More than 1 in 4 U.S. public school teachers are missing the basic materials or staffing support needed to effectively do their jobs, significantly impacting workplace satisfaction, according to a new Gallup-Walton Family Foundation report.
Teachers are most likely to report a shortage of “people resources,” with two-thirds saying they don’t have enough teaching assistants, aides or paraprofessionals.
This “has a huge impact in the classroom in what teachers are able to do,” said Andrea Malek Ash, a senior research consultant at Gallup who led the survey.
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Ash stressed that even as teachers struggle to access fundamental resources, they still expressed a desire to improve their practices through professional growth opportunities.
“So it’s like this hierarchy of needs,” she said. “Teachers really have to come at it right now from both ways: They’re trying to improve themselves, and they’re still dealing with not having enough furniture. That’s something that really stood out to me.”
A dearth in resources has long plagued educators, with as many as 90% having to reach into their own pockets to buy materials for their students and many relying on crowdfunding platforms to solicit help from private donors. According to some estimates, the amount teachers spent climbed during the pandemic, according to some estimates, though schools were also able to spend emergency COVID funding on supplies and furniture. And this year, a typical assortment of back-to-school supplies will cost an average of 7.3% more, at least partially due to the Trump administration’s tariff policies.
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School staffing, too, has remained a persistent challenge for public schools: as of June 2025, an estimated 1 in 8 positions were either unfilled or filled by teachers not fully certified for their assignments. Yet, the number of educators nationally saw a steady increase between 2018 and 2022, potentially due to the emergency relief funding. With that money sunsetting just over a year ago, it’s not yet clear what impact that might have on combatting ongoing shortages.
Teachers reported that professional growth opportunities and materials are two of the most important factors when it comes to job satisfaction: 77% of teachers who have adequate resources report being satisfied at work, versus 44% of those who do not.
Gallup surveyed thousands of teachers from the RAND American Teacher Panel over the course of one school year: 1,989 teachers were surveyed between October and November 2024; 2,046 in January 2025; and 2,167 between April and May 2025.
The report is part of a research initiative led by Gallup and the Walton Family Foundation to study Gen Z and youth perspectives, especially as they relate to education. Since teachers play such a large role in a student’s engagement and success in the classroom, researchers said it was important to learn about their needs as well and will gather their views over the next few years.
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Across the country, teachers overwhelmingly reported a shortage of school-based staff: almost two-thirds said their school didn’t have enough teaching assistants, aides, paraprofessionals or behavior intervention specialists and 62% said they didn’t have enough mental health resources or special educators.
Jessica Saum is a special education coordinator, former special education teacher and the 2022 Arkansas Teacher of the Year. In her current role, she works to ensure students’ receive the special education services they need and supports educators in various K-12 settings. Saum said she sees these shortages reflected in classrooms across her district — especially among paraprofessionals.
Jessica Saum is a special education coordinator, former special education teacher and 2022 Arkansas Teacher of the Year. (Jessica Saum)
“The paras are typically doing some of the hardest parts of those jobs with the least amount of education and training,” she said, leading some to decide not to go into teaching or leave their jobs altogether.
A shortage of paraprofessionals makes the general education teacher’s job “much harder,” Saum said. “As a special educator, I depended on my para educators to complete that classroom support. I needed them to be able to help me meet the needs of all the students.”
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While 72% of teachers either agreed or strongly agreed that they had the equipment needed to teach effectively, 24% said they didn’t have enough classroom furniture, 25% didn’t have enough laptops or classroom computers and 35% didn’t have adequate printing supplies. Funding is likely one barrier to access, said Ash, but bureaucracy appears to be another: 1 in 3 teachers said the process they need to go through to order materials is “very” or “somewhat difficult.”
Gallup
Even if school leaders don’t immediately have the budget to buy requested materials, Ash said, just being aware of teachers’ needs and making the acquisition process easier creates a better experience for educators.
Some of these trends held true across schools, regardless of family income. For example, teachers who work in wealthier schools — where less than a quarter of students are eligible for free or reduced-price lunch — were just about as likely (23%) to report not having enough classroom furniture as those who work in a school where up to 100% of students qualify (25%).
And teachers in these wealthier schools were actually more likely (68% vs. 64%) to report a shortage of teaching assistants or paraprofessionals, according to additional data from the study provided to The 74 by Gallup.
Yet, when it came to technology, that flipped. Teachers in low-income schools were significantly more likely to report not having enough laptops (34% vs. 18%) or printing resources (43% vs. 28%).
Gallup
The survey also found that about half of teachers say their professional development is not grounded in students’ needs or learning. They cite collaborative planning as the most valuable kind of development and 43% report observing other teachers as the most worthwhile activity — though just 1 in 3 teachers say they get that opportunity.
“So the most beneficial ones were the ones that we’re also missing,” said Ash.
The Walton Family Foundation provides financial support to The 74.
