Teachers leaving en masse

U.S. schools are facing what is being described as a mass exodus of teachers, according to a report by the Epoch Times. 

A February study published by the National Education Association (NEA), America’s largest teacher’s union, found that 55% of educators do not plan on returning to teaching for the 2022-2023 school year, which begins this fall. The percentage includes veteran teachers who plan to retire after 25+ years of experience, as well as less practiced teachers who intend to exit their careers sooner than planned. 

The increasing shortage of teachers is being ascribed to the COVID-19 pandemic, which in turn has caused a psychiatric pandemic among children and adolescents and has placed an undue strain on educators. 

The NEA also reports that 80% of its members – who number around 3 million – have reported being burdened with additional work caused by vacant teaching positions. 

But it is likely the NEA itself is causing the mass exodus of teachers. After all, it was the NEA that fought rabidly for the school closures that have wrought behavioral damage on children. 

It was the NEA that also campaigned aggressively for mask mandates, even threatening the White House until the Biden administration tightened its guidance on masks in schools. 

It was also the NEA that pushed Critical Race Theory (CRT) in schools, a premise in which children of different races are natural enemies and divided based on skin color. When parents pushed back on the indoctrination, the NEA waged war by begging social media platforms to censor the “violent group of radicalized parents.” 

It was the NEA that adopted a particularly acerbic rhetoric against the unvaccinated, with one NEA board member – who called herself “Team Pfizer” – saying she hopes those who are unvaccinated with religious exemptions die. 

These factors were likely instrumental in creating a school culture that is causing widespread teacher flight. 

The COVID measures have likely also been the cause of a corresponding student exodus, with nearly 1.3 million students having left U.S. public schools since the pandemic began. 

According to a survey, enrollment trends can be explained by mask usage, closures and voting patterns, reported Frontline News.  

County district schools with low mask usage throughout the pandemic have experienced a net 1.5% decline in enrollment, while schools with high mask usage have seen a 3.8% decrease in enrollment.   

Similarly, schools which were quick to re-open and offered more in-person learning saw a net decline of 1.1%, while schools with more remote learning saw a net 4.4% decline.  

Split along voting patterns, districts in counties that voted for Donald Trump saw a 1.9% decline in enrollment while the decline in counties that voted for Joe Biden doubled to 3.8%.  

Schools with high mask usage, more remote learning and in pro-Biden districts are continuing to bleed students, while their counterparts are continuing to rebound since 2021.