Dialogue: Action needed now to attract teachers

New Zealand will continue to suffer from a scarcity of quality teachers until their lot is improved, writes BALI HAQUE.*

A major educational crisis is upon us.

Boards of trustees are increasingly unable to recruit quality teachers, heads of department and principals to teach in and run our schools. The best and the most able increasingly do not choose teaching as a career.

Boards and principals are now appointing people to teaching positions, particularly in middle management and in some specific subject areas, whom they might not have appointed five years ago.

A survey by the Secondary Principals Association painted a bleak picture. For example, between 70 and 85 per cent of the 150 principals questioned last November expressed unhappiness with the range and quality of applicants for basic-scale maths, science and technology vacancies.

The situation appears even more serious for middle-management vacancies, where between 70 and 90 per cent of principals were unhappy with the range and quality of applicants for maths, science, English, social science, technology and Maori positions.

This crisis is not specific to NZ. Similar problems are emerging in England, Australia and many other comparable countries.

Teacher unions internationally are arguing that this crisis of supply and quality is a result of poor pay and conditions for teachers.

The PPTA, the secondary teachers' union, is continuing with its campaign (based on international comparisons) arguing a case for better pay, better student-teacher ratios, and more non-contact time to retain and recruit quality teachers.

Unfortunately, the numbers don't always stack up. Even in cases where pay and teacher-student ratios are better than here - Australia and Britain are two good examples - the crisis of supply and quality is still causing big problems.

For example, New Zealand is facing a major teacher-recruitment drive from Britain at present.

How is it that when the knowledge economy is the international catchcry, teachers are deserting the ship or electing not to come on board at all? What is causing all this?

First, teachers are not paid enough. This is as true in this country as it is in England and Australia.

Experienced teachers need to be in the top band of income-earners. A teacher can expect to start on about $34,000 and earn a maximum of $50,300 after eight years. This is simply not enough to attract the best in the country and certainly not enough to retain them in the profession.

Second, teachers' conditions of service are appalling. The amount of non-contact time that teachers can expect is inadequate (between two and four hours a week for a mainstream classroom teacher) and the conditions that some have to work under, without office space or secretarial assistance, are a disgrace.

Third, governments have bombarded the sector with a huge number of significant administrative, curriculum and assessment reforms that have required huge change without providing the necessary supporting and implementation resources, particularly of teacher time.

The introduction of the new National Certificate of Educational Achievement is a good example. While the intent of some of these reforms may have been positive, the net result has been an increasingly exhausted, demoralised and sometimes cynical work force in which too many valuable and excellent teachers are simply burning out.

Fourth, teachers have to deal with the failure of governments in the past decade, as increasing numbers of socially maladjusted students enter schools and are required to stay in them longer.

Some of these students are the victims of government experiments in economic and social policy, and they are are incapable of developing positive and rational relationships. For a number of teachers, these students present too many challenges when added to the mountainous workload they already face.

Finally, business and community leaders have seen fit to openly denigrate the work of schools and teachers. As they do this, of course, they add to the cycle of negativity and poor morale in the profession.

What needs to be done?

New Zealand has an opportunity to take major and courageous initiatives in education. We need, above all, to value the educators and to recognise that a small, vulnerable economy such as ours must specialise in its people and their education.

First, we need to pay our teachers more, a lot more than the 2 per cent the PPTA has just negotiated for its members.

Our teachers earn less in real (purchasing power) terms than their English and Australian counterparts. The Government needs to be committed to a significant rise that places our teachers at the top of the earnings table internationally. Only by doing this will we retain our best teachers and attract the best from overseas.

Second, we need to do something about the workload of teachers. The situation for many in the profession is intolerable. They teach more hours and have fewer non-contact hours than their English and Australian counterparts.

The way of addressing teacher workload is to increase the number of teachers. This essentially is the final answer but it will take time as increased salaries have an impact.

Third, there are a number of things teachers themselves can do, probably through the PPTA. Much could be done to increase the status and public perception of teachers, for example, if the working day was extended officially to at least 5 pm.

Many teachers spend much time marking in the evenings, of course. But asking teachers to stay at school until 5 pm would enable them to complete administrative and resource preparation tasks which otherwise have to be squeezed into the 8.30 am to 3.30 pm day.

While some might see this approach as increasing teacher workload, it is paradoxically likely to reduce that load and stress over the whole day, particularly if more non-contact periods are built into that day.

A similar argument could be applied to school holidays. If the teacher unions would allow a principal to call back staff over, say, 10 days of the so-called holidays (as is technically allowed for in the present contract), much could be done to reduce the intensity of work during term time.

Fourth, governments need to leave teachers to get on with their jobs and the community needs to support its teachers.

A teacher needs to be vibrant, enthusiastic and positive in the classroom. Any major curriculum or administrative change needs to be audited to ensure that the work that is required from teachers to implement it is matched by a reduced workload somewhere else.

Finally, perhaps the time has come for governments and business leaders to praise teachers for their wonderful work. Our teachers are the best in world. They are prized by schools overseas and snapped up everywhere they go.

If we do these things and have the courage to take an international lead, we will, indeed, stand proud as a nation that truly values and understands the importance of education.

* Bali Haque is principal of Rosehill College in Papakura and a member of the national executive of the Secondary Principals Association.