Dublin at risk of losing “talented teachers” says Cummins

A new study from DCU has found that 85% of teachers are experiencing moderate to high levels of work-related burnout.

According to Social Democrats TD Jen Cummins, the high levels of burnout are down to staffing shortages, an issue that Cummins said has “put on the back burner by the government.”

Cummins, who serves as the party spokesperson on education said “the nonchalance of successive education ministers’ actions has failed to put a dent in this crisis, which continues to worsen.”

“The pain and strife experienced by teachers, special needs assistants, principals and school staff comes as no surprise when they’re shouldering burdens fitting of twice the number of staff many schools have.”

The Dublin South Central TD pointed to warnings by the DCU report, which said the government’s lack of action will only lead to the issue getting worse.

42% of teachers surveyed unlikely to remain in the profession long-term.

Cummins noted that more than 400 teaching posts at second level were unfilled last year, while a further 800 were occupied by teachers not qualified to teach the subject they were delivering.

“Students are receiving subpar standards of education as a result,” she said.

“The Minister for Education should be encouraging new teachers to remain in Ireland after they qualify. That means giving them permanent, full-time jobs on their initial appointment instead of temporary, precarious employment.”

“In January, a particularly concerning report showed that 75 per cent of schools with teacher vacancies received no applications after they advertised the positions.”

“We will continue to lose talented teacher graduates to other countries if the government does not take urgent steps to address the issues underpinning this crisis.”

Cummins stated  “we need to incentivise teaching as a career, which means removing the financial barriers students face while studying. There is also more that could be done to encourage those from diverse backgrounds to enter the profession.”

“Community outreach hubs in north Dublin have enabled dozens of students from working-class backgrounds to gain access to DCU’s primary school teaching programme – initiatives like this one must be expanded.

“Recruitment issues will also persist if the underlying causes of the housing crisis are not addressed by the government, with many teachers unable to afford to live in urban areas.

“It’s past time the Minister steps up and takes action to address the teacher shortage crisis head-on.

“I’m looking forward to meeting the various unions at their respective education conferences in the coming weeks – I’ve no doubt that the issues of stress and burnout will arise and I look forward to exploring effective solutions for schools around the country.”