It’s an open secret at Panther Creek High School that not every classroom has a licensed and qualified teacher paired with it. The situation of the teacher shortage has become more apparent since the return to in-person school post-pandemic. In fact, it’s not surprising to any student to see two or more substitutes in different classrooms as they walk down any of our school’s hallways. But the question is, how did this become the norm, and how has it affected the teachers and students?
Many people have different factors they point to when looking for the root of this problem, so it can be difficult to tell which is the most important. Ms. Neilson is a special education teacher who is relatively new to the teaching profession. She went to college in another state, and she said that when she moved to NC, she was a fully licensed teacher. However, she said, “I just found out a month or two ago that I have to take all these tests… each assessment you take is $150; you have to pay for them and they’re requiring you to do what you already did. They can’t go back in the system and find it.” This process complicates the process of even becoming a teacher in the first place, which could steer potential educators away from a career that already doesn’t pay a lot of money for the amount of work put in.
Salary is a factor many people point at right away when these topics are brought up. As Neilson said, she is “usually at school between 6:25 in the morning until 5pm, which is a lot [of hours]”. To her, this means that teaching is
“such a job that people only do it if they really love what they do… there are these long hours and you have to work in some really difficult situations and not get paid a lot.”
The pandemic has made lots of people realize this, she thought. “A lot of our core classes like our science [and math] classes are missing lots of teachers… It’s not just a Panther Creek issue… there aren’t enough people applying for the job.” Neilson pointed out. “I hate to call it a society issue, but when you can work at home three days a week and make three times the amount of money and sleep in as much as you want, why would you pick [teaching]?”
Mr. Bolden and Mr. Wilmers also had something to say on the topic. Bolden agreed with Neilson, saying “The county, the state, the nation’s view of teachers, is making it hard for us to hire teachers”. Wilmers focused on how this affects the teachers covering teacher-less classes. “In other states, teachers are also paid for their time covering, and that is not the case here, which makes it all the more worse.”
At the county, state, and national level, teacher shortages have been progressing and regionally expanding. While this has been difficult for public schools to navigate, it should be said that Panther Creek has done a job well done in resolving these issues. However, the most important thing, according to Neilson, that would fix this problem would be a love for the profession. “We just need more people to love teaching.”
