Why Are Teachers Tapping Out? It's Not a Teaching Problem. It's a System Problem

As a curriculum specialist, I have the privilege of engaging in meaningful dialogue with educators across the United States. And as state testing season approaches, one thing rings true everywhere: Teachers are stressed. And rightly so.

Not just because of a single test that attempts to define their effectiveness, but because more often than not… they truly care about education. As a former elementary educator—work I genuinely loved—I often reflect on why I left the classroom. It wasn’t the students. It wasn’t the teaching. It was the policies and the politics. Because when you sit in a classroom and witness third graders crying, arguing, shutting down, or falling asleep from exhaustion or stress, you begin to realize something very real: This is not the environment you signed up for.

Before we rush to judgment about education today, I invite you to pause and reflect. Imagine you are the teacher. What would you do?

• Your highest-performing 5th grade student moves away right before state testing. You have connected emotionally and academically with this student. Now another teacher will reap the rewards of your diligence. How do you maintain self-confidence?

• A few days before testing, a new 3rd grader enrolls who also does not speak English. They are required to take the test. Their score becomes part of your data—public, permanent, and open for interpretation. How do you explain that number?

• You ask an 8th grade student to follow a simple classroom expectation, and they respond by telling you to “F*** off.” In that moment, you are expected to maintain composure, continue instruction, preserve the learning environment, and build a relationship—all at once. How do you pivot this event to an elevating, postive learning experience?

• A 1st grade student is having a melt down and refuses to leave the classroom for recess. You have recess duty. You cannot physically intervene. You cannot leave them alone. Yet you are responsible for supervising the rest of your class outside. What do you do?

  
  

These are not rare scenarios. This is the day-to-day reality of teaching. It is mentally exhausting, emotionally draining, and physically demanding. And yet, at the same time, teachers are expected to show up fully, differentiate instruction for every learner, manage behaviors, build relationships, and prepare students for high-stakes testing that requires focus, stamina, and emotional regulation.

So we have to ask ourselves—how is this sustainable?

If we want to create real change, it cannot live only in classrooms. It must reach leadership. Educators are navigating real human experiences every single day, yet they are measured by systems that often ignore those realities. Many leave each day feeling underwhelmed in their sense of success and overwhelmed by policy decisions that make it difficult to truly meet the needs of their students.

This is not a teacher problem.

This is a systems problem.

Children were never designed to learn in constant comparison. They were designed to learn through movement, curiosity, relationships, and play. Educational pioneers like Maria Montessori recognized this long ago, emphasizing that development unfolds naturally when children are supported, not pressured.

Modern research continues to affirm this. The American Academy of Pediatrics highlights that play is essential for brain development, emotional regulation, and social growth. And yet, in many classrooms, play is the first thing removed in the name of rigor.

We already understand, in every other stage of life, that development is not linear. Children learn to walk, talk, ride a bike, and grow at different times. They learn at their own pace. Some excel in numbers, others in language, music, movement, or creativity.

Every child is capable. Just not in the same way, or on the same timeline.

So why do we abandon that understanding in education? Why are we placing so much emphasis on academic data while overlooking human connection? Should state testing be optional? What is the real purpose of testing a 4th grader?

Is it to measure growth… or to label? Is it to further how to spend state and federal funding? “If we continue to prioritize systems built around data and devices, and tech conglomerates, we have to question whether we’re designing education for children… or for scalability.”

“Who is really benefiting from standardized testing?"

Because the reality is this—no college, no career, no meaningful life outcome is determined by a single test score in elementary or middle school. But the pressure, the comparison, and the stress placed on children and teachers? That impact is real, and it lasts.

Instead of criticizing educators, what if we thanked them?

Thanked them for showing up every day. For caring deeply. For navigating expectations that often conflict with what they know is best for children. Because right now, incredible educators are leaving the profession in droves—not because they don’t love teaching, but because the system is asking them to do the impossible. And when they leave, we don’t just lose teachers.

We lose connection. We lose mentorship. We lose the heart of education.

Maybe it’s time we stop asking how teachers are performing and start asking a better question:

How are we supporting the humans inside our schools?