CT (WFSB) – The pressure on teachers in Connecticut is higher than ever.
This is one of the findings of a new survey conducted by the Connecticut Education Association in collaboration with the WFSB.
More than 800 educators gave their honest opinions on their biggest challenges in the classroom in the exclusive report.
“People often feel put down and disrespected in our profession, and that’s hard to avoid,” says KC Petruzzi, a high school science teacher.
This contributes to the increasing burnout among educators.
From first grade through high school, these teachers are in different grades and districts but share many of the same stressors.
“The teachers are under so much stress,” said Mark Janick, a high school math teacher.
According to the survey, 78% of teachers say stress and burnout are their biggest concerns.
“We really focus on the mental health of students, but we don’t focus enough on the mental health of teachers dealing with the mental health issues of students. There’s something called secondary trauma, and there aren’t enough resources to deal with what students are bringing to us,” said Laura Clark, a fourth-grade teacher.
Almost 600 teachers also expressed a somewhat or very strong dissatisfaction with the conditions facing them.
“It’s not the same job as it was 25 years ago when I started teaching. We have a lot of experience up here, you get more and more work, not less,” Janick continued.
In addition, there is a shortage of staff in many districts.
77 percent attribute this to high levels of job stress and 67 percent agree that there are too many discipline problems among students and a lack of respect for teachers.
In addition, 66% say that low salaries contribute to a lack of new teachers being hired.
“There is no work-life balance. There is an implicit expectation that you are always on with the new apps like Parent Square and you can’t turn them off. Often times you are inundated by 9 or 10 p.m. at night,” says Jennifer Rodriguez, an elementary school teacher.
Nearly 500 say they would not recommend a family member to pursue a teaching career.
“We want to encourage people to become teachers, but how do you encourage someone to do something when you’ve been doing it for so long and you don’t even feel successful anymore? You ask yourself, ‘Did I do a good job today?'” says Gail Jorden, an elementary school teacher.
Despite the hardships, many of the teachers said it was a passion, that they cared deeply about their students, and more than half of the survey respondents said they would choose this profession again.
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