The Great Resignation—masses of people leaving the workforce—has hit the field of Jewish education particularly hard. Even before the pandemic, organizations such as CASJE were working to understand the reasons behind the educator shortage, and since 2020, the shortage has intensified significantly. Aside from the persistent issue of relatively low salaries, at least three other factors can be seen as playing contributing roles.
The transition from in-person to online learning necessitated by COVID-19 had many implications, including detrimental effects on student mental health. Precisely at an age when social interaction is crucial for development, lockdowns separated students from their peers. This separation, in addition to academic concerns, generated stress and anxiety in children. During this challenging period of rapid change, teachers were expected to create stability and certainty both in their capacities as teachers in the virtual classroom and as caregivers for the students.
