2011 was not The Year of the Teacher.  Long running policies that involve teacher tenure and pay, especially as regards promotions and raises, were overturned in several states this year.  It used to be that, in most states, once a teacher had served a certain number of  years in his or her school district, he or she would be granted tenure — and at least 18 states have approved laws this year affecting teacher tenure and the granting of continuing contracts.  In addition to those 18 states, many more have made it more difficult to get those job protections, or have tied tenure to performance which is based on standardized test scores.

Idaho was the first state to pass a law explicitly stating that, “No new employment contract between a school district and certificated employee shall result in the vesting of tenure, continued expectations of employment or property rights in an employment relationship.”  Voters in Idaho will vote in the fall of 2012 on whether to overturn that law.  In many states, this issue will not go to vote.  Measures tying teacher pay to performance and reducing the reliability of teachers’ positions within school districts has caused a mass exodus of teachers from the profession.  Some are moving to other states, while others are leaving the field of education altogether.

So who are the teachers we have left?  Or what does the face of teaching look like?  Here is an infographic that might shed some light on the subject.

Tags: teaching