April 8th, 2025

Dear Readers,

The greatest threat facing public education today is something nobody talks about.

Teacher burnout.

It is expected that teachers will experience burnout by the end of the school year, and that is understandable, but we continue to see more and more teachers leaving for other professions.

Not only are teachers quitting at an alarming rate, but they are also quitting mid-year.

Teachers are not willing to persevere throughout the school year.

Whether due to lack of compensation or being overworked, teachers are not willing to fulfill their contracts.

This raises an important question: Are teachers quitting without good reasons, or is their job too demanding?

I argue that two things can be true at the same time.

It is highly likely that many teachers, mostly young educators, do not have the mental toughness and proper work ethic to persevere throughout the school year—many young educators, primarily from Generation Z, do not possess the mental fortitude to fight through the rollercoaster that is a school year.

Also, many of these less experienced teachers were not told the whole story about the current state of public education.

Post-COVID-19, public schools have taken a significant nosedive due to many students essentially missing a full year (or more) because of the educational policies meant to prevent the spread of the virus.

This is not to say that education prior to the pandemic was terrific; it certainly was not, and it was already in decline, but COVID-19 policies and procedures only exacerbated it.

Imagine a school or school district that already struggled to produce results, either because of student behaviors, lack of family involvement, or poor instructional practices.

The problems at these schools were magnified tenfold because of COVID-19 policies.

Teachers who have many years of experience are much more likely to be able to handle the behaviors and intellectual flaws that many more students now possess.

But a new teacher? Highly unlikely.

Not only are teachers considered to be one of the most underpaid positions in the country, but the job at this point in time is not very rewarding.

Students are allowed, either by their parents or school administrators, to get off scot-free almost every time they are out of line.

So, not only are these new teachers expected to get paid very little, but they also have less support than ever in the industry's history.

So, how do we solve this problem?

Structure and discipline.

Students of all ages need to be held accountable.

More students need to be held back so that they can acquire the proper skills and knowledge for their age.

Too many students are several grade levels behind in reading and math, which bleeds over into other subjects.

Getting students on grade level should be the number one priority of a school district.

Next, students who act out or habitually misbehave need to suffer real consequences.

Schools can only do so much when it comes to negative consequences.

If a student is suspended for three days but, while at home, plays video games all day, is that really a punishment?

Of course not.

Parents need to enforce order in their own homes.

Students who act out in school must receive some sort of punishment at home.

Without support from the home, there is no chance for education, public or private.

Teachers will talk until they are blue in the face about being underpaid, but until we solve the problem of student behavior at school, giving them a raise will not attract more teachers.

Without teachers, how can education hope to survive?

Teachers are the backbone of this country, and it is about time that something is done to help them.