Majority of Gilroy educators listed students as No. 1 for
remaining in district
Gilroy – Students are the glue that caused the majority of local educators to stick around the Gilroy Unified School District.
Of the 380 teachers who returned surveys in June, 66 percent listed students as their main reason for returning to the GUSD classroom. Collaboration with fellow teachers came in a close second, with 64 percent checking that box on the survey.
That was a shift from last year when collaboration topped the list with a 64 percent and students came in a close second at 61 percent. The least influential factor was employee recognition, which was only checked off by 5 percent of respondents.
District administrative support and instructional materials were also relatively unimportant to the returning teachers, with only 11 percent checking either one of the items. But 46 percent of respondents said administrative support at the site where they teach is important.
Only 190 teachers returned surveys in 2005, compared to 380 this year. The reason?
This year, the district attached the surveys to teacher contracts and requested that educators return both. A total of 214 elementary and 166 secondary (grades six through 12) returned the surveys. There are about 500 teachers in the district.
Teachers were given a list of 12 items and asked to check all that were factors in their decision to remain in the GUSD.
