Teacher Shortages

In recent years, the Sultanate of Oman has witnessed a noticeable increase in the number of births with a significant increase in the number of students enrolled in schools, which has led to an increase in the demand for teachers.

Globally, education systems across the world face an ongoing teacher shortage, and the reasons behind this are many, including: increasing workloads, difficult working conditions, and low salaries. These concerns result in fewer graduates wanting to enter the profession and often drive those already in the classroom to other jobs.

Moreover, the projections estimate 44 million additional teachers are needed globally to meet universal primary and secondary education by 2030. Globally we need to increase the number of teachers by 50% by 2030. Teacher gaps can stem from either needing to fill newly created posts or replacing vacant positions caused by attrition. (https://teachertaskforce.org/news/teacher-shortages-are-global-challenge-why-improving-attractiveness-profession-critical-ensure).

A series of studies reported severe shortages in specific subject areas like mathematics, science, and special education. Studies defined shortages as an “inadequate quantity of qualified individuals willing to offer their services for available jobs under prevailing wages and conditions” (Hammond& Podolsky, 2019).

According to (Wiggan& Smith, 2021) address this issue, it is crucial to examine the reasons for the shortage of teachers in public K-12 schools. in general, male teachers leave the teaching profession at a higher rate than their female colleagues.

For example, global male attrition rates in 2021 were (9.2٪) for primary teachers compared to (4.2٪) for female primary teachers. At the lower secondary level, males had (a 5.9%) attrition rate while the female rate was (5.6٪) (UIS, 2023).

On the other hand, the causes of men leaving the profession vary by context, but they often have more employment opportunities than women in other fields such as business, or manufacturing. Teaching at lower levels of education is also often viewed culturally as a profession for women. In 2022, women made up (94٪) of pre-primary teachers and (68٪) of primary teachers globally (UNESCO, 2022).

Few countries track data about when teachers leave the profession, however, some studies show that younger teachers are more apt to leave the profession than older ones. Furthermore, an OECD study found that across systems, attrition rates were much higher for teachers younger than age 35 than those aged 35 to 54. (OECD, 2021) (https://teachertaskforce.org/news/teacher-shortages-are-global-challenge-why-improving-attractiveness-profession-critical-ensure (https://teachertaskforce.org/news/teacher-shortages-are-global-challenge-why-improving-attractiveness-profession-critical-ensure.

Hammond& Podolsky (2019) point out that to break the cycle of teacher shortages a set of high-quality reform plans must be taken to improve teacher recruitment and retention and tackle the root causes of the unequal distribution of qualified educators. Additionally, emphasis on enhancing school leadership in hard-to-teacher areas and incentivizing teachers to work in high-need schools and subjects through increased compensation and support programs. This shift towards high-quality strategies holds promise for creating a more equitable education system by attracting and retaining qualified educators where they are most needed.

In summary, understanding the factors that lead teachers to leave the profession is crucial for predicting future teacher needs, which in turn informs efforts to make teaching more attractive and retain educators, ultimately contributing to an attractive and stable career in support of education sustainability.