Ninety per cent of teachers set to quit before they retire

Just nine per cent of teachers said they would only leave teaching on retirement - a figure that remained the same across the state and private school sectors.

The survey of 4,690 teachers by Teacher Tapp for Bett 2022, the world’s biggest education technology event, asked teachers what would be the biggest issue which would most drive them away from the classroom, aside from hours, pay and conditions.

Responses showed that problems with their superiors and management teams were the biggest factor in making teachers decide to quit, with 34 per cent of teachers citing it as their main push factor.

Private school teachers were a lot more likely to be driven out by management problems - with 49 per cent reporting it as the biggest deciding factor compared to 32 per cent in the state sector.
 
Pupil behaviour was the second greatest contributor to forcing teachers out - with 18 per cent citing this as their top reason.
 
Secondary teachers - 25 per cent – were more than twice as likely to quit because of pupil behaviour than primary teachers - 12 per cent.
 
Just eight per cent of private school teachers would quit over behaviour compared to 19 per cent of state teachers.
 
Shifting expectations on curriculum delivery was cited by 15 per cent of teachers while pressure from government to catch up pupils was the biggest motivator to quit for ten per cent.
 
Parental pressure would be the main reason to quit for just six per cent of teachers - although more than twice as many private school teachers cited this - 11 per cent - compared to state - 5 per cent.
 
Eve Harper, director of Bett, said: “Our research shows the huge strain that the pandemic has placed on teachers. We must future-proof our education system by using technology to take pressure away from teachers.
 
“There are solutions out there that can take away some of the administrative and repetitive burdens. There are also technological advances that can inspire and fuel a love for learning. This is underlined in our findings, that two-thirds of teachers found EdTech helpful or very helpful.
 
“Parents probably remember their school days being filled with teachers struggling with overhead projectors. Those days are long gone and it seems that teachers have become digital whizzes, mastering a plethora of platforms and apps within weeks.
 
“Nothing can replace a teacher though and it is for all of us, school leaders, parents and innovators, to show them they’re valued.”
 
Research for Bett published recently (January) also showed that teachers feared pupils had been left at least 18 months behind by the pandemic.