Strong economy woos teachers out of the classroom

Teacher training courses are attracting fewer recruits Keystone Archive

Swiss schools are facing a growing shortage of teachers as both working teachers and potential recruits seek better economic opportunities elsewhere.

The Association of Swiss Teachers said the full scale of the problem would not be known for some weeks because teaching contracts were currently up for renewal in a number of cantons.

What is clear is that new recruits to the profession are dwindling. In canton Bern, for example, teacher training courses have only managed to fill 269 of the 760 places available this year.

In canton Aargau, the problem is so acute that the local authorities have been forced to recruit teachers from southern Germany.

A recent conference of cantonal education directors said it was not unusual for teachers to be attracted to other careers when the economy was booming. They said higher salaries and more opportunities for personal development outside teaching were convincing many to make the move.

Heinz Weber of the teachers’ association said the problem highlighted the need to improve pay and working conditions for teachers. He said his organisation was campaigning for a fairer deal for teachers with the slogan “a good salary for a good job”.

The association said it would like to see a high profile campaign to improve the image of teaching in order to attract new people to the profession.

Observers say the shortage may make the cantons turn to former or retired teachers to bridge the gap in the short term.

swissinfo with agencies