According to seventy percent of educators who responded to a survey administered by the Georgia Department of Education, 70 percent of the state’s teachers would not recommend the career to others.

Only 2.7 percent saying they would actively encourage others to consider it, said 11Alive.com. 

Though the state only expected 10 percent of its teacher population to respond to its survey, roughly half of its 112,000 teachers responded, indicating they had a lot to say.

Unfortunately, what they had to say wasn’t very good.

Part of the reason behind the unhappiness expressed by Georgia’s teachers, according to AJC, is Gov. Nathan Deal’s efforts to tie teacher pay to performance in the classroom this year.

"Educators’ groups have vowed to fight the policy and it’s unclear whether lawmakers will be willing to sign on for the battle knowing the blow-back they could face from teachers,” said AJC. 

Another big reason behind teacher dissatisfaction, the survey revealed, is because of an overemphasis on standardized testing. A majority of the surveyed educators said standardized testing is the number one reason why educators decide to leave the profession with methods for evaluating teachers coming in second.

Georgia Teacher of the Year Ernie Lee also spoke out against the current teaching environment during a conference hosted by the Georgia Partnership for Excellence in Education several days ago.

"Lee, a one-time attorney who turned to education when the recession crippled his real-estate-law practice, said the current school environment is a major reason teachers leave the profession,” said Jacksonville.com.

A starting salary of $37,000, he said, is not enough for the state’s to teachers to support their families.

The State Superintendent of Schools Richard Woods also spoke at the conference, saying he supports increasing public funding and is attempting to find ways to reduce standardized testing.

For now, however, the morale for Georgia teachers remains low.

Article by Nicole Gorman, Education World Contributor

1/11/2016