Government rejects union claim Teacher shortage turns into "disaster"

The teacher shortage in New Zealand "is rapidly passing from a crisis to a disaster," said the teacher union president to the "surprise" of the Ministry of Education [19659007] It is possible that more than 1,800 additional teachers will be needed to deal with nearly 40,000 additional students by 2030, according to figures released Monday by the New Zealand Educational Institute (NZEI). The ministry, whose data was used in the union's calculations, reported $ 370 million of initiatives in this year's budget to fund an additional 1,500 spaces by 2021.

"To attract the teachers we proposed, "said Deputy Secretary Ellen MacGregor-Reid.

NZEI is expected to announce Wednesday the result of a vote of 27,000 members voting on the opportunity to extend an entire day the scheduled teachers strike of half a day.

The union recently rejected a government offer for the maximum salary is about $ 80,600, an increase of 14.7% on the entry salary of $ 47,980 for trained teachers at the university, bringing the salary to $ 55,030.

NZEI Lynda Stuart said that "the current rate of disengagement" of teachers was unsustainable.

"The number of students for teacher training has dropped by 40% over the past five years, a baby boomer bubble was approaching retirement." The workload and low wages are pushing a lot of people to leave the profession a few years after graduation – and this before we involved 40,000 more children. "

She said the exact number of teachers needed lculate because teacher-student ratios vary between year-round levels At a ratio of 1:26, about 1,500 more teachers are needed, and at a ratio of 1:22, 1815 teachers more is needed, according to the union.

MacGregor-Reid said the ministry was "aware of projections" She said the government had funded 890 teacher refresher courses to get former teachers back to schools faster , d resettlement scholarships paid to 137 New Zealand teachers abroad and 60 additional places for

In a statement issued by NZEI, Mary O'Regan, director of Maidstone Intermediate, said that "we are not going to be able to do this. she had just completed a job at her school in Upper Hutt, occupying a position at a job.

Berhampore Elementary School Principal Mark Potter said he would receive only "a handful" of applications for jobs that attracted between 20 and 30 teachers, including three out of four . years ago. [19659007] "There were many more novice professors who were applying and now they seem to be leaving for other careers when they finish their teacher training."

"There is also less mid-career teachers. Some of them want to continue teaching but want to work 2-3 days a week because they know the stress and workload that accompany senior roles. "

                
                     – Stuff