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Average hours regular, full-time public and private school teachers spent on all teaching and school-related activities, spent instructing students, and were required by their contracts to work during a typical full week, by school type and selected teacher characteristics: 2015–16 and 2020–21
| Average hours during typical full week | ||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2015–16 | 2020–21 | |||||||||||
| Selected teacher characteristics | Total hours spent on all teaching and other school-related activities1 | Of contracted hours, total hours spent delivering instruction to students2 | Hours required by contract to work | Total hours spent on all teaching and other school-related activities1 | Of contracted hours, total hours spent delivering instruction to students2 | Hours required by contract to work | ||||||
| All teachers | — | — | — | 52.0 | 25.1 | 38.5 | ||||||
| All public school teachers | 53.3 | 27.4 | 38.2 | 52.0 | 25.2 | 38.4 | ||||||
| Sex3 | ||||||||||||
| Male | 53.7 | 27.2 | 38.3 | 51.7 | 25.2 | 38.4 | ||||||
| Female | 53.1 | 27.5 | 38.2 | 52.1 | 25.2 | 38.4 | ||||||
| Race/ethnicity | ||||||||||||
| American Indian or Alaska Native, non-Hispanic | 53.7 | 27.4 | 38.5 | 54.1 | 24.7 | 39.3 | ||||||
| Asian, non-Hispanic | 53.2 | 26.9 | 37.3 | 51.8 | 24.2 | 37.6 | ||||||
| Black or African American, non-Hispanic | 53.9 | 28.2 | 38.8 | 52.8 | 25.4 | 38.7 | ||||||
| Hispanic, regardless of race | 52.6 | 28.3 | 38.0 | 52.2 | 25.8 | 38.5 | ||||||
| Native Hawaiian or other Pacific Islander, non-Hispanic | 52.6 | 25.8 | 36.8 | 49.7 | 24.3 | 37.3 | ||||||
| White, non-Hispanic | 53.2 | 27.3 | 38.2 | 51.9 | 25.2 | 38.4 | ||||||
| Two or more races, non-Hispanic | 54.8 | 28.1 | 38.0 | 53.1 | 25.3 | 38.3 | ||||||
| Age | ||||||||||||
| Less than 30 years | 54.8 | 27.4 | 38.8 | 52.0 | 24.8 | 38.9 | ||||||
| 30-49 years | 53.0 | 27.3 | 38.2 | 51.9 | 25.1 | 38.4 | ||||||
| 50-54 years | 53.5 | 27.6 | 38.1 | 52.4 | 25.6 | 38.2 | ||||||
| 55 years or more | 52.5 | 27.7 | 37.7 | 52.1 | 25.7 | 38.0 | ||||||
| Years of teaching experience | ||||||||||||
| 3 years or less | 55.0 | 27.5 | 38.7 | 52.1 | 24.8 | 38.8 | ||||||
| 4-9 years | 53.6 | 27.6 | 38.5 | 52.0 | 25.2 | 38.6 | ||||||
| 10-14 years | 52.9 | 27.2 | 38.2 | 51.8 | 25.1 | 38.5 | ||||||
| 15 or more years | 52.6 | 27.5 | 37.9 | 52.1 | 25.4 | 38.1 | ||||||
| Teacher main assignment | ||||||||||||
| Early childhood or general elementary | 53.6 | 28.3 | 38.2 | 52.6 | 25.4 | 38.4 | ||||||
| Special education | 51.6 | 27.5 | 37.8 | 50.9 | 25.8 | 38.0 | ||||||
| Arts or music | 51.7 | 27.0 | 38.2 | 51.2 | 25.3 | 38.5 | ||||||
| English and language arts | 53.9 | 27.2 | 38.3 | 52.6 | 24.9 | 38.6 | ||||||
| English as a Second Language (ESL) or bilingual education | 50.9 | 27.4 | 37.5 | 50.5 | 25.6 | 37.9 | ||||||
| Foreign languages | 53.3 | 26.2 | 38.1 | 51.3 | 24.7 | 38.2 | ||||||
| Health education | 52.5 | 26.8 | 38.5 | 49.7 | 25.4 | 38.3 | ||||||
| Mathematics | 53.1 | 26.0 | 38.1 | 52.3 | 24.3 | 38.4 | ||||||
| Natural sciences | 54.8 | 26.9 | 38.5 | 53.1 | 24.8 | 38.5 | ||||||
| Social sciences | 54.7 | 26.9 | 38.4 | 52.5 | 24.6 | 38.4 | ||||||
| Career or technical education | 53.0 | 27.7 | 38.4 | 51.3 | 25.8 | 38.6 | ||||||
| All other | 51.2 | 26.4 | 38.2 | 50.9 | 25.0 | 38.6 | ||||||
| Highest degree earned | ||||||||||||
| Bachelor's degree or less | 53.6 | 27.9 | 38.6 | 52.3 | 25.5 | 38.8 | ||||||
| Master's degree | 52.8 | 27.0 | 37.9 | 51.7 | 25.0 | 38.1 | ||||||
| Higher than a master's degree | 53.8 | 27.3 | 38.0 | 52.5 | 25.2 | 38.0 | ||||||
