"It's almost every day..."
"It can go bankrupt at any time
."
When NHK investigated the actual situation, it was found that there was a shortage of 2,800 people as of May this year.
It has increased by 36% from last year's survey results conducted by the government based on the same criteria, and it is becoming more serious, and it is affecting children's learning.
why not enough?
what's going on at school?
The reality of teachers has come into view.
(A list by municipality is posted at the end of the article.)
"Academic Affairs Chief" is also "homeroom teacher"!
?
At Kogasaki Elementary School in Matsudo City, Chiba Prefecture, there were supposed to be 26 teachers, but the new semester started with three vacancies.
For this reason, the "teacher", who was originally supposed to not have a homeroom teacher, also serves as the homeroom teacher of the class, and is busy with the work of two people.
Mr. Hideaki Tanaka, the "Chief of Education".
Originally, my job is to think about the curriculum for the entire school without having a homeroom teacher.
However, he is also the homeroom teacher of the 3rd grade class in place of the teacher who is on maternity leave.
In the middle of last month (July), I was able to get a close look at Mr. Tanaka's day.
Mr. Tanaka's long day
7:30 in the morning.
When I go to work, I start working as a homeroom teacher.
As soon as I checked the kanji homework, I found that there were three children who had forgotten their parental consent cards, which are necessary for the pool class, so I called each family.
On this day, Mr. Tanaka taught his homeroom class from morning to afternoon.
The school affairs chief is responsible for class planning and progress confirmation for all grades, as well as guidance and training for young teachers, so there are limits to being a homeroom teacher.
Therefore, while Mr. Tanaka was in charge of the class, the principal and vice-principal took over some of the work, and the principal watched the new homeroom teacher's classes and gave them advice.
On the other hand, Mr. Tanaka finished the class.
When the children leave school around 2:30 p.m., I start working as the "Chief of Education".
First of all, we will hold a meeting with the nutrition teacher to discuss the school lunch menu for September.
After that, I entered into a meeting with the 5th grade homeroom teachers about the summer vacation camp school.
When I returned to the staff room before 5:00 p.m., there were four message notes from other teachers that had accumulated during my absence, and I was busy processing them for a while.
Furthermore, on that day, the vice-principal became infected with the new coronavirus and took a day off, so when he received a phone call from a parent saying that his child was infected, he contacted the homeroom teacher instead of the vice-principal, prepared documents, and reported to the board of education. I was going
By the time I finished preparing materials for the staff meeting, creating a summer vacation schedule, and distributing notices from the board of education, it was 8:40 pm.
After that, they return to their homeroom duties and complete the kanji drills.
It was past 11:00 p.m. when I checked that the school was closed and locked the staff room.
Mr. Tanaka had this to say.
“Every day is barely there, and as a homeroom teacher, I am only able to do about 70% to 80%, and as a dean, I am able to do about 50% to 60%. I need someone of my own. I don't have time to research teaching materials, and I want time to think about lessons that suit my children.If there were to be one less person, I think the school wouldn't be able to run."
Since I started working concurrently as the head teacher and homeroom teacher, overtime hours in April exceeded 90 hours, and in May, I exceeded 80 hours, which is considered to be the "death from overwork" line.
Teacher shortage nationwide 2,800 people, a serious increase of 36% from last year
Regarding the shortage of teachers, the first survey conducted by the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology revealed a shortage of 2,065 teachers as of May last year. We surveyed 68 boards of education nationwide, including designated cities, using the same standards as the national government.
As a result, as of May this year, it was found that there was a shortage of 2,800 people, including ▽ 1487 elementary school students, ▽ 778 junior high school students, ▽ 214 high school students, and ▽ 321 special needs schools.
735 people, a 36% increase from last year's survey results in the country.
As far as we know, 32 boards of education responded that there are cases where there are not enough homeroom teachers at elementary schools, and at least 12 of these are cases where managers such as principals and vice-principals are in charge of teachers instead. I answered that there is
Already became the third homeroom teacher in half a year
At Furugasaki Elementary School, the effects of the lack of teachers have begun to appear on the children.
Due to the vacancy of three students, the homeroom teacher was not decided at the beginning of the new school year.
In early June, a full-time teacher was transferred to assist a school with a shortage of teachers.
My name is Miyuki Kasahara.
Kasahara, who became the homeroom teacher of class 2 and 3, was popular with her children for her meticulous guidance, and it is said that she built a relationship with her children in about a month.
However, in the middle of last month, a new part-time teacher who could work full time was found, so from August, Mr. Kasahara will be transferred to another elementary school where there is a shortage of teachers.
At the grade assembly, when the principal announced that Mr. Kasahara would be transferred and that a new teacher would come from the second semester, some students were so surprised that they burst into tears.
