Teacher Shortages in Mathematics, Physics and Technology

Bullock, Kate; Scott, William

doi:10.1080/0013191920440205

Cited by 3 publications

(4 citation statements)

References 13 publications

(13 reference statements)

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“…This meant a 'considerable shift of funds' from universities and colleges to the schools (Clarke 1992). Bullock and Scott (1992) believe that the articled and licensed schemes which involved experienced secondary school teachers more extensively in the training of new teachers would have implications in terms of demands on teacher time and require a higher teacher-pupil ratio. Teachers were concerned that they were spending too much time with student teachers at the expense of pupils and, consequently, some schools withdrew their training partnership with their universities.…”

Section: Class Sizesmentioning

confidence: 97%

What can we do to strengthen the teacher workforce?

Gorard

See

Smith

et al. 2007

International Journal of Lifelong Education

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This paper considers recurrent alarms in England, Wales and other developed countries concerning shortages of teachers. It summarises the conclusions from a mixed-methods international study of teacher supply, quality and retention. The research used large-scale secondary data sets from a variety of sources, at both the individual and aggregate level, and analyses conducted for regional, national and international comparisons. These were supplemented by questionnaire-based surveys and focus groups in England and Wales. One conclusion is that there was no evidence of a general crisis in teacher recruitment and retention over the past decade, and no reason to suspect one was imminent at time of writing. There were some difficulties in recruiting teachers in particular subject areas and geographical regions, but these were largely related to policies regarding recruitment targets and entry requirements that could be changed easily. Fluctuation in the demand for teachers is more closely related to the organisation and funding of schools than to variations in the supply of potential entrants to the profession. The authors consider why the results of this project appear substantially different from those of much previously published research in this area, and warn against the uncritical use of particular indicators and measures. They go on to suggest, in the light of these findings, what steps could be taken to strengthen the teacher workforce in England and Wales.

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Section: Class Sizesmentioning

confidence: 97%

What can we do to strengthen the teacher workforce?

Gorard

See

Smith

et al. 2007

International Journal of Lifelong Education

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“…Seeking an answer to this question leads us to the global shortage of physics teachers, which is closely related to a teacher shortage in other science subjects (i.e., biology and chemistry) and mathematics [1,[16][17][18][19][20][21][22][23][24][25]. The relevant literature provides evidence that since the 1940s [20], this situation has been a permanent problem [26] that only attracts the attention of politicians when reaching crisis levels [20,25]. The problem associated with the teacher shortage in physics and school science is evident in numerous studies and reports by governments and professional associations in countries such as Australia [27][28][29][30], the United Kingdom [16,26,[31][32][33], the United States [20], and South Africa [21].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The relevant literature provides evidence that since the 1940s [20], this situation has been a permanent problem [26] that only attracts the attention of politicians when reaching crisis levels [20,25]. The problem associated with the teacher shortage in physics and school science is evident in numerous studies and reports by governments and professional associations in countries such as Australia [27][28][29][30], the United Kingdom [16,26,[31][32][33], the United States [20], and South Africa [21]. Although the shortage of physics teachers is a worldwide problem that is addressed in different ways in countries relying on the results of studies conducted by relevant institutions, the situation in Croatia is completely different.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Therefore, in the absence of professional teachers, many students (especially at lower levels of education) are taught physics by nonprofessional teachers from other fields who do not have an adequate degree, certification or training to teach physics [2,26,[38][39][40]. In England, for example, 18% of physics teaching in the 1990s was conducted by teachers who had no higher education in physics [11], and science was taught by teachers who did not have to be physicists [41].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Who Teaches Physics in Croatian Elementary Schools?

Erceg

Nikolaus

Nikolaus³

et al. 2022

Education Sciences

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The shortage of physics teachers is a global and persistent problem, resulting in the employment of nonprofessionals who cannot teach physics in a student-centered, high-quality and effective manner. This situation has implications for the educational policies of governments, universities, and schools. The aim of this study is to identify whether there is a shortage of elementary school physics teachers in Croatia. This type of survey was conducted for the first time in the country. Based on the online survey, we asked elementary school principals how many employees they have working as physics teachers in their schools and the type of education of these teachers. A total of 260 principals responded to the survey, representing 25% of the total population of elementary school principals in Croatia, where physics is taught according to the regular program in the 2020/2021 school year. The respondents did not mention the availability of physics teacher vacancies in their schools. However, they mentioned the engagement of nonprofessional substitute physics teachers accounting for 14% of all physics teaching positions in schools that participated in our study. Among the nonprofessional substitutes, most were from the social-humanities field. Differences in the representation of nonprofessional physics teachers by county were also found, indicating different causes of physics teacher shortages in different geographic areas. The survey results provide a basis for future policy decisions that can lead to better results in resolving the issue of physics teacher shortages in Croatia and beyond.

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No problem here! The supply of physics teachers in Scotland

Sparkes

1995

The Curriculum Journal

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The paper discusses the situation in England and Scotland with regard to the supply of well‐qualified physics teachers. The results of two surveys are described, which support the assertion that there is no shortage of such teachers in Scotland. Some of the suggested reasons for the shortage in England are then discussed in the light of this finding. The main conclusion is that there is no shortage of physics teachers in Scotland because the pool of potential physics teachers is larger as a result of more university students taking physics‐based courses. More students take physics courses because more youngsters study physics beyond sixteen, and more youngsters study physics beyond sixteen because they are taught by well‐qualified physics teachers. The cycle is, therefore, self‐perpetuating.

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Teacher Shortages in Mathematics, Physics and Technology

Cited by 3 publications

References 13 publications

What can we do to strengthen the teacher workforce?

What can we do to strengthen the teacher workforce?

Who Teaches Physics in Croatian Elementary Schools?

No problem here! The supply of physics teachers in Scotland

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