Student behavior and social-emotional health remain the top challenge for teachers this year, according to a recent survey from the nonprofit Leanlab Education.

Leanlab surveyed more than 240 teachers in its report, Tell Us How You Really Feel: A Survey of Teacher Sentiment, to better understand the main challenges and successes teachers are facing almost two years into the pandemic.

“We’ve heard a lot about how teachers are feeling from an outside perspective,” said Katie Boody, CEO of Leanlab. “But we wanted to make sure the teacher’s perspective wasn’t lost and the challenges that they self-identify are the same ones that we’re putting resources towards addressing.”

The survey is representative of 14 different charter schools and public school districts across Missouri and Kansas in urban, suburban, and rural communities. Teachers responded to open-ended questions asking them to identify the challenges and successes of the current school year. 

Through this survey, Leanlab identified three major challenges that teachers are facing.

Student Behavior and Social and Emotional Well-Being

Student behavior was the most common challenge that teachers reported. The transition to in-person learning has been a challenge for students as they re-establish routines, schedules, and expectations after multiple months of virtual learning.