14 vacancies remain for public school teachers– Hon de Castro
The Minister was at the time speaking during the Continuation of the Second Sitting of the First Session of the Fifth House of Assembly (HoA) on September 5, 2023, in response to questions by former teacher and Opposition Member Hon Stacy Mather (AL).
Teachers leaving profession in record numbers - Hon de Castro
Ho de Castro said it is "no secret" that teachers are leaving the profession in record numbers due to low salaries, lack of financial incentives, high workload, limited resources, and challenging working conditions.
The Minister added that teaching can be a demanding profession, requiring significant time and effort outside of regular classroom hours for lesson planning, grading, and other administrative tasks, with compensation for educators widely challenged, considering teacher workloads and the extent of the responsibilities they are expected to execute daily.
“This has often led to dissatisfaction and demotivation among teachers, prompting them to leave or dissuading potential candidates from pursuing a career in education,” she said.
Within that context, the minister said a total of 59 educators were needed to ensure full complement at the start of the new school year and that specifically, 24 educators were needed at the primary level, while 35 were required at the secondary level.
“The Ministry of Education prioritised teacher recruitment over the last few months, and as such, most of these positions have been filled. Madam Speaker, the Teaching Service Commission recommended the employment of 44 applicants. I am pleased to report that of the 44 applicants, 38 of these teachers are in place… while the remaining six applicants are expected to be in the Territory by mid-September,” she said.
Small amount of vacancies left
With the majority of the positions filled, Hon de Castro said that leaves six vacancies at the primary level and eight at the secondary level.
“I would like to take this opportunity to express immense gratitude to the members of the Teaching Service Commission and the Human Resources Unit in the Ministry of Education for the countless hours dedicated to ensuring that all classrooms were adequately staffed for the start of the school year. Madam Speaker, this was a mammoth task. The selection of the right teachers for all classrooms involved a robust process which oftentimes included multiple rounds of interviews.”
She added that the process was further complicated by the competitive climate surrounding the recruitment of teachers, since over the course of the last few months, the ministry received an unprecedented number of refusals after offers were extended.
The Minister said most of the individuals who rejected cited dissatisfaction with the remuneration package proposed as the basis for their refusal.
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11 Responses to “14 vacancies remain for public school teachers– Hon de Castro ”
More needs to be done for teachers and money is not necessarily the main issues. Check the classrooms condition and limited to no resources to push this STEAM engine. Teachers take a lot but they continue to show up and do their best for the children.