The rate of Texas teachers leaving the classroom is declining after hitting a historic high following the COVID pandemic.
Education Commissioner Mike Morath presented fresh hiring data Wednesday, telling State Board of Education members that the state is “moving in a better direction.”
Still, schools are struggling with educator recruitment and retention. The challenges mean districts are hiring more and more teachers who don’t hold a state certification.
Morath said that, in recent years, it appears that some schools “gave up on teacher certification” and moved to “hiring people off the street.”
Here’s what the data tells us.
Texas teacher attrition is down, but lack of respect and support still drives some out
While it is still higher than the pre-pandemic baseline, the rate of Texas teachers leaving the classroom is trending downward.
The 2022-23 school year saw 13.4% teacher attrition. That figure dropped to 12.2% for 2023-24.
In the decade before COVID-19 hit, teacher attrition hovered around 10%.
“Teachers are quitting the profession in slightly higher numbers than they did historically,” Morath said.
Lack of respect and support, excessive workload and low pay are among the common reasons educators have given for why they think about leaving the classroom.
More new teachers lack state certification
Fewer new teachers take the traditional route to the classroom: Studying to be an educator while in college.
Roughly 1 in 3 new teachers hired across Texas were uncertified, meaning the state has no way to know if they received rigorous training.
The percentage of non-certified new hires grew to 34% — a historic high.
Some uncertified educators are prepared to take on a classroom of their own, Morath said.
In Dallas ISD, for example, uncertified educators get additional training and support during the school year. The district also pairs new hires with mentors to guide them.
But Morath warned that many teachers without certification are not ready and quit prematurely.
The trend has prompted concern among some teacher groups.
“It’s unfair to the students, to the parents and to the educator themselves. They’re not fully prepared,” said Rena Honea, president of Alliance-AFT. “I don’t know of an attorney that’d be allowed to practice law without passing the bar exam.”
Typically, to become certified in Texas, teaching candidates must have a bachelor’s degree, complete an educator preparation program, pass related exams, submit a state application and go through a background check.
The path to becoming a teacher without state certification is less prescribed.
In some places, Morath said, it’s as if district leaders say: You have a heartbeat, come on in.
Schools are always going to try to hire the very best people they can find, said Kevin Brown, the executive director of the Texas Association of School Administrators.
But while district leaders are desperate to find good teachers, Brown said the state has not taken serious action to address health insurance costs, lagging pay and political divisions that bleed into classrooms.
”If we’re serious about addressing the teacher shortage and getting more people certified, well, let’s put our money where our mouth is and let’s support teachers,” Brown said.
Roughly 14% of new educators came through alternative certification programs. People often enroll in these programs when they are transitioning into the classroom as a second or third career.
Morath said these programs vary widely in the quality of the preparation they provide.
Texas is home to several alternative certification companies that offer mostly online training. The largest of these is on probation for failing to prove it fixed a litany of operational problems.
Short-term fixes, long-term problems
Morath warned that, while hiring uncertified educators may address short-term recruitment needs, the trend contributes to long-term retention problems.
If teachers who entered the classroom without certification were retained in their first five years at the same rate as teachers prepared through the traditional pathway, Texas would have needed to hire 7,735 fewer educators, a state analysis found.
Students of novice teachers tend to achieve less academic growth than those with more experienced teachers, state data shows.
Morath acknowledged these rookie teachers are much more likely to lead classrooms where most of the children come from low-income families.
What can Texas do?
Several bills aimed at bolstering the teaching profession failed during recent legislative sessions.
For example, lawmakers tied the fate of funding for teacher raises to the creation of a voucherlike program that would funnel state dollars to private school tuition. Both bills died.
Among the other proposals: A Texas teacher residency program to train educators akin to doctors and tiered pay structures that would factor in certification.
In the meantime, Morath said state officials are working to boost accountability for educator preparation programs while increasing flexibility for those who want to become teachers.
“This is very much top of mind for us,” he said.
The DMN Education Lab deepens the coverage and conversation about urgent education issues critical to the future of North Texas.
The DMN Education Lab is a community-funded journalism initiative, with support from Bobby and Lottye Lyle, Communities Foundation of Texas, The Dallas Foundation, Dallas Regional Chamber, Deedie Rose, Garrett and Cecilia Boone, The Meadows Foundation, The Murrell Foundation, Solutions Journalism Network, Southern Methodist University, Sydney Smith Hicks and the University of Texas at Dallas. The Dallas Morning News retains full editorial control of the Education Lab’s journalism.
