New Report Details Challenges, Disparities Faced by Teachers During COVID-19 Pandemic

Analysis of federal education data highlights disparities in experience by gender and race

RESEARCH TRIANGLE PARK, N.C., May 2, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- A new report from RTI International, a nonprofit research institute, has found that pre-K-12 teachers worked more than desired during the COVID-19 pandemic at higher rates than non-teachers. The report also reveals sharp disparities in the experiences of female, Black and Hispanic teachers during COVID-19.

"While we already knew teachers really struggled during COVID-19, our paper shows that the burden was not equally shared," said Erin Dunlop Velez, Ph.D., a director of education research at RTI who led the analysis.

The findings revealed that teachers reported working more than desired due to the pandemic at higher rates than non-teachers (31% vs. 26%). Teachers also pursued additional training due to the pandemic at higher rates than non-teachers (19% vs. 13%). The longer hours and additional training may have been to learn how to provide remote instruction and navigate increased student and administrative demands, Velez and her co-authors note.

Additionally, the data showed that teachers were more likely than non-teachers to postpone having children (10% vs. 7%) and to delay enrolling in additional education (19% vs. 12%) due to the pandemic.
The research team also uncovered various gender and racial disparities within the profession:

• Compared to male teachers, female teachers reported working more than desired at higher rates (33% vs. 24%), were more likely to delay enrolling in additional education (20% vs. 14%), and reported taking on additional care responsibilities for children and other family members at higher rates (16% vs. 11%).
• Black teachers were more likely than White teachers to pursue additional training during the pandemic (27% vs. 18%) and to report having more difficulty affording essential expenses (22% vs. 8%).
• Hispanic or Latinx teachers were more likely than White teachers to delay enrolling in additional education during the pandemic (27% vs. 15%), delay having children (20% vs. 7%), report taking on additional care responsibilities for children and other family members (20% vs. 13%) and report having difficulty affording essential expenses (14% vs. 8%).

Velez and her colleagues write that these findings "might be related to the disproportionate numbers of Black and Hispanic teachers serving school districts with fewer resources…as well as racial inequities in the teacher labor market disparities that were likely exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic."

To produce the report, the research team used data from the U.S. Department of Education's 2016/20 Baccalaureate and Beyond Longitudinal Study, which surveyed a nationally representative sample of bachelor's degree completers during their final year of undergraduate enrollment (as part of the National Postsecondary Student Aid Study) and one and four years after graduation.

Read the full report

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About RTI International
RTI International is an independent, nonprofit research institute dedicated to improving the human condition. Clients rely on us to answer questions that demand an objective and multidisciplinary approach — one that integrates expertise across the social and laboratory sciences, engineering and international development. We believe in the promise of science, and we are inspired every day to deliver on that promise for the good of people, communities and businesses around the world. For more information, visit www.rti.org.

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SOURCE RTI International