10 Feb Schools in Crisis!
Last week a Queensland teacher, who loves her students and is passionate about education, quit after 30 years of teaching claiming that Australian schools are in crisis!
In a 950-word letter sent to the Courier Mail she cites the crowded curriculum, overcrowded classrooms, meeting the personal needs of a wide range of students and pressure from the press and parents as contributing to the stress and burnout of teachers. Her Facebook post of the letter went viral with almost 40,000 shares!
Currently in Australia young, enthusiastic teachers are leaving the profession. A quick Google search will show you that this has been a problem for quite a while. Research by Monash University in 2013 found between 40 and 50% of Australian teachers left the profession in the first five years.
In the USA roughly one million U.S. teachers either move or leave the teaching profession costing the United States up to $2.2 billion annually. A report published by Alliance for Excellent Education in 2014 estimated that between 40 and 50% of teachers quit within five years.
The Guardian reported in April 2015 that approximately 40% of UK teachers quit within a year of qualifying, with many leaving the profession before they have really begun their career and record numbers of those who remain giving up mid-career, according to analysis of government figures. The exodus of new recruits has almost tripled in six years, resulting in a crisis in teacher supply. Teachers are exhausted, stressed and burnt out in a profession being monitored to within an inch of its life.
I could go on!
Schools are in crisis and it’s time to change!
It’s time to think differently about schools, learning, teaching, curricula and timetables. It’s time to be creative and innovative! It’s time to try new ideas, be disruptive and change. It’s time to think strategically about what we know works best in teaching and learning and embed that into creative options to prepare students for their futures.
I think it’s an exciting time ahead. Some schools are already making changes. I’m looking forward to seeing many more change to meet the needs of 21st Century Learners with plenty of enthusiastic, compassionate and dedicated teachers on board who love their innovative, creative and noble job.
If you would like to learn more about how you could make this happen at your school come along to Leadership for the 21st Century workshop in Singapore on 11 & 12 March or Melbourne on 5 & 6 May. You can register here. I look forward to seeing you there.
