Missouri ranks eighth as 2020’s worst state for teachers
Report analyzes this year's worst and best states for teachers across the country
Wallethub releases 2020 report on best and worst states for teachers // Photo courtesy of wallethub.com
In preparation for World Teachers’ Day on October 5, the personal-finance website WalletHub released a report written by financial writer Adam McCann on 2020’s Best and Worst States for Teachers. The report was also supplemented by accompanying videos. With the presence of the COVID-19 pandemic, teachers are faced with new challenges to navigate this year, from social distancing to online learning.
The report was created to assist educators in finding the best opportunities and teaching environments in the country. Says Diana Polk, WalletHub Communications Manager, “WalletHub analyzed all 50 states and the District of Columbia across 25 key metrics, ranging from teachers’ income growth potential to the pupil-teacher ratio to whether the state has a digital learning plan.
This year, Missouri ranked eighth as the worst state for teachers.
The list was created based on two leading determinants: Opportunity & Competition and Academic & Work Environment.
As stated in the Methodology section of the report, “Because competitive salaries and job security are integral to a well-balanced personal and professional life, we assigned a heavier weight to the [first category].” Both categories were broken down into 25 subcategories, with each subcategory carrying different weight. The subcategories were graded on a 100-point scale, with a score of 100 representing the most favorable conditions for living and working as a teacher.
The weighted average across all subcategories was used to calculate each state and the District’s overall scores, ranking the official list’s order.
Some rankings on how Missouri stacked up for teachers across a handful of categories (1=Best; 25=Avg.):
40th – Avg. Starting Salary for Teachers (Adjusted for Cost of Living)
28th – Avg. Salary for Teachers (Adjusted for Cost of Living)
36th – Quality of School System
34th – Public-School Spending per Student
31st – Projected Competition in Year 2028
33rd – 10-Year Change in Teacher Salaries
33rd – Existence of Digital Learning Plan
The full report can be found at wallethub.com
