By Julie Lays
Considering the lack of respect, the low pay and the long hours, is it really that surprising there are teacher shortages?
The problem varies by location 
and subject area, but concern is great enough to fill a session room full of lawmakers, staff and others at the Legislative Summit in Chicago earlier this week to hear how widespread the problem is and what other states are finding effective in attracting new teachers.
A growing number of teachers leave the profession every year, yet student enrollment in teacher preparation programs is down sharply, Ellen Behrstock-Sherratt, from the American Institutes for Research in Washington, D.C., told the audience.
She expressed the importance of clearly defining what is meant by “shortage” and then gathering relevant data to base decisions on the facts.
Rob Weil, from the American Federation of Teachers, stressed that teachers simply need more time—for training, collaborating, lesson planning, critiquing each other, grading papers, mentoring others—to be the most effective. Better salaries wouldn’t hurt either. The average first year teacher made $36,141 during the 2012-13 school year according the National Education Association's most recent salary survey.
South Dakota Representative Jacqueline Sly shared some details on how her rural state studied the data and decided to increase the sales tax by 0.5 cents to make some fundamental changes in their schools, including increasing teacher salaries, allowing more teacher sharing and creating more e-learning opportunities.
A former teacher ended the session with some personal stories on the lack of qualified teachers. But her advice to legislators was clear: Talk to teachers. Listen to their concerns. Visit schools.
Julie Lays is editor of State Legislatures magazine.
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