Special Report
Equity & Diversity Infographic

How Do Educators Feel About Staff Diversity? We Asked

December 07, 2021 1 min read
  • Save to favorites
  • Print

The EdWeek Research Center conducted a nationally representative survey of educators about districts’ efforts to diversify their teaching and administrative ranks. Here are the details, including comparisons of results from white educators and educators of color.


How comfortable would you feel teaching in an environment where most of the teachers’ racial makeup differs from your own?

How comfortable would you feel teaching in an environment where most of the teachers’ racial makeup differs from your own? 64% of teachers felt very comfortable, 27% of them felt somewhat comfortable, 7% felt somewhat uncomfortable, and 3% were not at all comfortable. EdWeek Research Center survey data visualization, November 2021.

To what extent do you agree or disagree that school districts should hire or seek to hire more teachers and school administrators from historically marginalized racial/ethnic groups?

To what extent do you agree or disagree that school districts should hire or seek to hire more teachers and school administrators from historically marginalized racial/ethnic groups? 85% of educators of color agree compared to 71% of white educators.  EdWeek Research Center survey data visualization, November 2021.

How important is it for you to work in a district with a diverse TEACHER/EDUCATOR workforce?

How important is it for you to work in a district with a diverse TEACHER/EDUCATOR workforce? 89% of educators of color responded it was important, compared to 65% of white educators. EdWeek Research Center survey data visualization, November 2021.

How important is it for you to work in a district with a racially/ethnically diverse STUDENT population?

How important is it for you to work in a district with a racially/ethnically diverse STUDENT population? 81% of educators of color responded it was important, comparted to 59% of white educators. EdWeek Research Center survey data, November 2021.

To what extent do you agree or disagree with the following statement: The political climate the last two years has made me want to leave my district.

To what extent do you agree or disagree with the following statement: 
The political climate the last two years has made me want to leave my district. All respondents: 40% completely disagree, 17% somewhat disagree, 28% somewhat agree, 15% completely agree. EdWeek Research Center survey, November 2021.

How much of an effort is the school district you work for making to hire more teachers and school administrators from historically disadvantaged racial/ethnic groups?

How much of an effort is the school district you work for making to hire more teachers and school administrators from historically disadvantaged racial/ethnic groups? All respondents: No effort: 16%, Small effort 24%, Medium effort: 35%, Big effort: 25%. EdWeek Research Center survey, November 2021.

SOURCE: EdWeek Research Center survey, November 2021

A version of this article appeared in the December 08, 2021 edition of Education Week as How Do Educators Feel About School Diversity?

Events

This content is provided by our sponsor. It is not written by and does not necessarily reflect the views of Education Week's editorial staff.
Sponsor
Recruitment & Retention Webinar
Hiring, Retention, and Fill Rates: A Data-Driven Sub Strategy
Explore what keeps substitutes coming back and hear how one district rebuilt its substitute hiring process and improved its fill rate.
Content provided by Frontline Education
Early Childhood K-12 Essentials Forum Early Childhood Education: Building Essential Skills for Success
Join this free virtual event to examine the biggest challenges in supporting young children, from preschool through elementary school. 
This content is provided by our sponsor. It is not written by and does not necessarily reflect the views of Education Week's editorial staff.
Sponsor
Student Absenteeism Webinar
Attendance Isn't an Attendance Problem
Boost attendance by strengthening relationships, belonging, and support with practical strategies from Doug Fisher & Nancy Frey.
Content provided by Corwin

EdWeek Top School Jobs

Teacher Jobs
Search over ten thousand teaching jobs nationwide — elementary, middle, high school and more.
View Jobs
Principal Jobs
Find hundreds of jobs for principals, assistant principals, and other school leadership roles.
View Jobs
Administrator Jobs
Over a thousand district-level jobs: superintendents, directors, more.
View Jobs
Support Staff Jobs
Search thousands of jobs, from paraprofessionals to counselors and more.
View Jobs

Read Next

Equity & Diversity Opinion I Wasn't Ready When a New Slur Hit My Middle School Class. I Will Be Next Time
Anti-immigrant rhetoric does not stop at a school's gates, even where many students are immigrants.
Jacobo Coronel
4 min read
Image of a bold red speech quotation mark, filter, and a sponge.
Laura Baker/Education Week + Canva
Equity & Diversity Opinion How Should White Teachers Show Up for Their Colleagues of Color?
Racial equity demands fewer allies and more co-conspirators. Here’s why the distinction matters.
8 min read
Conceptual illustration of classroom conversations and fragmented education elements coming together to form a cohesive picture of a book of classroom knowledge.
Sonia Pulido for Education Week
Equity & Diversity District Must Rename Schools After It Restored Confederate Names, Judge Rules
The district removed the Confederate names in 2020 only to bring them back four years later.
4 min read
A worker attaches a rope as they prepare to remove the statue of Confederate General Stonewall Jackson from its pedestal on July 1, 2020, in Richmond, Va. Shenandoah County, Virginia's school board voted 5-1 early Friday, May 10, 2024, to rename Mountain View High School as Stonewall Jackson High School and Honey Run Elementary as Ashby Lee Elementary four years after the names had been removed.
A worker attaches a rope as they prepare to remove the statue of Confederate Gen. Stonewall Jackson from its pedestal on July 1, 2020, in Richmond, Va. The Shenandoah County school board in Virginia—which scrapped the Confederate names for two schools in 2020 and then restored them in 2024—is now under court order to rename the schools.
Steve Helber/AP Photo
Equity & Diversity Opinion Is Your Classroom Welcoming to English Learners? Here Are 3 Places to Start
Teachers have the power to define knowing two languages as an asset not a complication.
Nancy Cruz Rodriguez
5 min read
A collage-style illustration of pieces of paper with handwriting in multiple languages on them, including Arabic, Mandarin, Spanish, English and Cyrillic. The characters shown are a mix of letters and numbers from each language.
Illustration by Emily Wright for Education Week + Getty