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Teacher Well-Being, Pay, and Intentions to Leave in 2026: Selected Findings from the 2026 State of the American Teacher Survey

RAND | 2026-06-08 | society

Topics: Trade, United States

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English Summary

The 2026 State of the American Teacher survey reveals that U.S. public school teachers continue to experience significantly worse well-being than comparable working adults, with 55% reporting frequent job-related stress and persistent gender disparities—female teachers report 15 percentage points more stress than male peers. Teachers face substantial economic challenges: they earn $29,500 less in base salary than similar working adults ($75,599 vs. $105,000), only 39% received inflation-adjusted pay raises in 2025–2026, and 94% spend their own money on classroom supplies ($665 average). While teacher turnover intentions have stabilized at 18%, the profession faces structural retention challenges driven by low pay, work-life balance issues (teachers work 54 hours weekly), student behavior management pressures, and a gender-based pay gap of $7,400. These findings underscore that sustainable teacher recruitment and retention require addressing compensation gaps, working conditions, and the differential impacts on female educators.

中文摘要

2026年美國教師狀況調查顯示,美國公立學校教師的整體福祉明顯低於同等工作的成年人,其中55%的教師報告經常面臨工作相關壓力,性別差異持續存在——女性教師報告的壓力水平比男性同僚高15個百分點。教師面臨重大經濟挑戰:他們的基本薪資比同等工作的成年人少$29,500($75,599對比$105,000),僅39%在2025–2026年度獲得經通膨調整的薪資調升,94%自行購買課堂用品(平均$665)。雖然教師離職傾向已穩定在18%,但該行業面臨由低薪、工作與生活平衡問題(教師每週工作54小時)、學生行為管理壓力和$7,400的性別薪資差距所驅動的結構性留任挑戰。這些發現強調,永續的教師招聘和留任需要解決薪酬差距、工作條件以及對女性教育工作者的差異化影響。

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