Survey points to...The importance of teacher morale in combating teacher shortage

Associate Professor of Economics John Pisciotta recently completed a study entitled Teacher Attitudes in Texas Public and Private High Schools. The study was released last December by the Texas Public Policy Foundation.

Pisciotta surveyed Texas high school teachers in the spring of 1999. He contacted school coordinators in mathematics, English, social science, and science. The respondents were highly experienced educators. The public school teachers had an average of 21.8 years of teaching experience, compared to 14.7 years for private school teachers.

The survey probed a wide range of issues relating to teacher job satisfaction and morale. These included school discipline …