Imagine a future where teaching is a revered profession in our society.
That young people, particularly from diverse communities, are drawn towards and look at teaching as a viable career option. That teachers feel their stories are shared and feel they are a part of something bigger than themselves.
Perceptions of what it means to be a teacher and what a teaching career looks like, are at all-time lows. Survey data shows that many people view teaching as a low paying, low satisfaction occupation. The combination of this perception with the COVID-19 pandemic has contributed to poor school climates, which in turn lead to difficulties in teacher retention and also impacts student learning.
There is a lot to be done to support teachers, but that isn’t the whole story.
More on Education Myths and PerceptionsWHAT KEEPS MINNESOTA TEACHERS IN THE PROFESSION?*
AVERAGE TEACHER SALARY MINNESOTA:*
$70,005
The teaching profession has lost respect and admiration in the U.S.
Our Motivation
We know a racially and culturally diverse teacher workforce increases learning for all students.
Research shows that positive outcomes like finishing high school and attending college are more likely when students have even one teacher from their background during their first years of education.
Other student benefits include:
improvements
in course grades
positive interpersonal self-management
improvements in students’ attendance
expanded working memory skills
increased likelihood of taking an advanced math course
Yet, currently Minnesota schools have 38% students of color but only 7.3% teachers of color.
Minnesota has a deficit of teachers of color and this impacts the futures of all students and widens the opportunity gap.
Our goal is to inspire the next generation of teachers and equip current teachers to shift how we view and talk about the profession.
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The Minnesota Professional Educator Licensing and Standards Board (PELSB), the state agency that oversees the issuance and renewal of teacher licenses in the state of Minnesota, has announced the launch of an outreach campaign designed to elevate the teaching profession and actively recruit teachers, focusing specifically on individuals of color and of Indigenous descent.
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We are working to support primarily high school and college students who are in the process of deciding their career paths, as well as adults seeking a career change. We seek to shift the unfounded perceptions and myths about the teaching profession, and change existing narratives in an effort to elevate the profession.
Everyone benefits from teacher diversity, and everyone can be part of the solution to elevate the profession.
In order to drive change, we are working on strategies to elevate the teaching profession and increase the diversity of the teacher workforce in Minnesota.
Contact Us
General: Yes@ElevateTeaching.us
Dr. Rose Chu: Rose@pbs-rose.com
Phone
(612)-361-1430