Why black teachers are leaving urban schools
While the percentage of minority teachers has risen in the US, the number of black teachers has declined between 2002 and 20012 in nine cities, .
What does this mean not only for the communities in which these schools exist, but for the nation as a whole?
鈥淒iversity is a key component to equality and opportunity,鈥� Randi Weingarten, president of the American Federation of Teachers, . 鈥淲here there鈥檚 a diverse teaching workforce, all kids thrive. That鈥檚 why we note with alarm the sharp decline in the population of black teachers in our cities.鈥�
There are several factors which may be behind this decline. The first is low pay for teachers. According to a study by Young Invincibles, an advocacy group, the is $34,575 鈥� or about $6,000 less than the average starting salary of 28 professions.
The second is the recurring emphasis that education policy tends to place on test scores. This rigidity, , a Haitian-American and tenured educator, disincentivises black and Hispanic educators from participating in the system: they are not being encouraged to teach their fellow man, but to the test, instead.
The Shanker Institute鈥檚 study found that over a ten-year period, from 2002 to 2012 (a period marked by an explosion in the development of charter schools, and an accompanying dialogue about education reform), the population of black teachers in the cities studied (although in the case of New Orleans, ). 聽
鈥淢inority teachers quit because of working conditions in their schools,鈥� Richard Ingersoll, an expert who teaches at the University of Pennsylvania, 鈥淚n surveys, those teachers cite lack of autonomy and input into school decisions [in large urban schools].鈥�
There is also evidence that suggests black and Hispanic teachers are crucial to an effective school system, especially to minority-majority districts: not only do they serve as a role model to young kids who may not be acquainted with many college-educated adults, or an ingrained understanding of the culture in which they operate because they are from it. This so-called 鈥渉eritage knowledge鈥� can lessen the barrier of educational accessibility for minority students, because they are being taught by adults who are from their own backgrounds. 聽
As the Shanker Institute study notes, the issue has not been recruiting these teachers, but retaining them. In July 2012, President Barack Obama created , designed to "improve the recruitment, preparation, development, and retention of successful African-American teachers."
that would "[support] efforts to increase the number of African American teachers and administrators, specifically the number of African American males in the profession" and "[strengthen] relationships between schools and communities," including local businesses. have noted that as part of Mr. Obama's overall education plan, his focus on helping minority-majority neighborhoods succeed is a critical one, while The Heritage Foundation, a conservative think tank, as they feel that the Department of Education's budget has too big.
