Teacher shortage in Uecker-Randow: This is how career changers become teachers!

Teacher shortage in Uecker-Randow: This is how career changers become teachers!

The situation for teachers in the Uecker-Randow region is tense. Almost every school lacks teachers, which has prompted the state education authority in Western Pomerania-Greifswald to take action. At a recent job fair at the Ernst Thälmann Regional School in Eggesin, school representatives and potential applicants gathered to provide information about the teaching profession. Northern Courier reports that Marit Schindler, from the Greifswald school district, emphasized the high demand in the region with a clear appeal to future teachers.

The school in Eggesin is particularly affected, as head teacher Kathleen Krumrück reports. There are currently seven teaching positions vacant here and five more advertised - including subjects such as German, history and mathematics. While applicants with a master's degree in certain subjects, such as biology and chemistry, are preferred, beginners are welcome. “There is no shortage of internships so that applicants can get their first insight into everyday working life,” says Schindler.

The great shortage of teachers in Germany

But the teacher shortage is not a local phenomenon. There is a serious shortage of teachers throughout Germany. Statista shows that in the eastern federal states alone, such as Brandenburg and Saxony-Anhalt, almost 50% of new teachers in 2024 were hired without formal teaching qualifications. Forecasts from the Conference of Ministers of Education and Cultural Affairs (KMK) indicate a shortage of over 17,400 teachers by 2024, and it is not foreseeable that the situation will improve in the near future.

Secondary schools are particularly hard hit. Student numbers are increasing, not least as a result of a baby boom in the 2010s, which predicts an increase of over 9% of the student body by 2035. This leads to a never-ending need for new teachers. There are many reasons for this: for example, closing educational gaps caused by Corona or immigration due to international crises such as the war in Ukraine.

Career changers – a necessary solution?

In order to address this shortage, the training of career changers is becoming increasingly important. In the 2023/24 school year, 10.5 percent of teachers at general education schools are already teaching without a recognized teaching qualification. According to the South German newspaper The proportion of lateral and lateral entrants has almost doubled in the last nine years. It is notable that in some federal states, such as Saxony-Anhalt, over 50% of newly hired teachers are career changers.

This development makes it clear that traditional education is not sufficient to meet the increasing demand. Creative solutions are needed, including relaxing training rules to make it easier to enter the teaching profession, with experts recommending common standards.

It is therefore clear that we all have to work together to find a solution to combat the teacher shortage. Whether in Eggesin or elsewhere – schools need a breath of fresh air and committed educators. The appeal is clear: Anyone who has a good knack for working with children should seize the opportunity!