The 2022-23 school year proved itself difficult for district leaders hoping to bolster their teacher workforce in their first “normal” year since the pandemic. However, it’s far from an easy task to complete, and there are already signs that it will continue this upcoming school year as well. What’s keeping leaders from finding qualified teachers?
Resorting to uncertified teachers
Finding a teacher to fill a vacancy is one thing. Finding a qualified one is another challenge, one that some leaders want to bypass completely to ensure they have plenty of educators in their schools.
Recently appointed Superintendent Mike Miles of Houston ISD announced this week that the district plans to hire uncertified teachers to its classrooms if they receive a waiver for permission from the Texas Education Agency.
“They’re looking for quantity and not quality,” Houston Federation of Teachers President Jackie Anderson told KHOU. “We’ve been getting reports that people are being told, ‘If you want a job, just come on in.’ And they’re not looking at particular qualifications or certifications.”
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Fast-tracking credentials
Virginia is also looking at a faster alternative to finding teachers through a newly approved online alternative pathway to teacher licensure, WRIC reports. The Virginia Board of Education wants districts to use iTeach, which would allow individuals to teach with a provisional license while working toward their full license for some $3,000.
As of April 2023, the state reported having more than 3,500 teacher vacancies for the 2022-23 school year.
Daniel Gecker, a former member of the state board of education who voted in favor of the plan, told USA Today that he supported it only because it’s a three-year pilot and an “opportunity to gather data.”
“We are in the middle of a fairly significant teacher shortage,” he said. “Having the online-trained teachers is better than having the untrained subs we’ve been having.”
Teacher pleads for higher pay
A commonly cited contributor to the lack of teaching staff across the nation is teacher compensation, which hasn’t improved much despite inflation, recent research suggests. One South Florida teacher says she’s had to resort to side hustles to stay afloat.
“What they’re paying us is not livable,” Sandra Lopez-Gallardo, an educator entering her 20th year of teaching, told NBC Miami. Instead, she’s taken up tutoring and online seminars. And she’s not alone.
“Every teacher I know is working two or three jobs,” she said. “We’re doing DoorDash, we’re doing Uber, we’re doing waitressing. You do what you have to do to pay the bills.”
Despite these concerns, leaders are hopeful that they’ll have enough staff come the first day of school. Susan Rockelman, director of talent acquisition for the Broward School District, told NBC Miami the district has nearly 400 teaching positions to fill ahead of August 21st. However, she said she is confident that the vast majority of them will be filled by then thanks to a new state law that gives aspiring teachers from other industries more time to work with a mentor to earn their certification.
“The new program under the new law has expanded the three-year program to five years, which allows a teacher more time to complete all of their requirement that they will need,” she said.
