Schools Caught short – again: the ongoing impact of workforce shortages
Since the start of the year, we have spoken to countless members dealing with the dramatic impact of workforce shortages. Every week, schools are having to scramble to find available CRTs. Classes are split, and teachers and ES are having to supervise groups above the maximum. Some schools have closed off parts of the playground to reduce the number of staff needed for yard duty. Others have stopped running professional development to free up time for core duties. Numerous teachers and school leaders have had to scale up their teaching loads or teach subjects outside of their area.
While the federal National Teacher Workforce Action Plan includes some positive initiatives such as the $4 million Teach the Future recruitment campaign, and we have had some wins – including paid placements for pre-service teachers – it is not nearly enough. Neither the state nor federal government has made any of the bold moves needed to address the shortage crisis and the chronic underfunding of our public schools.
The problem is widespread – with shortages affecting schools across the system: primary, secondary, specialist, rural, metro, large and small. Similarly, while the shortage of STEM teachers has been widely documented, many schools are struggling to fill roles across the board. As AEU Victoria president Meredith Peace says: “When you’ve got a shortage of Humanities and English teachers, you know you’ve got a real problem.”
So much so that when asked about their experiences, many school principals are reluctant to go on the record for fear of saying anything that might dampen their chance of attracting prospective staff.
QUALITY EDUCATION PROVIDED AT THE COST OF STAFF HEALTH AND WELLBEING
Kathy Jones, assistant principal at Wonthaggi North Primary, recently did nine yard-duty shifts in one week. “We’re having to split our classes, cancel or collapse our specialist program – PE, Art, Spanish,” she says. “We are a rural school, so we are pulling from the same CRT pool as the other rural schools around us.”
The short-term plugs mean that bigger issues fall by the wayside. ”When does the school improvement work, the strategic work, happen? If we have to go into classrooms, that work is not being done. So, I do that work at night to catch up.”
“People in schools want to be in schools because it’s about our children, it’s about providing quality education, but you can see people are exhausted and feel the weight on their shoulders.”
Kathy Jones
Kathy says she is greatly disappointed that government has not followed through on its commitment to deliver 100% of the schooling resource standard (SRS). “We need that funding to support students in our classroom who need more support. We don’t have a wellbeing person, disability inclusion, and so on – it comes back to the funding. People get burnt out.”
Right now, quality education is being maintained for students “at the detriment of the mental health and wellbeing” of school staff, she says. “People who are in schools want to be in schools because it’s about our children, it’s about providing quality education, but you can see that people are exhausted and feel the weight on their shoulders.”
SCHOOL FACILITIES UNDER-UTILISED DUE TO LACK OF STAFF
Ralph Gotlib is the principal of Lynall Hall Community School, where shortages have left them under-staffed, and the school’s facilities under-utilised. “We’ve got amazing facilities that are just not being used. We have two workshops not in operation because we can’t staff them,” Ralph says.
“We can’t offer the programs, can’t make the VET subjects available – VET auto and VET building and construction. The students who want to do those subjects have to choose other subjects.”
When they advertise vacancies, they never have enough applicants. “In some ways we’re better off this year, but it’s a case of: you plug one hole and another springs open. I have a full admin contingent this year, but my VET teaching is in crisis,” Ralph says.
“The shortages mean I’ve got teachers teaching out of area – and that impacts everyone,” Ralph says. “They’re trying to teach subjects they’re not trained to deliver, and so the quality of the programs isn’t as good – which is not a knock on the teachers, who are doing their best.”
“The elephant in the room is that state schools are not funded the way they should be.”
Ralph Gotlib
Ralph believes the underlying problem is the attractiveness of the profession overall. “I have been unable to compete, particularly when it come to VET teachers – they have families and bills to pay, and the reality is they can get better wages and conditions, and greater flexibility, in industry than in VET teaching.”
The status of the teaching profession is no longer valued as it once was, he adds. “Parts of this puzzle need a policy response and a funding response. The elephant in the room is that state schools are not funded the way they should be.”
AEU PLAN OUTLINES SOLUTIONS FOR SOLVING SHORTAGE CRISIS
In its Ten-Year Plan for Staffing in Public Education, released last year, the AEU laid out a series of recommendations to address the workforce shortage crisis. These included retention bonuses for all existing staff; minimising administration and compliance duties; maximising job security; and reintroducing funded ‘studentships’ to provide cost-of-living support and ongoing employment upon graduation.
The government has responded with some small measures, such as bonuses for those who take up work in hard-to-staff schools, but this is woefully inadequate considering the level of action required.
Through its For Every Child campaign, the union is also maintaining strong pressure on state and federal governments to reach a funding agreement that gives public schools the resources they need. While additional money cannot magic up qualified staff, it would enable schools to employ more administrative and support staff, and more allied health professionals, which would go a long way towards lessening teacher workloads while other measures take effect.
“I am always optimistic, but I don’t think there’s a short-term fix for this – there’s some substantial changes that need to be made,” Ralph says. “As things are, it is not sustainable.”
