LAUSR

When teachers talk about leaving the profession, they are commonly described as “burnt out.” But for many, argues Doris Santoro, that’s not the real story. In truth, most teachers enter teaching because they want to pursue moral commitments to the well-being of their students, colleagues, and communities. In-depth interviews with experienced teachers as well as studies of teachers’ resignation letters suggest that moral concerns are what led many of them to quit, as well: They leave not because they’ve become exhausted by the demands of the work but, rather, because school policies are preventing them from doing the good and just work they aspire to do.