Alarming Australia-wide study finds teachers don’t feel respected or safe at work, and few plan to stay

Teachers are planning to leave the profession in droves as their sense of satisfaction slumps, while an alarming number do not feel safe at work, a major national study has concluded.

Monash University education experts surveyed more than 5000 teachers nation-wide, finding 70 per cent did not feel respected by the Australian public.

That conflicts with a 2019 survey suggesting high levels of respect for teachers in the community and a follow up survey in 2020 that found appreciation for teachers rose as they responded to the COVID-19 pandemic.

“The current disconnect highlights a gap between what we think and how we behave,” the 2022 report’s lead author Fiona Longmuir said.

Notably, the group that teachers felt most respect from were students, with almost 51 per cent agreeing or strongly agreeing with that proposition. For parents, it was just 33.3 per cent.

Parents were mentioned in almost half the 38,000 comments provided, described by teachers as “abusive”, “unsupportive”, “unrealistic” and “demanding”.

Worryingly, one-quarter of teachers reported feeling unsafe on the job.

Also alarming was work satisfaction plunging from 65.9 per cent to 45.8 per cent between the university’s 2019 and 2022 surveys, with only 30 per cent now planning to remain in the vocation, despite 80 per cent having a strong sense of belonging to it.

Dr Longmuir said the findings highlighted the need for Australians to change the way they interacted with and talked about teachers - less than 10 per cent of whom felt respected by politicians.

She said they needed not just the utmost respect from the whole community but also “a place at the table” with policy making.

“These results are a wake up call for us all,” she said.

“They highlight the urgent need for systemic action and personal change.”

Dr Longmuir said heavy workload was a major factor driving teachers out of the profession - with less than 14 per cent describing theirs as manageable - along with an increasing burden of administration and data collection tasks.

Other pressures respondents spoke of included an overloaded curriculum, behaviour and social needs of youths, and limited support from school and system leadership.

One teacher said the public did not understand the research and preparation involved in the job, particularly in primary school years when “classes can look like a bunch of games and fun activities”.

“There is no understanding that these are actually carefully structured exercises, not a bit of fun,” the teacher explained.

“I feel the admin load is large and squashed into our free time.”

Suggestions to create positive change included reducing class sizes, hiring more staff - including those with expertise to support complex student needs - and higher pay.