Mr. Kasahara
: “I myself am lonely and I don’t want to leave, and I think it would be better for the children to have the same teacher for a year. I hope that I can build a relationship of trust with the children for the remaining three days so that I won't have any regrets."
Principal Masashi Takaya : "
I think the most difficult thing for the children is that the homeroom teachers keep changing. In addition, in half a year, I will already be the third homeroom teacher, so I am very worried that the parents will also distrust the school. Due to the shortage of teachers, there is no free time, and I have to do other people's work, so I have no time to spare.
Impact on dealing with bullying and school refusal children
According to a survey conducted by NHK, 11 boards of education answered that the lack of teachers was having some kind of impact on children's classes and activities, dealing with bullying and school truancy47. Together, they make up 85% of the total.
Specifically,
“classes in subjects for which there are no teachers are postponed until teachers can secure them,”
“less opportunities to learn professionally are lost due to teachers teaching outside the subject,” and
“special consideration is required .”
We can't respond to children's emergencies
. "
Regarding the working style of teachers, 29 boards of education answered that they were "affected," and almost all of the rest answered that they "may be affected."
The impact on children's learning due to the lack of teachers has become a serious issue, including the lack of time to study teaching materials and face children.
Why?
What is the factor?
When asked about the main factors behind the "shortage of teachers" with multiple answers,
88% of the respondents answered that "the number of people who wish to become teachers temporarily when there is a shortage has decreased." 59% said, "The number of special needs classes increased more than expected," followed by "The number of teachers taking maternity leave and childcare leave increased more than expected," 53%, and "The number of teachers taking sick leave increased more than expected." 43% answered that
Analysis Ask an Expert
We asked Professor Aki Sakuma of Keio University, who is familiar with the problem of teacher shortages, about the results of this survey.
Q How do you accept the results?
“It has become clear that the shortage of teachers has become more serious than last year, but if no measures are taken, it is highly likely that it will become even more serious next year and the year after that. This is a very serious situation that could be said to have fundamentally shaken the education system that has continued as a matter of course.”
Q Why is there a shortage of teachers?
What is the background?
“The number of regular teachers has been reduced, and the number of non-regular teachers has been depleted, resulting in a labor shortage. Work style reform is also important to increase the number of people, but there is a limit to how much effort can be made in the field, and fundamentally the amount of work cannot be reduced unless the number of workers is increased.”
QWhat should we do?
“It is important for the national government to provide financial support so that local governments can develop plans to increase the number of regular teachers over the long term. Local governments need to work together.”
What I want from my country is...
In fact, the local governments we surveyed raised the following requests to the government as countermeasures.
First of all, there were many local governments that improved their treatment without overtime allowance in exchange for an additional 4% of their monthly salary under the "Special Pay Law".
In addition, we will increase the number of staff in anticipation of an increase in vacancies in the middle of the year, increase the number of staff who support the work of teachers, and improve the salaries of reappointed teachers. budget increase for
In addition, there was an opinion that "I want you to increase the number of undergraduates at universities where you can get a teacher's license."
Efforts of local governments to explore
The search for ways to deal with the shortage of teachers continued in various places.
<Kumamoto City>
We are trying to increase the number of applicants by conducting training on how to use ICT equipment for temporary teachers and part-time instructors.
<Tokyo>
Although the lack of teachers in this survey combined with the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology was zero, as of the beginning of April, about 50 public elementary schools had a shortage of teachers. We are recruiting temporary teachers by posting job advertisements on information service websites.
<Yamanashi Prefecture>
We created a system to subsidize part of the repayment of university scholarships, etc., on the condition that they work as teachers at public elementary schools in the prefecture, and started recruiting last year.
The person in charge said, "I want more students to want to become teachers in Yamanashi Prefecture."
last resort!
What is a paper teacher course?
Some prefectures are seeking to secure teachers with teaching licenses in order to address the serious shortage of teachers.
In Kanagawa Prefecture, where the shortage of teachers as of May was 145, which was 1.7 times higher than last year, the "Paper Teacher Training Course" was held in May last year to discover human resources who have a teacher's license but are away from the site. I started with
After communicating the latest situation at the school and how to proceed with classes, people who want to work temporarily when there is a shortage of teachers are registered in the prefectural list, and since the opening of the course, 190 people It is said that 12 people who have taken the course have already been hired as temporary teachers.
The effect is...
One of them, Tomoharu Kawasaki (48), who teaches Japanese at Yokohama Nanryo High School, has been working as a cram school teacher for 24 years, but he said he was worried about becoming a school teacher.
However, in addition to learning the state of the latest school classes that make students discuss and think among themselves in the course, he also learned about the procedures for working at a school until he took the employment examination for a regular teacher, and as a high school teacher. He said he decided to work.
From April this year, instead of teachers who have taken a break, in addition to regular Japanese language classes, they also serve as advisors for club activities, and also play the same role as regular teachers, such as teaching during the summer vacation.
