Why 10,000 PA Teachers Left the Classroom

A record number of Pennsylvania teachers left the profession last school year, and experts say there aren’t enough qualified candidates to replace them. City Cast Philly and City Cast Pittsburgh are teaming up to unpack the problem, the causes, the consequences, and a few potential solutions.

We always cite our sources:

• Check out PA’s teacher retention data for yourself, courtesy of Penn State’s Center for Education Evaluation and Policy Analysis
• Here’s the latest from WHYY on staffing at Philadelphia Public Schools, and from the Post-Gazette on staffing in Pittsburgh
• Chalkbeat did a great two-part breakdown on the problems and potential solutions
• The Learning Policy Institute shared suggestions for how to improve teachers’ first years
• The Hechinger Report wrote about a couple PR campaigns trying to change public opinion about teaching
• The Center for Black Educator Development is based in Philly and does a lot of great work around recruiting teachers of color
• It’s still pretty tough to navigate the licensure process if you’re moving state-to-state, but the AP reports some states are trying to ease 
• Ten years ago, it wasn’t uncommon to see 3,000 to 4,000 applicants pop up for a single job listing on PA-educator.net, the PA’s main jobs board

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