infoneer-pulse:

As children around the country settle in for the new school year, millions of them are sharing more than desks, sandwiches and sniffles. Chances are good that they are being taught by teachers with little or no experience.

The odds that a child will be taught by a new teacher have increased dramatically over the past two decades. In 1987-‘88, the most common level of experience among the nation’s 3 million K-12 public school teachers was 14 years in the classroom.  By 2007-‘08, students were most likely to encounter a teacher with just one or two years of experience.

Experts attribute the experiential decline to numerous factors, including the widespread retirement of Baby Boomer teachers, added demands due to programs like “No Child Left Behind” and teachers leaving to pursue better-paying opportunities in other fields.

» via MSNBC