Tapping Tech To Address Low Teacher Satisfaction

New study after new study continues to show diminishing job satisfaction amongst teachers, both in K-12 and higher education. A number of known issues are contributing to this trend, including low salaries, unbalanced work management expectations, pandemic-inspired student learning and behavioral issues, and more. In fact, a 2024 Pew Research study found that 82% of teachers believe education has gotten worse over the past five years. That same study also exposed that over half (52%) of educators said they’d not recommend young people become teachers.

A 2024 EdWeek study found the same low job satisfaction across education (-13 on a scale of -100 to +100), with the greatest evidence of job dissatisfaction amongst teachers with more than five years of experience and more than five years from retirement. This population is often seen amongst educators as those most invested in the career element of teaching, showing that new-hire optimism and soon-to-exit-the-classroom veteran educators are actually pulling the average up.

Compared with all U.S. workers across industries and occupations, teachers actually express a much lower job satisfaction. With these numbers illustrating a grim outlook on the future of education, it’s apparent a new approach is necessary. How can school districts, colleges, and universities address these low satisfaction ratings? Technology may be one avenue showing potential.

Stretching dollars further

One of the most notable issues impacting educators’ satisfaction with their work is pay. In the 2024 Pew Research study, salary was the top factor for dissatisfaction, with over 50% stating they were “not too/not at all” satisfied with their current pay. Since financial resources are tight for many school districts and institutions, finding additional funding to increase salaries is unlikely. What if, instead of trying to find more dollars, the current funding was simply stretched further?

With virtual classroom platforms such as Class, schools can extend the reach of a single educator to a larger population while still providing the best-in-class tools that create a personalized learning experience. Districts and institutions can pay a more selective, skilled group of educators more to reach a larger audience of students. Additionally, by attracting top talent in their fields, schools can entice additional students by offering curricula unavailable elsewhere.

Work-life balance

Another prominent issue contributing to lower employment satisfaction among teachers is having too many responsibilities to accomplish in a given day or week. As the number of hats an educator must wear has continued to increase, many instructors are overburdened with non-teaching responsibilities like monitoring lunch, acting as a makeshift therapist, and assisting with administrative tasks. By leveraging the power of a virtual classroom platform, many of these administrative tasks can be automated by the system and take unnecessary tasks off educators’ plates. Also, by removing the need for full in-person instruction it can free up educators to achieve a greater work-life balance.

Instructors can still take part in many of the traditional in-person classroom academic experiences; however, by opening the door to hybrid learning models, some educators can lead their first or last period of the day remotely, allowing them to see their own children onto the bus or to welcome them home. Professors can lead asynchronous coursework assignments, which allow them to keep classes on track while heading out to present at a conference or engaging in institutional research. Removing the need for every assignment, module, and interaction to take place in person can free up educators to handle their non-work responsibilities, enhancing their overall work-life balance.

Extending resource access

Many educators feel hindered by the lack of resources necessary to provide an educational experience they believe will challenge and inspire their students. Rather than looking to acquire the necessary funding (and other necessary paperwork) to exclusively connect learners with these myriad of experiences, educators can bring the experiences into the classroom itself.

With online classroom platforms such as Class, educators can tap into an entire vast array of engaging experiences for learners directly through the virtual classroom platform. Pull up an interactive diagram that each student can uniquely manipulate directly from their own screen. Bring expert-level guest speakers into the virtual classroom, aligning them in front of the class via podium view, and encourage a full question-and-answer session. Because best-in-class virtual classroom platforms are more than screen-sharing and video conferencing, breakout rooms, hand-raising, discussions, and more take on a deeply engaging feel while enhancing student access to new ways of learning.

A step with tech

There is no magic solution that will miraculously eradicate job dissatisfaction from education; however, by rooting out the causes of dissatisfaction and taking innovative and bold steps to address them, school districts and higher education institutions have the capability to right the ship for educator morale. Demonstrating an interest and drive to alleviate the issues burdening educators can also go a long way in building trust and rapport in this ongoing effort.

Interested to see how a virtual classroom platform can help the educators at your school district or higher education institution better accomplish the job they are so passionate about? Reach out to a Class team member today, and let’s find solutions that empower your teachers to provide the next-level educational experience your students deserve.