Teaching Statistics: Careers, Pressure, and Workload

I think we can all agree on the importance of teachers in society. Teachers drive education forward.

They prepare the younger generations to be the leaders of tomorrow. That’s why they need to be appreciated more.

And because we feel that teachers are underappreciated, we have prepared for you the most interesting and notable teaching statistics in the US.

Here are some reasons to show your teachers the appreciation they deserve right now:

Teaching Statistics: Workload and Pressures

1. Around 18% of all teachers have a second job.

A salary of around $5,000 is 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 make ends meet.

Moreover, the teacher employment statistics show that every fourth teacher under 30 has another job.

2. Around 44% of new teachers quit within five years.

One of the most alarming facts about a teaching career is that not many novice teachers endure the profession for long.

Roughly 44% of new teachers quit their job in the first five years. The reasons for such attrition are many, ranging from low wages to long working hours.

3. Every year, teachers spend at least $459 on teaching materials.

Just like every professional, teachers need tools to work. They need notebooks, crayons, pencils, a good laptop, and all kinds of other supplies.

But as the data indicates, they give at least $459 every year out of their own pockets for these 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 have to carry alone.

4. Teachers work 50-hour workweeks.

Even though most people are convinced that teachers work only six hours a day and have free weekends, this is not true.

There is plenty of work for teachers outside the school grounds, which adds up to a total of 50 working hours every week. For those wondering why teachers quit, the statistics show that this is a large contributor.

5. 50% of teachers have seriously considered quitting in recent years.

The teacher burnout rate statistics reveal that teacher attrition has been a serious problem in the education system for a long time.

The stats say that half of all teachers have seriously contemplated quitting in the last few years. Inadequate salary and burnout are the most common reasons teachers consider quitting, if not quitting outright.

An Overview of Teacher Employment

6. Between 2009 and 2014, teacher education enrollment dropped by 35%.

The teaching trends show a continued decline in college teacher employment. Between 2009 and 2014, teacher education enrollments declined from 691,000 to 451,000, which is a decrease of 35%.

7. 50% of teachers without a bachelor’s degree work in traditional public schools.

Judging by the teacher stats, the majority of educators that don’t have a bachelor’s degree teach in traditional public schools.

Meanwhile, 50% of those with a bachelor’s degree work in public charter schools. Those with a master’s degree gravitate toward private schools the most (10%).

8. The teachers’ unemployment rate is 2.6%.

The teaching unemployment rate, as per data, was lower than the national average, even before the coronavirus crisis.

Back in 2019, the median was 3.5% across all sectors, while it stood at a troubling 10.2% in July 2020. This makes teaching a relatively safe line of work compared to other walks of life.

9. The teachers’ growth rate is 4%.

Even though predictions from a few years ago were that the job growth was going to be 7% in the next 10 years, it turned out that the actual growth until 2028 is set to only 4%.

The teaching career statistics show that the largest growth will occur in postsecondary teaching positions — 9%.

10. The US private tutoring market is $46.9 billion.

We already mentioned that a lot of teachers rely on second jobs, and many of them turn to private tutoring as an additional means of income. The tutoring statistics in the US confirm this.

They show that this industry is worth more than $45 billion, making up 27.04% of the global market share.

11. At 9%, job growth for college professors is the biggest in the industry.

As per the statistics of teaching in postsecondary education, teachers’ job growth is way above the average across industries.

In 2019, there were approximately 1,329,900 such jobs in the United States, and the projected job growth rate for the 2019–2029 period is a whopping 9%.

12. In 2018, 1.8 million teachers worked in elementary schools.

When it comes to teaching elementary students, the statistics say that around 2 million teachers are working with the youngest generation.

At the same time, high school statistics confirm that there are about as many teachers working in secondary schools. 

13. The teacher/pupil ratio in public elementary schools was 1/16 in 2020.

The teacher statistics show that the national average teacher/pupil ratio in public schools is 16, which means every teacher has 16 pupils. California has the highest teacher/pupil ratio of 1/24.

14. Texas has 136,780 elementary school employment positions.

Of all the different working environments for teachers in the US, Texas is among the most fruitful. The teaching job growth in Texas is 4%, and the average salary is $56,520.

The numbers are similar for high schools. The salary there, on average, is higher by about $2,000 per year.

15. There were 3.7 million teachers in the US in 2020.

Many wonder how many teachers there are in the US. According to teachers statistics of the National Center for Education, there were 3.7 million teachers in Fall 2020.