Mr. Kawasaki said, "Although I got my teacher's license, it was 24 years ago, so I don't know what the license is like now, and I didn't know the style of high school classes at all. I don't think I've been teaching at high school since April.I want to give back to my students as much as possible from my experience so far and give them exciting classes."
On the other hand, although the board of education has realized the effect, it is said that there is a limit to the efforts of local governments alone to deal with the shortage of teachers.
Naoki Hajika, head of the Kanagawa Prefectural Board of Education's Teacher Personnel Division, said, "Although it has helped alleviate the shortage of teachers, the shortage of teachers is becoming more severe year by year, and I don't think that this course alone can solve all the problems. It is necessary to prepare a working environment so that we can focus on the work, and I would like to request the government to improve the fixed number of teachers and improve their treatment."
Number of teachers shortage List by municipality
As of May 1, 68 boards of education, including prefectures and ordinance-designated cities, responded to the number of teachers who are short of public elementary schools, junior high schools, high schools, and special needs schools as of May 1st.
*The numbers in parentheses are the responses as of May 1, 2018 to the survey by the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology.
▼Hokkaido has 53 (42)
▽Sapporo has 49 (28), for a total of 102 (70).
▼Aomori Prefecture has 58 (19),
▼Iwate Prefecture has 23 (4),
▼Miyagi Prefecture has 32 (29)
, and ▽Sendai City has 14 (15), for a total of 46 (44).
▼Akita Prefecture has 24 (19),
▼Yamagata has 11 (0),
▼Fukushima has 144 (86).
▼115 in Ibaraki (126),
▼18 in Tochigi (35),
▼21 in Gunma (4),
▼87 in Saitama (112),
▽5 in Saitama City (1) A total of 92 people (113).
▼ 201 people (135) in Chiba Prefecture,
▽ 206 people (137) when combined with 5 people (2) in Chiba City.
▼ The Tokyo Metropolitan Government said, ``The total number is 0 when calculating the total number using the survey method presented, but we understand that there is a shortage of teachers mainly in some elementary schools.'' Answered (0).
▼ Kanagawa Prefecture has 145 people (85),
▽ 24 people (22) in Yokohama City , ▽
45 people (13) in Kawasaki City,
▽ 11 people (14) in Sagamihara City, 225 people (134).
▼ Niigata Prefecture has 17 people (2),
▽ 21 people (8) when combined with 4 people (6) in Niigata City.
▼7 in Toyama (17)
▼25 in Ishikawa (4)
▼12 in Fukui (14)
▼15 in Yamanashi (2)
▼18 in Nagano (8)
▼ Gifu Prefecture has 33 people (27),
▼ Shizuoka Prefecture has 55 people (34),
▽ Shizuoka City has 22 people (4),
▽ Hamamatsu City has 0 people (3), for a total of 77 people (41).
▼Aichi Prefecture has 183 (125),
▽Nagoya City has 0 (0).
▼Mie Prefecture has 25 (13),
▼Shiga Prefecture has 38 (15),
▼Kyoto Prefecture has 35 (28), and
▽Kyoto City has 4 (13), for a total of 39 (41).
▼ Osaka Prefecture has 64 people (115),
▽ Osaka City has 1 person (0),
▽ Sakai City has 12 people (15),
▽ Osaka Prefecture Toyono District Teachers Personnel Council has 26 people (10), for a total of 103. Person (140).
▼Hyogo Prefecture has 114 (86), and
▽Kobe City has 26 (2), for a total of 140 (88).
▼ 47 people (23) in Nara Prefecture,
▼ 7 people (0) in Wakayama Prefecture.
▼ Tottori Prefecture has 65 (31),
▼ Shimane Prefecture has 112 (65),
▼ Okayama Prefecture has 5 (6),
▽ Okayama City has 15 (2), for a total of 20 (8).
▼Hiroshima Prefecture has 0 (16),
▽Hiroshima City has 1 (6).
▼ Yamaguchi Prefecture has 54 (8).
▼8 in Tokushima (9),
▼7 in Kagawa (10),
▼30 in Ehime (39),
▼5 in Kochi (5),
▼228 in Fukuoka (132)
▽ 1 person (21) in Fukuoka City and
▽ 23 people (7) in Kitakyushu City total 252 people (160).
▼Saga Prefecture has 48 (31),
▼Nagasaki Prefecture has 21 (88),
▼Kumamoto Prefecture has 97 (128),
▽Kumamoto City has 34 (7), for a total of 131 (135).
▼Oita Prefecture has 42 (37),
▼Miyazaki has 25 (8),
▼Kagoshima has 56 (31),
▼Okinawa has 48 (21).
These numbers are calculated based on the method of the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology's survey last year, so they may differ from the numbers announced independently by each local government.
*Numbers less than 0 are rounded off.