September 15, 2025September 10, 2025 Linda Markley

Resources and Support

calling to make a difference, creating community, Essential questions, Maslow before Blooms, Resources, Teacher Appreciation, teacher resources, teacher struggles, teacher support

More and more funding for resources and support for teachers is being reduced, or worse, eliminated altogether.

Teachers have always had to buy materials and supplies and pay for them out of their own very tight personal budget.

Teachers have always had to write grants and jump through fiery hoops of paperwork and accountability just to get money to fund everyday needs in the classroom.

Why???

And I SHOUT more loudly WHY???

We are a wealthy nation capable of providing for teachers.

So, why are teachers taking their precious time, money, energy and other resources to seek the support they need to teach?

Why do so many reply on social media to The Spirit of Teaching’s post to share their Amazon Wish List for back-to-school?

And, they share with heartfelt pleas and deep gratitude for “anything you can do to help out my kids is greatly appreciated!”

I don’t see any other employees in my community of businesses purchasing their own supplies, resources and begging for support in order to do their jobs.

So, once again, I ask WHY??? 

Do you have an answer or solution?

I have been in education for almost 50 years, and I have never seen things as desperate as they are today with regard to schools not receiving enough funding to support the basic needs of their teachers.

Or enough funding to even provide enough teachers for our students.

Don’t our children deserve better?

Don’t our communities deserve better?

Isn’t the future of education worth the investment?

During the latest Teacher Tales #52 episode, a teacher in a rural district of Georgia and I talked about the particular challenges that most rural school teachers have with regard to access to resources and support needed for teaching and for more effective student learning.

 

Image credit:

“Teacher Supplies” by Kevron is licensed under CC BY-NC-SA 2.0.