Schools were short about 60,000 teachers last year, and shortages may reach 100,000 by 2018. Why? Here's a clue!
This new animated video by Pulitzer Prize-winning cartoonist Mark Fiore will give you some idea what teachers are up against.
Years of government austerity, ham-fisted policy-making, and disparaging remarks by politicians have had the predictable effects of driving experienced teachers from the field and discouraging potential new recruits who are dedicated to teaching for the long term.
As schools reopened for the 2016-2017 school year, a trickle of news stories about teacher shortages that started last fall turned into a flood of reports from states around the country.
The number one reason teachers leave is job dissatisfaction, according to a recent report. Reasons for dissatisfaction include lack of administrative support, little to no say in work conditions, and punitive "accountability" measures that have nothing to do with good instruction.
Meanwhile, enrollments in teacher-preparation programs dropped by 35 percent between 2009 and 2014, as wages of public school teachers sank 17 percent below comparable college-educated professions.
The teacher exodus and high turnover communicate to children how little we care, not only about their teachers, but also about their education and their future. Laugh at the video, by all means, but then get angry and demand political leaders do something about it.
Mark Fiore is a Pulitzer Prize-winning cartoonist who creates hard-hitting political animation every week for The Progressive. See his work at his Patreon page.