Of this number, 3.2 million teachers are deployed in public schools while the remaining 0.5 million are in private schools.

Statistics About Teachers’ Salaries

16. The average teacher salary in public schools is $61,730 per year.

More than 3 million people doing this job have an average salary of a little higher than $60,000 per year.

If we consider inflation and the US dollar’s current value, the teacher salary statistics say that they make around 1.3% less than they used to in 1999–2000.

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

No matter how noble this profession is, it seems that low wages are cooling off people’s ambitions. 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.

18. Among the 30 industrialized countries with the highest teacher salaries, the United States ranks 5th.

The latest teaching career statistics show that American teachers occupy 5th place out of 30 developed countries by how much they are getting paid.

The index shows that countries like Luxembourg, Germany, The Netherlands, and Austria have higher salary offerings for teachers. However, this doesn’t mean the US is below average.

So according to these teaching statistics, the US is still one of the best choices for a person to become a teacher.

19. With an average salary of $85,889, New York teachers have the highest salaries.

Depending on the state in question and other conditions, teachers are paid differently. Those in New York receive the highest amount — $85,889.

The facts about the teaching jobs also state that employees in the northeast parts of the country are mostly satisfied with their salaries. However, in the Midwest and South, only 30% are satisfied.

20. The average salary for a math teacher is $60,320.

A quick look at the numbers reveals that the math teacher’s salary is similar to that of other teachers. They earn an average of $60,320 a year. Of course, the disparity is quite wide, ranging from $39,740 to $97,500 in the bottom and top 10%, respectively.

Teachers’ Influence on Students

21. Only 52% of teachers feel appreciated by their community.

Some concerning teaching facts point out that only 52% of teachers feel like their community respects them. Moreover, around 10% of teachers that consider quitting do so because they don’t feel appreciated.

22. 79% of students say teachers encouraged them to follow their dreams.

The teacher’s impact on students is evident when one looks at the statistics. Almost 80% of students say that their teachers supported them in their ambitions.

They made them follow their dreams and encouraged them to become what they are today.

23. 83% of students say a teacher boosted their confidence.

All statistics about teaching come down to this in the end. Teachers need to turn a child into a brave grown person.

Luckily, 83% of students confirm that a teacher managed to boost their self-esteem and confidence, demonstrating why teachers are important. 

24. 87% of people wish they told their teachers they appreciated their work if they had the chance.

Here’s another We Are Teachers tutoring statistic that explains how precious teachers’ work actually is. 87% of grownup people wish they told their teachers how much they appreciated what they did for them in the past.

25. Elearning boosts retention by 25–60%.

There are many ways for a teacher to motivate their students to stick around, but e-learning seems to provide a unique advantage in improving student retention.

All the statistics and facts for teaching strategies show that elearning significantly increases retention, from 25% to 60%.

26. Tutoring can propel average students to the 98th percentile.

Based on the research done by the University of Columbia, it is said that tutoring can make every student perform better at school.

The statistics on tutoring effectiveness show that average students usually manage to become straight A-graders after taking additional classes. 

27. The statistics of effective teaching show that students with good teachers improve their performance by up to 45 percentile points.

We’ve all had some good and some bad teachers. However, those that tried to teach us more are the ones we remember.

The teaching statistics on the topic show that teachers who are effective in what they do manage to raise the students’ performance by 45%.

28. Teachers influence over 3,000 students during their careers.

The average person working in the education sector sees thousands of faces passing through the classroom.

A lot of them will see teachers as role models and will look up to them. So, how important is the influence of a good teacher?

Well, according to college student statistics, the average teacher will influence 3,000 students during their careers.

Other Fascinating Statistics on Teaching

29. 89% of people believe that a teaching job is difficult.

Teaching is not easy. The wider public seems aware of all the uncomfortable yet positive facts about the teaching job, judging by the data at hand.

In fact, 89% of people are convinced that educating children is really hard.

30. Teachers study for up to five 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 four to five years before getting a bachelor’s or master’s degree and be ready to work.

While specializing in a particular field, they take classes that prepare them to work with children. If they want to work at a higher education level, they need to pass majors in particular subject areas.

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

If we take into consideration all levels of education, this percentage is way lower. Still, it seems like women rule in elementary schools. This teaching statistic shows that 90% of teachers are female.

Key Takeaways

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Well, those teaching statistics were eye-opening!

We’re sure you can think of a teacher or two that truly changed your life. Go on, message them. We promise they’re going to appreciate it.

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