Press
Release No.2002-67
EMBARGOED UNTIL 00:01 GMT OCTOBER 5
MORE CHILDREN,
FEWER TEACHERS: NEW UNESCO-ILO STUDY SEES GLOBAL TEACHER SHORTAGE
CAUSING DECLINE IN QUALITY EDUCATION
Paris/Geneva, October 5 - Relentless population growth and declining
working conditions are creating a severe shortage of teachers
in the world's classrooms that may lead to a slide in education
standards, according to a new global study by UNESCO and the Geneva-based
International Labour Office.
The study, released on the occasion
of World Teachers' Day (October 5), found that the number of school-aged
children had outpaced the growth in the number of teachers worldwide
in the 1990s, packing classrooms in some developing countries
with as many as 100 students per teacher.
At the same time, the study reveals
that declining working conditions and low salaries in the industrialized
nations are discouraging new recruits to the profession, creating
shortages and threatening to diminish the quality of education
at a time when the need for new knowledge and skills is growing
dramatically.
The Statistical Profile of the
Teaching Profession* is based on the most extensive set of data
ever gathered on teachers. It looks at how many teachers there
are, who they are and what training they have received, their
working conditions and how much their governments invest in them.
It clearly links the status of teachers with the quality of education:
in those countries where teachers enjoy relatively good employment
conditions, education tends to be given high priority and is of
higher quality.
The data show that a concerted
effort has been made in many developing regions, where demand
for more teachers is highest, and where two thirds of the world's
59 million teachers live and work. The number of primary teachers
in these countries increased on average by almost nine percent
between 1990 and 1995. But, the report finds, the population of
primary school-age children there rose by the same amount.
At secondary level, the number
of teachers grew substantially faster than the secondary school
age population in the developing countries (14.3 percent and 6.0
percent respectively). In the Least Developed Countries (LDCs)**
the difference was much less marked (16.4 percent and 13.9 percent).
However, the study notes that almost half (228 million) of the
total youth population of secondary age in these countries was
out of school. As more of these young people get into school,
demand for teachers will increase exponentially.
The ratio of primary pupils to
teachers remains three times higher in the Least Developed Countries
than in developed ones. In countries such as Benin, Central African
Republic, Chad, Congo, Gabon, Malawi, Mali, Mozambique and Senegal,
for example, the study reports an average of more than 50 primary-age
pupils and often as many as 70 for every teacher in the overall
population. These are national averages, which need to be distinguished
from class sizes. The report points out that average values of
the order of 70:1 mean that classes of more than 100 children
are not unusual. This compares with an average of 16 pupils for
every teacher in the member countries of the Organisation for
Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD). Denmark, for example,
counts 10.6 primary pupils for every teacher, Hungary 10.9, Italy
11.3, Luxembourg 12.5 and Norway 12.6.
Developing country teachers tend
to be very young and inexperienced. In many of these nations more
than 30 percent of teachers are under 30 years of age: in Indonesia,
the under 30s account for more than 52 percent of primary school
teachers. Although most teachers have the national academic qualifications
to do their job, these qualifications vary widely, and in many
of the Least Developed Countries the majority of primary teachers
have, at most, a lower secondary qualification, and frequently
no professional training at all. This is the case for almost 50
percent of Uganda's teachers, 40 percent of Togo's teachers and
some 35 percent of teachers in Cape Verde.
The report notes that the number
of women teachers increased throughout the 1990s, but added that
they still remain well under 50 percent of the total in many countries
in sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia, where the presence of more
women teachers could help increase the access of girls to schooling.
In addition, women remain under-represented, often severely, in
educational management positions, providing further evidence that
the "glass ceiling" remains a reality in education.
Developed countries are also facing
a difficult future. The teaching force as a whole is aging, and
governments are battling to attract young people to the profession.
In Germany and Sweden for example, more than 70 percent of primary
teachers are over 40. This means that the majority of teachers
received their initial training 15 to 20 years ago, but the knowledge
and skills needed by students has changed dramatically since then.
The report notes that in-service training is offered in many countries,
but questions its quality and relevance.
