KEY POINTS:
One in five secondary school teachers do not expect to still be in the job in five years time, a study released today said.
The trained teacher shortage is hitting students' education, with 20 per cent of high school staff teaching in a subject area they were not qualified or trained in, the Teachers' Council study found.
Some Auckland schools were increasingly recruiting overseas to fill the gap. The figures were in line with findings in the Post Primary Teachers' Association's staffing survey that showed schools found it harder to find new teachers and retain existing ones.
Ministry of Education figures showed 35 per cent of secondary schools had teaching vacancies at the start of this school year, which made up 1 per cent of positions.
The council's study had even more glum figures for teachers.
It found 21 per cent of secondary school teachers with two years' experience were not as happy with their career as they expected to be.
The satisfaction level was just 23 per cent among new primary school teachers and 16 per cent in early childhood education teachers.
The Teachers' Council study was part of a programme to investigate the support given to teachers in their first two years on the job.
Council director Peter Lind said induction programmes were vital for teachers' success.
While the programmes were widely run, Dr Lind said the report showed a large number of newly qualified teachers were not getting sustained support from a skilled mentor.
Dr Lind said: "Trained and skilled mentors have been recognised as fundamental to the success of induction programmes.
"We will look at ways mentors can be appropriately trained to fulfil their important role successfully."
The research, to be discussed at a workshop today, will provide input for the development of a new policy to support teachers.
