Where have all the teachers gone?
02 September 2024
As millions of kids return to school all across Europe today, many risk finding themselves in a teacherless classroom. According to the European Commission, nearly all EU member states face significant teacher shortages, with thousands of positions remaining unfilled, especially for STEM and language subjects.
Schools in disadvantaged areas have an ever harder time attracting and keeping qualified personnel, worsening the social and economic challenges these communities already face. With nearly 40% of Europe's teaching workforce aged 50 or older, the problem is only expected to become worse.
The shortages reveal that teaching has become quite an unattractive profession. Teacher salaries remain relatively low compared to other workers with similar levels of education and have not been keeping up with inflation, causing real wages to decline in recent years. The tightly regulated nature of many countries' education systems limits the possibility of significant career and wage progression, making it harder for schools to compete with other employers.
At the same time, we expect even more of our teachers, such as more administrative tasks, which allow them even less time in the classroom. Maybe even more detrimental to their motivation to stay in the job, less than one in five teachers believe their work is valued by society.
 | Anton Koninckx To no one's surprise, teacher shortages are commonly associated with a decline in both teacher well-being and student performance, creating a vicious circle as teachers find it harder to pay necessary attention to students who need it. To combat the issue, schools across Europe have come up with some quite innovative solutions. In Ireland and Romania, for example, teachers for in-demand subjects are shared between schools, while educators in Belgium experiment with long-distance classes and pre-recorded lectures. Teacher trade unions and school federations warn, however, that a more profound rethink is needed to make the profession regain its shine. |
Welcome to The European Correspondent
Europe lacks true European media: in Germany alone, there are more media devoted exclusively to football than news outlets specialising on Europe. The established players mainly focus on Brussels and European institutions. The European Correspondent aims to change that. We cover the whole of Europe and write for a community of citizens who want to look beyond their own national borders. Without European journalism, there is no European civil society.
〉Read our manifesto
〉The stories we would like to write for you
Become a donor!
The European Correspondent is fully funded by its readers. We can only produce the newsletter with your support - and work towards the bigger project: building true European media. Donate now!
With your help, we can create true European journalism. Thank you!
We are non-profit. Every donated € goes directly into The European Correspondent.