| All private school teachers | — | — | — | 51.8 | 24.0 | 39.3 | ||||||
| Sex3 | ||||||||||||
| Male | — | — | — | 52.1 | 22.9 | 39.5 | ||||||
| Female | — | — | — | 51.7 | 24.4 | 39.2 | ||||||
| Race/ethnicity | ||||||||||||
| American Indian or Alaska Native, non-Hispanic | — | — | — | 54.9 | 19.7 | ! | 37.0 | |||||
| Asian, non-Hispanic | — | — | — | 50.6 | 21.7 | 39.3 | ||||||
| Black or African American, non-Hispanic | — | — | — | 52.5 | 23.5 | 39.8 | ||||||
| Hispanic, regardless of race | — | — | — | 50.9 | 24.0 | 39.7 | ||||||
| Native Hawaiian or other Pacific Islander, non-Hispanic | — | — | — | 47.5 | 24.4 | 36.8 | ||||||
| White, non-Hispanic | — | — | — | 51.9 | 24.1 | 39.2 | ||||||
| Two or more races, non-Hispanic | — | — | — | 53.4 | 24.1 | 39.1 | ||||||
| Age | ||||||||||||
| Less than 30 years | — | — | — | 51.8 | 23.8 | 39.4 | ||||||
| 30-49 years | — | — | — | 51.3 | 23.5 | 39.4 | ||||||
| 50-54 years | — | — | — | 51.1 | 23.9 | 39.3 | ||||||
| 55 years or more | — | — | — | 52.4 | 24.4 | 39.2 | ||||||
| Years of teaching experience | ||||||||||||
| 3 years or less | — | — | — | 51.8 | 23.8 | 39.4 | ||||||
| 4-9 years | — | — | — | 51.3 | 23.5 | 39.4 | ||||||
| 10-14 years | — | — | — | 51.1 | 23.9 | 39.3 | ||||||
| 15 or more years | — | — | — | 52.4 | 24.4 | 39.2 | ||||||
| Teacher main assignment | ||||||||||||
| Early childhood or general elementary | — | — | — | 52.0 | 25.6 | 39.3 | ||||||
| Special education | — | — | — | 49.8 | 25.8 | 38.6 | ||||||
| Arts or music | — | — | — | 49.2 | 23.6 | 39.5 | ||||||
| English and language arts | — | — | — | 52.8 | 23.5 | 39.4 | ||||||
| English as a Second Language (ESL) or bilingual education | — | — | — | 43.9 | 21.5 | 39.0 | ||||||
| Foreign languages | — | — | — | 50.6 | 21.3 | 39.2 | ||||||
| Health education | — | — | — | 50.9 | 21.3 | 39.7 | ||||||
| Mathematics | — | — | — | 52.9 | 22.5 | 39.3 | ||||||
| Natural sciences | — | — | — | 53.4 | 21.1 | 39.2 | ||||||
| Social sciences | — | — | — | 52.7 | 24.1 | 39.5 | ||||||
| Career or technical education | — | — | — | 52.4 | 24.6 | 39.1 | ||||||
| All other | — | — | — | 49.8 | 22.5 | 38.8 | ||||||
| Highest degree earned | ||||||||||||
| Bachelor's degree or less | — | — | — | 51.3 | 24.9 | 39.3 | ||||||
| Master's degree | — | — | — | 52.2 | 23.1 | 39.2 | ||||||
| Higher than a master's degree | — | — | — | 52.9 | 23.1 | 39.2 | ||||||
—Not available.
! Interpret data with caution. The CV for this estimate is between 30 percent and 50 percent (i.e., the standard error is at least 30 percent and less than 50 percent of the estimate).
1Includes hours spent during the school day, before and after school, and on weekends.
2Excludes time spent on planning, lunch, breaks/recess, arrival/dismissal of students, and otherwise not delivering instruction.
3Teachers were asked whether they were male or female. Although this variable is labeled “sex,” the questionnaire did not use the terms either “gender” or “sex.”
NOTE: Data are weighted estimates of the population. A regular full-time teacher is any teacher whose primary position in a school is not an itinerant teacher, a long-term substitute, a short-term substitute, a student teacher, a teacher aide, an administrator, a library media specialist or librarian, another type of professional staff (e.g., counselor, curriculum coordinator, social worker) or support staff (e.g., secretary), or a part-time teacher.
SOURCE: U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics, National Teacher and Principal Survey (NTPS), "Public School Teacher and Private School Teacher Data Files," 2015–16 and 2020–21.
