[Administrator Tips] Teacher Shortage and Retention Toolkit

One of the many benefits of my job is that it affords me the opportunity to meet with thousands of educators every year. Two concerns heard at nearly every campus across the country are teacher shortages and teacher retention, and the folks at the Economic Policy Institute echo these concerns. According to their 2019 report, our nation’s teacher shortage is “real, large and growing, and worse than we thought.”

But if I know anything about educators, it’s that you’re a smart bunch and you don’t need a report to tell you what you already know. You feel these constraints every day. Those left to pick up the slack are facing a vicious cycle of burnout that places further strain on an already tense situation.

I’ll level with you: there are no easy answers. But at Edmentum, we do have some suggestions, built from the lessons we’ve learned from our work with more than 11,000 school districts and 5 million educators nationwide. We’ve listed a few of our favorite resources below. I hope this “greatest hits” toolkit can offer both practical help in addressing educator shortages and some useful strategies for holding on to your teachers.

Blog: Retention Is the New Recruitment and Other Teacher-Shortage Strategies

Increasing teacher retention, recruiting educators, and decreasing educator burnout are all top priorities for school leaders heading into the new school year. In our virtual roundtable discussion, speakers discussed their views on teacher shortages and shared their ideas on how to better serve educators to build a community that supports and respects educators—one where they’ll want to stay.

Blog: Over 950 Educators Share How Administrators Can Best Retain & Support Them

We wanted to see exactly what teachers had to say about what administrators could do better to retain and support them. We asked them. Take a dive into the data from our anonymous poll, and read what our community of educators had to say.

Blog: 7 Ways Administrators Can Address Staff Retention and Recruiting

One of the biggest factors contributing to the teacher shortage involves experienced teachers switching districts or leaving the profession altogether. As a result, administrators face high turnover and a steady stream of open positions. This post outlines steps that school and district administrators can take to increase teacher retention, lessen turnover impact on students, and prepare for successful recruiting.

Perspectives: Teacher Recruitment and Retention

How do we retain good teachers and address the shortages that persist across the country? Hear perspectives from experts and practitioners. In this virtual roundtable discussion, we address what may be one of your biggest challenges: attracting and retaining a stable teaching workforce. Learn about policies and practices for teacher recruitment and retention, including employing innovative strategies to fill teacher vacancies while also keeping existing teachers engaged.

Infographic: Every Student Has a Path with Edmentum Digital Curriculum

Partnerships with virtual schools are more than just convenient and cost-effective solutions to staffing challenges; they also create opportunities for a diverse range of learners. Edmentum Courseware and EdOptions Academy can help your district or school provide digital curriculum and virtual teachers to support all of your students, including those looking for expanded course options, more flexible learning environments, or career exploration resources. We share the stories of three potential student paths and tell how we can support their individual learning needs and goals.

Need more help with teacher shortages and retention? Edmentum works with over 11,000 districts around the country, helping to address their most difficult challenges, including teacher shortages and retention. Edmentum Courseware and EdOptions Academy may be just the solution you need to expand course choice and fill difficult teaching roles and retain them.

Originally published on EdSurge on July 23, 2019.

This post was originally published on the Edmentum blog August 2019 and has been updated.