Research indicates that low salaries
may be partly responsible for lack of new recruits. In the OECD
countries, for example, a teacher with 15 years experience earns
an average of US$27,525 annually (ranging from a low of US$8,252
in Hungary to a high of US$43,627 in Switzerland), which the report
says is significantly less than equally qualified professionals
in other fields. Nonetheless, this is still several times the
earnings of teachers in developing countries, where salaries fell
steadily throughout the 1990s. In Indonesia, a teacher with 15
years experience earns an average US$2,938 annually, while in
Peru, all teachers, regardless of the level they teach or their
experience, earn little more than US$4,700 a year.
The report analyses the trade-offs
made by governments to maximize the efficiency of their education
systems. In some countries, such as Peru, teachers' low salaries
are partly compensated by a relatively light teaching load of
about 648 hours annually. In the Philippines, teachers are paid
more (about $US 10,640 annually), but work an average of 1,176
hours per year and teach classes of over 50 students.
Juggling these various elements
is obviously a complex task, especially for poor countries. But
getting the balance right is vital for building and maintaining
a professional teaching corps. In 1966, UNESCO and the ILO adopted
the Recommendation Concerning the Status of Teachers, which stresses
the central role of teachers in education and argues that salaries
and conditions should reflect their importance to society.
"The Recommendation is as
relevant as ever," says UNESCO Assistant Director-General
for Education John Daniel. "The teacher shortages we are
beginning to see everywhere have various causes," he adds.
" But a common factor seems to be the diminishing status
of teachers and a concommitant decline in working conditions in
many countries. As a result, we are seeing qualified teachers
quit the profession for other work, and potential recruits looking
upon teaching as a last resort."
"What we are seeing are the
first signs of a looming teaching crisis in the global education
system," says Sally Paxton, ILO Executive Director for Social
Dialogue. "At a time when population changes as well as changing
knowledge and skills needs are placing new demands on schools
and pupils alike, governments and their education partners quickly
need to find a way to open meaningful dialogue with teachers and
their unions to discuss ways to improve the lot of the world's
teachers."
****
*The Statistical Profile of the Teaching Profession draws on information
from various sources including the European Network for Information
in Education (Eurydice), International Labour
Office (ILO), Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development
(OECD). UNESCO's International Bureau of Education (IBE) and its
Institute for Statistics (UIS).
The UIS is preparing a major report quantifying the global teacher
shortfall, which will be released in the first half of next year.
For further information see the UIS internet site at: http://www.uis.unesco.org
** The UNESCO classification of
the least developed countries comprises Afghanistan, Angola,
Bangladesh, Benin, Bhutan, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cambodia, Cape
Verde, Central African Republic, Chad, Cormoros, Democratic Republic
of the Congo, Djibouti, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Ethiopia,
Gambia, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Haiti, Kiribati, Lao People's Democratic
Republic, Lesotho, Liberia, Madagascar, Malawi, Mali, Mauritania,
Mozambique, Myanmar, Nepal, Niger, Rwanda, Samoa, Sao Tome and
Principe, Sierra Leone, Solomon Islands, Somalia, Sudan, Togo,
Tuvalu, Uganda, United Republic of Tanzania,Vanuatu, Yemen and
Zambia.
The complete report, and a joint message for World Teachers' Day
from UNESCO Director-General Koïchiro Matsuura, ILO Director-General
Juan Somavia, UNICEF Executive-Director Carol Bellamy and UNDP
Administrator Mark Malloch Brown are available online at: http://www.unesco.org/education
Contacts
Sue Williams
UNESCO Bureau of Public Information, Editorial Section
Tel: (+33) (0)1 45 68 17 06,
Email: s.williams@unesco.org
Thomas W. Netter
Chief, Media Programmes Section
ILO Department of Communication
Tel: (+41) 22 799 79 73,
Email: netter@ilo.org
A B-roll is available on this subject.
Contact Carole Darmouni
(+33) (0) 1 45 68 17 38/ 54 81
Email: c.darmouni@unesco.org
