One issue in education that is becoming bigger and bigger is the quality of teachers and the number of teachers. There many teachers that are currently approaching the age of retirement. And there is currently a teacher shortage national already, so it is only going to get worse. It is expected that we will need more than 2 million teachers within the next ten years. The high school areas are where the problem is the least signifigant. The problem is effecting more of the elementary schools and middle schools.
There is also a problem with the quality of teachers. Many school systems feel that students need younger teachers. But there is a problem with that too, 20% of new teachers leave within the first year. I was surprised to learn this until I found out that the reason they are leaving is because of lack of training and support in the classroom. New teachers aren't clear on what their expectations are. It's not that the new teachers aren't qualified, they just feel they can't handle it without support.
For people my age this may look like an okay thing because it means by the time we're reading to go into the teaching field there will be plenty of jobs. But how do we know if there will be enough, you never know how many students are studying to be teachers right now, and if they will be able to fill the gap. This article also made me a little nervous because I want to know that when I enter a school that I know what my expectations are, and that I can seek out help if necessary. Hopefully things will turn around for new teachers, and this shortage crisis will not continue to get worse.
Article link:
http://www.nea.org/teachershortage/index.html
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