‘Cry for help.’ In survey, Fayette educators say conditions worse than teachers statewide

Teachers and administrators in Fayette County ranked working conditions worse on most counts than educators across the state did in a recent survey.

On the Impact Kentucky Working Conditions Survey released by the Kentucky Department of Education last week, Fayette County educators ranked relationships between staff and leaders, managing student behavior, and school leadership three points less than Kentucky educators did as a whole.

A statement from the educators group KY120 United-AFT said “the Impact Survey revealed what we already knew to be true; that Fayette County teachers are struggling.”

Fayette educators ranked emotional well-being and belonging among educators two points less than the rest of the state and school climate one point less than educators across the state.

Fayette district officials did not comment on the survey results among more than 2,000 Fayette teachers, more than 200 other educators such as school counselors and about 50 principals and assistant principals.

Only on two topics were conditions in Fayette County not cast as being worse than educators statewide ranked them:

57 percent of the Fayette educators responding had a favorable response to professional learning in the district which was the same as educators statewide. The educators surveyed ranked Fayette six points higher than educators statewide did in the area of educating all students.

On educating all students, managing student behavior, school leadership and school climate, Fayette educators found conditions worse than they did in 2020 -- when the survey was last given before the COVID 19 pandemic.

The latest survey, administered Nov. 1 to Dec. 17, 2021, found that 73 percent of the Fayette educators surveyed found conditions favorable in educating all students and relationships between staff and school leaders.

Only sixty-two percent found conditions favorable on the topic of managing student behavior; 61 percent on school leadership; 59 percent on school climate; 57 percent on professional learning, 54 percent on feedback and coaching; 48 percent on resources and 46 percent on emotional-well being and belonging.

Student behavior, school climate, educating all students, and school leadership all went down according to survey participants. Most alarming, a new indicator, Emotional Well-being and Belonging, showed that only 46% of participants in Fayette County rated this as satisfactory, the KY120 statement said.

The statement said the results are evidence that educators are facing insurmountable challenges in the classroom and school settings. Teachers and staff shortages, based on a number of factors, exacerbate the need for a fully-staffed school in order to adequately meet the demands of our students.

“To put it mildly, we need more support for public education and public educators in Fayette County, and fast,” the statement said. “If this Impact survey is an accurate depiction of the state of public educators, then it should be considered a cry for help from some and a wake up call for others. The teachers aren’t alright.”

Every two years, certified educators working at least half-time are given the opportunity to provide their views on teaching conditions. The results can be used to inform improvements within schools, districts and statewide, state education officials said.

“I think these results are a good snapshot of what our teachers have been experiencing, and it’s a lot of struggle,” Kentucky Education Commissioner Jason Glass said about the results as a whole.

Glass said he hopes the results of the survey can lead to a bigger conversation about how teachers can be better supported.

It was the first working conditions survey that has been administered to teachers since the COVID-19 pandemic began. More than 38,000 certified employees responded to the survey,and approximately 33,000 of those were teachers.

While Kentucky educators reported most favorably on staff-leadership relationships at 76%, they reported least favorably on emotional well-being and belonging at 48%. A total of 75% of respondents said they were, to some degree, concerned with the emotional well-being of their colleagues as a result of their work, and 64% said they were concerned about their own emotional well-being.

“While the results are not unexpected in the midst of a global pandemic, they clearly show the strong effect the pandemic has had on educators,” said Byron Darnall, associate commissioner in the state’s Office of Educator Licensure and Effectiveness.

Glass said the survey results reflect an important issue with the educator workforce.

“Our educators are raising the alarm that they need urgent help,” said Glass. “Teachers across the state are stressed, overworked, underpaid and underappreciated. Our profession is hurting and we are at risk of losing more educators.”

A total of 40% of respondents said they didn’t feel effective at their job.

The Impact survey’s purpose is to improve working conditions at the local level and provide schools with opportunity to make continuous improvements. It allows educators to reflect on the progress they have made and the areas they can focus on moving forward to create the working conditions all educators deserve, state officials said.

The Kentucky Department of Education is offering professional development opportunities to help schools and districts implement changes following the review of the 2022 survey data.