into consideration all levels of education this percent is way lower. Still, it seems like women rule in elementary schools. The statistics about teaching kids in 2015 showed say that 89% of teachers were female.

(The Atlantic)

29. Collaborative teaching is the future of education.

Collaborative teaching, by definition, is a technique where two or more educators join forces to give a lecture to students, explaining different topics at the same time. The statistics about collaborative teaching suggest that this keeps students interested more than usual and gives better results than the standard way.

(Wikipedia)

30. Setting goals is the best teaching strategy.

There are many ways a teacher can motivate their students to learn. Among them, the most beneficial one turns out to be setting clear goals. All facts for teaching strategies highlight this one as the best. If you’re a teacher, make sure your students understand clearly what your lecture is about.

(Tuition)

31. Teachers are responsible for the future of 38 million people annually.

Every year around 38 million kids enrolled in school for the first time. Of them, only 14.56 million go to college. The importance of the statistics about teaching others is obvious. If the educators of our children do a better job, more people will go to college and become more successful. Of course, for this, we’ll need to use a lot more than this excuse. We need to take the job stats and the wage teaching stats and many other factors to make the picture complete.

(Statista)

32. With a 4% growth, Texas elementary schools are the best place to look for a teacher job.

The salary for being a teacher varies from state to state. The level of education is also important. Also, there aren’t as many job openings in all states. The teaching job growth in Texas is 4% and the salary is $56.580. The numbers are similar for middle schools. The pay there, on average, is higher – about $2000 per year.

(Student Loan Planner)

33. American teachers rank 27th of 32 countries by how much they earn.

If you’re a teacher yourself, you won’t see this fact as a surprise. The teaching career statistics of 2015, show that American teachers rank on the 27th place out of 32 developed countries by how much they are getting paid. The index says that countries like Turkey, South Korea, Greece, and Poland are all above average. The USA is below the average. So according to teaching statistics the US is not the best choice for a person to become a part of the education system.

(Brookings)

34. With 11% of College professors, job growth is the biggest in the industry.

It’s not easy to become a college professor. It takes a lot of studying. However, the statistics of teaching on different levels say that professors generate $20.000 more than those on the lowest level. It pays off to study and be good at what you do.

(BLS)

35. Teachers study up to 5 years before they get a license.

Statistics about people involved in teaching tell us that their jobs are not so easy to get. They need to spend 4 to 5 years before getting a bachelor’s degree and be ready to work. While specializing in a certain field, they get classes who prepare them to work with children. If they want to work at a higher level, additional education will be required too.

(Chron)