The Time Crunch: What Aspiring Educators Need to Know!

The time crunch is a growing issue educators say. As students' needs are increasing, parents' demands are growing, and dictates on teachers' time are multiplying. These burdens often lead to burnout, which causes educators to quit, which feeds the national educator shortage, which, in turn, makes more work for the remaining staff.

Who suffers the consequences when educators don't have enough time? Students do! "Probably the biggest thing is students get less personalized feedback," says New Mexico teacher Natalia Fierro, who, after teaching language arts for 20 years, recently switched to a media elective. "We probably also give fewer innovative assignments. There's not time to plan them and get the resources for them."

Of course, educators bear some of the brunt of the time crunch, too. A large majority (74%) find their jobs to be overwhelming. And although stress is common across the profession, it is more pervasive in elementary grades, the survey shows. It is also very common among special educators and specialized personnel, says Christina Rojas, a speech-language pathologist in Lancaster, Penn.

"It's not about making our jobs easier," she says. "The focus is students. How can we make this job manageable to provide better services to students?"

Solutions are possible, say NEA members, especially when educators work through their unions.

"How do we keep teachers in the classroom? How do we keep them from … burning out?" asks middle school teacher Michael Sniezak, president of Washington's Eatonville Education Association. "The solution is to make it so teachers don't feel spent beyond [reason]."