Early June is an optimistic time. Along with the arrival of summer weather, university graduates across the province celebrate their convocations, and look to what the future might hold. With all the recent talk about teaching reductions, graduates from Bachelor of Education programs and other teacher education programs may hear or wonder if there will be teaching positions for them this fall.
Without a doubt, there will be teaching positions for new teacher graduates this fall. A conservative estimate would say that school boards across the province will be hiring at least 800 new teachers. Where does this number come from?
In recent years, there have been about 4,000 teachers leaving the classroom at the end of each school year. About half of these teachers are retiring, while another 1,800 are going on leave of some kind (maternity, medical, study, etc.). A few choose to leave the teaching profession for some other job. School boards across the province must hire teachers to replace those who are leaving, either by hiring new Bachelor of Education graduates from universities in Alberta, or people from outside of the province.
Let's be conservative and say that 3,800 teachers leave this year, and further that all 1,800 teachers who are on leave come back. That means that school boards still have to hire 2,000 teachers. Again, being conservative and taking the highest estimate for teacher reductions (estimates which in the past have proven too high; see the blog post Money Matters), then school boards will not be hiring 1,200 of those positions. School boards are still in a position to have to fill 800 teaching positions (3,800 positions to replace, minus 1,800 teachers returning from leaves, minus 1,200 positions being cut equals 800 newly graduated teachers hired).
It is of course true that if there were more money for education that boards would be hiring more recently graduated teachers. However, it's also worth noting that over the past few years, many boards have had to hire teachers from out of province. About 30 per cent of the teachers hired in recent years have come from outside of Alberta. Boards have had to look outside our borders because they could not find teachers either with the qualifications they needed (particularly French fluency), or because teachers were unwilling to work in rural and remote communities.
A lot of people move because they need a job. That is especially true when you are young without much experience. There are rural communities that desperately need teachers. Not being able to find a teaching job close to where you want to live, and simply not being able to find a teaching job are two different things. Indeed, several years ago, my son moved to La Crete, 700 kilometres north of Edmonton, to take his first teaching job when few were available.
New teacher graduates with particular knowledge and skills--like inclusive practices, French, science and math--will also have an easier time finding positions than those whose knowledge and skills are more generalized. Simply graduating from a teacher education program is not a guarantee of a job. Like any other job, teaching graduates who have an area of specialization that is in demand are most likely to find teaching positions.
It is also true that a handful of boards are not at this time planning to retain some or all of their probationary teachers. The boards that are not retaining any probationary teachers are the exception, not the rule, and in most cases are those that would be reducing their teacher count because of declining enrolments. It's also worth noting that this same concern came up last year, yet many boards were able to place their probationary teachers even before the end of the school year as retirements were confirmed. When enrolments are confirmed in each school in September, it is likely that many of these teachers will have positions. We also should not forget that these positions are probationary for a reason: this year, like every year, some probationary teachers will not be retained because they did not demonstrate knowledge and skills commensurate with Alberta's standards for teaching practice.
With the five-year agreement between the government and the Alberta Teachers' Association coming to an end in August 2012, we expect that there will be a significant spike in teacher retirements next year. Teachers' pensions are based on their highest five years of salary, and given that there is uncertainty about salary increases once the five year agreement ends, it is likely that many more teachers than usual will choose to retire at the end of June 2012. School board hiring of teachers new to the profession or new to Alberta will increase to fill this gap.
As I have said many times before, this is a tough year for education. However, it is utterly false to claim that there will be no teaching positions for new teacher graduates. Hundreds of positions will be available this year as boards hire to fill positions emptied by attrition. In the coming decade, as the Baby Boomers retire and Alberta's school age population swells, the future is bright indeed for teaching graduates.
I graduated from Education at the University of Alberta in 2008, at which time the situation for Alberta teachers (thought not as bad as it is now) was not exactly promising. I took two years in the UK and taught high school English and Media Studies full time.
Because those years were done overseas, obviously they do not affect my Interim Teaching certificate. They do, however, make me a cheaper hire with more experience - something I would think should make me slightly more desirable as a candidate for teaching positions.
Here is the catch. Twice in the last week I have been told that many Alberta school districts are only considering applications from teachers who have had contracts in Alberta this year. So while I have been teaching and have gained experience, my applications are literally (I've been told this) ending up in the waste paper bin because my experience was not local.
I was educated here, I graduated here, and I live here now. I have experience teaching in a tougher environment than many. I have experience period - and you are saying that new Education grads are likely to get jobs next year? How about the rest of us? You say 800 jobs, but it's widely published that 1200 jobs have been cut.
Unemployed teachers would like someone to tell us honestly what our chances are of getting jobs for September. You can speak vague platitudes until you are blue in the face, Mr. Hancock, but that will not get me a job.
Keep at it. We are going to need good teachers. The student population is growing (i think the only jurisdiction in North America that can say that). Some years are tougher than others and require more perseverance. When my son graduated no one was hiring. He took a job the next year in Northern Alberta because that was where the jobs were. If you have the passion and the talent to be a teacher persevere. Right now it looks bleak because boards have not yet heard from all teachers retiring, moving etc. They are being cautious. I do not for a moment believe the predictions of 1200 lost position. I believe we will see probationary and temporary contract teachers placed and then some new hires to fill the remaining spots. It may be less than normal - fewer teachers may retire as a result of the 4.54% Sept 1 increase. One may have to be prepared to go to the job - rural and north tend to have significant turnover and therefore have to look for more replacement teachers. No one can guarantee that you will be hired - that was never part of the bargain - but the future outlook for teachers in Alberta is strong.