Teacher well-being declined over the course of the COVID-19 pandemic; restoring well-being could improve teacher retention. The authors of this report draw on a nationally representative survey of teachers from March and April 2022 to examine working conditions that are related to teacher well-being in the United States and in five focal states. The authors present findings about which conditions could restore well-being and in which contexts.

Working Conditions Related to Positive Teacher Well-Being Vary Across States

Findings from the 2022 Learn Together Survey

Elizabeth D. Steiner, Ashley Woo, Aarya Suryavanshi, Christopher Redding

ResearchPublished Jun 1, 2023

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Includes Working Conditions Related to Positive Teacher Well-Being in Five States: State Snapshots in California, Florida, New York, Texas, and Washington

Teacher well-being declined over the course of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, highlighting the importance of the quality of the workplace conditions that teachers experience and how those conditions might influence well-being and retention.

The authors of this report draw on a survey of teachers from March and April 2022 to examine working conditions that are related to teacher well-being in the United States and present findings about which conditions could restore well-being and in which contexts. They share national findings as well as findings from five focal states: California, Florida, New York, Texas, and Washington state.

Key Findings

  • Teachers' self-reported well-being and access to a variety of working conditions varied across five focal states. New York teachers were least likely to experience indicators of poor well-being when compared with their national counterparts. Access to relational working conditions (e.g., interpersonal relationships) was most common.
  • Relational factors (e.g., strong positive relationships with other teachers and administrators) were more strongly linked to positive well-being than organizational factors.
  • A schoolwide focus on social and emotional learning (SEL) for teachers and students was linked to positive well-being. This condition was especially prevalent in New York, where teachers were the least likely to experience poor well-being among teachers in our focal states.
  • Few teachers said they had access to financial incentives to work in high-needs schools or for student performance, but many teachers do not work in districts or schools that are eligible to provide such incentives. Florida teachers were more likely to report such financial incentives than their national counterparts.
  • Teachers said that their schools provided a variety of mental health and well-being interventions but noted that such supports need to be convenient, accessible, and targeted to their needs to be effective.
  • Teachers perceived strong positive relationships with their colleagues, supportive school leadership, and school administrator efforts to reduce meetings and paperwork so they could focus on teaching as well-being supports, highlighting the importance of addressing organizational and relational conditions to restore teacher well-being.

Recommendations

  • Education leaders should assess state-level conditions to inform strategy and implementation of efforts to improve teacher well-being.
  • Focusing on relational working conditions is one promising approach to improving teacher well-being.
  • District leaders should encourage schools to adopt a schoolwide vision for SEL and implement professional learning opportunities that focus on building adult and student SEL skills.
  • Fostering organizational conditions that allow teachers to focus on the core function of their jobs is vital to improving well-being and thus retention.

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Steiner, Elizabeth D., Ashley Woo, Aarya Suryavanshi, and Christopher Redding, Working Conditions Related to Positive Teacher Well-Being Vary Across States: Findings from the 2022 Learn Together Survey. Santa Monica, CA: RAND Corporation, 2023. https://www.rand.org/pubs/research_reports/RRA827-15.html.
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The research described in this report was funded by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and conducted by RAND Education and Labor.

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