Minister of Education: Shortage of skilled workers remains a major challenge NDR.de – News

by Catherine Lejeune

On Thursday, around 841,000 schoolchildren in Lower Saxony will start school again after six weeks of summer vacation. That is almost 30,000 more students than in the previous year. A trend that, according to the Ministry of Education, will continue. As the student body grows, so does the shortage of teachers. 1,427 new teachers were hired for the new school year, including 83 career changers, which corresponds to a share of 6 percent. “We will continue to hire at high pressure over the next few weeks. Basic trained teachers, career changers. And we will conclude representation contracts more quickly,” said Minister of Education Julia Willie Hamburg (Greens). Nevertheless, the applicant situation at the Hauptschule and Realschule, Oberschule and special schools as well as at some rural elementary schools remains problematic.

“It’s not a sprint, it’s a marathon”

Hamburg described the planned increase in starting salaries from the 2024/2025 school year for elementary, secondary and junior high school staff to A13 as the biggest step against the shortage of teachers. A total of around 34,670 teachers will benefit from the increase. A measure that will also provide long-term relief and convince students to come to Lower Saxony. Despite this, around 330 teaching positions could not be filled for the coming year. Hamburg: “We are on a long way. It’s not a sprint, it’s a marathon.” The shortage of skilled workers will still be an issue in the next 20 years. In order to retain skilled workers, 60 school social workers and 36 school psychologists will be given permanent contracts. Cost: 3.5 million euros.

GEW: Around 8,000 teachers are missing

Trade unions expressed concern about the tense situation for teachers. According to the Education and Science Union (GEW), there is a shortage of around 11,000 employees at schools in Lower Saxony, including around 8,000 teachers. The GEW state chairman Stefan Störmer said that the number of new appointments is falling, as is the number of teachers in preparatory service. This is a real warning sign. From the point of view of the Lower Saxony Association of Philologists, there is a serious demographic problem. “We will still have a relatively good number of teachers for the next five years, and then many teachers will retire,” said Chairman Christoph Rabbow.

Prime Minister Stephan Weil (SPD) was open to recruiting part-time retired teachers. “We certainly don’t just have to increase the incentives in Lower Saxony,” said the SPD politician “New Osnabrück newspaper”.

Further information

Thousands of teachers are missing in Lower Saxony’s schools, according to the teachers’ associations. You see a need for reform in training. (08/14/2023) more

For the tenth grade, the subject is compulsory from the new school year. But there are still not enough staff. (08/08/2023) more

An expert opinion makes suggestions for easing the situation. Strong criticism comes from the teachers’ associations in Lower Saxony. (01/28/2023) more