Teachers Tenure School People University Training Inexperienced Employees

Most American schools and university have a "tenure system" where teachers who have taught at a particular school or university for a long time have more "tenure" than teachers who are new to that school or university. If the school or university needs to "lay off" (fire) staff, possibly due to "budget cuts" (having less money than expected) then it will lay off teachers with little or no tenure. People with more tenure know that their jobs are safe.

Some people argue that having a tenure system is very important, especially at a university, because it protects professors who might be involved in unpopular research. If they have tenure, they cannot be fired simply for "conducting" (doing; performing) researching that makes people angry or uncomfortable.

Many other people believe that tenure systems are unfair, because they don't consider whether or not someone is a good teacher. Sometimes people who have been teaching for many years have "antiquated" (old; no longer relevant) teaching "techniques" (ways of doing something) and "outdated" (not current) knowledge about their "subject area" (the topics that are taught), or they might be "burnt out" (no longer interested and enthusiastic) about teaching. In contrast, new teachers might be better educated and more interesting for the students. However, under a tenure system, the new teachers will be fired before the old teachers lose their jobs.

Even if teachers are "incompetent" (unable to do their jobs well), sometimes it can be very difficult to fire them in a school or university with a strong tenure system. On the other hand, schools use tenure to improve schools, first as a reward for teachers who have passed through a "probationary" (temporary trial) period, and then for those who remain at a school for long periods of time, thereby reducing "turnover" (people leaving a job only after a short time).