Teacher trends

Question:
What are the current trends in the teaching profession?

Response:
There were a projected 3.7 million full-time-equivalent (FTE) elementary and secondary school teachers in fall 2011. This number has risen 7 percent since 2001. The 2011 projected number of FTE teachers includes 3.3 million public school teachers and 0.4 million private school teachers.

Demographic Characteristics

• Among full-time and part-time public school teachers in 2007–08, some 76 percent of public school teachers were female, 44 percent were under age 40, and 52 percent had a master’s or higher degree. Compared with public school teachers, a lower percentage of private school teachers were female (74 percent), were under age 40 (39 percent), and had a master’s or higher degree (38 percent).

• In addition, among both males and females, 83 percent of public school teachers were White, 7 percent each were Black or Hispanic, 1 percent each were Asian or of two or more races, and less than one percent each were Pacific Islander or American Indian/Alaska Native in 2007–08.

Pupil/Teacher Ratio

• For public schools, the number of pupils per FTE teacher—that is, the pupil/teacher ratio—declined from 22.3 in 1970 to 17.9 in 1985. After 1985, the public school pupil/teacher ratio continued to decline, reaching 17.2 in 1989. After a period of relative stability during the late 1980s through the mid-1990s, the ratio declined from 17.3 in 1995 to 16.0 in 2000. Decreases have continued since then, and the public school pupil/teacher ratio was 15.4 in 2009. By comparison, the pupil/teacher ratio for private schools was estimated at 12.5 in 2009. The average class size in 2007–08 was 20.0 pupils for public elementary schools and 23.4 pupils for public secondary schools.

• The number of public school FTE teachers has increased by a larger percentage than the number of public school students over the past 10 years, resulting in declines in the pupil/teacher ratio. In fall 2001, the number of public school pupils per teacher was 15.9, compared with a projected number of 15.2 public school pupils per teacher in fall 2011.

Salary

• The average salary for full-time public school teachers in 2010–11 was $56,069 in current dollars (i.e. dollars that are not adjusted for inflation). In constant (inflation-adjusted) dollars, the average salary was about 3 percent higher in 2010–11 than in 1990–91.

SOURCE: U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics. (2012). Digest of Education Statistics, 2011 (NCES 2012-001), Introduction and Chapter 2 ; U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics, Schools and Staffing Survey, Teacher Data Files, 2007–08.

Mobility

• Of the 3,380,300 full-time and part-time public school teachers who were teaching during the 2007–08 school year, 84.5 percent remained at the same school (“stayers”), 7.6 percent moved to a different school (“movers”), and 8.0 percent left the profession (“leavers”) during the following year. Among the 487,300 private school teachers who were teaching during the 2007–08 school year, 79.2 percent were stayers, 4.9 percent were movers, and 15.9 percent were leavers.

• About 26.2 percent of public school teacher movers changed schools in 2008–09 because of personal life factors, compared to 16.0 percent of private school teacher movers. About 5.3 percent of public school teacher leavers left teaching in 2008–09 because their contract was not renewed, compared to 13.0 percent of private school teacher leavers.

• Among teachers who left teaching in 2008–09, about 8.9 percent of public school teachers, compared to 17.4 percent of private school teachers, were working in an occupation outside the field of education, including military service.

SOURCE: U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics. (2010). Teacher Attrition and Mobility: Results from the 2008–09 Teacher Follow-up Survey (NCES 2010-353).

SOURCE: U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics. Schools and Staffing Survey, "Teacher Data Files,” 2007–08, unpublished tabulations.

Related Tables and Figures:  (Listed by Release Date)

• 2012, Digest of Education Statistics 2011, Table 35. Percentage of schools with various security measures, by school control and selected characteristics: 2007-08
  
• 2012, Digest of Education Statistics 2011, Table 69. Public and private elementary and secondary teachers, enrollment, and pupil/teacher ratios: Selected years, fall 1955 through fall 2020
  
• 2012, Digest of Education Statistics 2011, Table 72. Highest degree earned, years of full-time teaching experience, and average class size for teachers in public elementary and secondary schools, by state: 2007-08
  
• 2012, Digest of Education Statistics 2011, Table 74. Selected characteristics of public school teachers: Selected years, spring 1961 through spring 2006
  
• 2012, Digest of Education Statistics 2011, Table 83. Estimated average annual salary of teachers in public elementary and secondary schools: Selected years, 1959-60 through 2010-11
  
• 2012, Digest of Education Statistics 2011, Table 84. Estimated average annual salary of teachers in public elementary and secondary schools, by state: Selected years, 1969-70 through 2010-11
  
• 2012, The Condition of Education 2012: Characteristics of Full-Time Teachers
  
• 2011, Projections of Education Statistics to 2020, Table 16. Actual and projected numbers for elementary and secondary teachers and elementary and secondary new teacher hires, by control of school: Fall 1995 through fall 2020
  
• 2011, Projections of Education Statistics to 2020, Table 17. Actual and projected numbers for the pupil/teacher ratios in elementary and secondary schools, by control of school: Fall 1995 through fall 2020
  
• 2011, The Condition of Education 2011: Teacher Turnover: Stayers, Leavers and Movers
  
• 2010, The Condition of Education 2010: Public School Staff
  
• 2009, Number and percentage distribution of teachers by school type, race/ethnicity, and sex: 2007–08
  

Other Resources:  (Listed by Release Date)

• 2010, Education Finance Statistics Center (EDFIN): This site provides access to finance information on public elementary/secondary education.
  
• 2010, Schools and Staffing Survey (SASS) collects extensive data on American public and private elementary and secondary schools. Teachers, principals, schools, school districts and library media centers are components of the SASS survey system.
  
• 2008, Teacher Career Choices: Timing of Teacher Careers Among 1992-93 Bachelor's Degree Recipients
  
• 2007, Status of Rural Education in America
  
• 2007, To Teach or Not to Teach? Teaching Experience and Preparation Among 1992-1993 Bachelor's Degree Recipients 10 Years After College