Low salaries are the main reason for it

Teacher shortages are a growing problem in New Jersey

New Jersey is in dire need of professional teachers.

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Shay Brown is particularly familiar with the teacher shortage in the United States.

About a week into the school year, she learned that her nine-year-old son, who is in a class for students with autism, would not have a full-time teacher because of the acute shortage of teachers at Paterson Public Schools, in New Jersey.

On September 12, Brown resigned from her job as a special education teacher to take a better-paying job at a nearby school;

And she knows her decision will only exacerbate Patterson's teacher shortage problem.

"Being a private educator, I take it very seriously, but I have to take care of my children," says Brown, who earns $59,000 a year.

Her new neighborhood, about two miles away in Prospect Park, pays her an extra $4,500 a year.

"I have to live," says the American teacher.

I have to pay my bills.”

The Paterson area, where a third of its 26,000 students live below the poverty line, had about twice the number of teacher vacancies at the end of the school year in June.

While officials were able to hire about 150 teachers during the summer, the region still suffers from a shortage of specialized teachers.

It started this academic year with 125 teaching positions open, and increased to 137 vacancies with the departure of some teachers.

The teacher shortage is likely to get worse;

Brown's last day will be November 11th.

general problem

The problem is not confined to Paterson, but spreads throughout the United States.

More than half of public school principals reported that their schools remained understaffed during the school year, especially in the field of special education, according to a survey by the US Department of Education published on September 27.

But, like so many things in America, this problem does not affect all schools equally.

Several teachers told TIME that they left Paterson for school districts that could pay them better and provide more resources.

And at least one survey found that schools in lower-income areas were more likely to have job vacancies. No homework

Meanwhile, the students suffer the consequences.

At East Side High School in Patterson, nearly 600 students are currently enrolled in science classes, which lack a full-time teacher, and the school is trying to fill five science teacher vacancies.

A spokesperson for the school district said the school's science superintendent had uploaded lessons and assignments for these students through a virtual learning platform.

Some students do not have a science teacher at all, and work on school hall assignments “under staff supervision.”

In addition to paying existing employees extra money to cover vacant classes, the district says it will soon begin paying teachers, to fill the gap in classes without permanent teachers.

A month into her senior year at JFK High School in Paterson, 17-year-old Abriani Lima has a permanent gym and English teachers;

It also has substitute teachers in three other subjects.

Lima says she has not received homework this year, while a spokesperson for the school district said that in classrooms without permanent teachers, assignments and assignments for her students are posted online daily.

"Last year was difficult for me," Lima says. "In fact, we haven't studied at school for nearly two years, and sometimes I don't feel like going, because there's no point in going if there are no teachers."

A source of concern

That is exactly what worries Brown, a teacher at Patterson, who fears her son will fall behind in writing and math without a certified special education teacher.

The epidemic has led to a significant drop in academic achievement, the lowest in the past 50 years, and widened the achievement gap between black and white students.

While schools try to help students catch up, their solutions include small group instruction and one-on-one tutoring, which are nearly impossible to deliver when schools don't have enough teachers.

"There are learning gaps," Brown says.

We are still suffering from the consequences of (Corona)," she explained, "With the vacancies, I now feel that we will never be able to catch up."

unequal problem

While surveys throughout the pandemic have indicated an imminent exodus of teachers, this has not materialized.

Some experts note that many school districts are using federal funds to hire more teachers and staff than before the pandemic.

The researchers found at least 36,000 teaching positions vacant across the country, and at least 163,000 positions filled by unqualified teachers, according to a working paper published by the Annenberg Institute in August.

The institute's analysis shows that the problem varies widely by state.

Mississippi, for example, has about 68 job openings for every 10,000 students.

New Jersey, a state that is home to some of America's richest communities, has just one job vacancy for every 10,000 students, based on data from the 2021-2022 school year.

slap in the face

 Shay Brown has moved on to another job with a higher salary.

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JFK High School English teacher Jess Katz describes the new teacher reward as a "slap in the face" for teachers who worked in the area during the height of the pandemic.

Katz finally quit, to move to another district with better wages and more school resources, including a theater program she says JFK doesn't offer.

The new school has no vacancies for teachers, which means Katz will be able to focus on her classes, without having to cover for missing colleagues.

Once she leaves in November, she says, there will be only two junior English teachers left at her school, down from four.

A spokesperson for the school district said some classes had been merged to make up for those resignations, adding that all classes would be covered by someone certified to teach English.

Better Resources

 New Jersey is in dire need of professional teachers.

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Public school funding in the United States is largely dependent on property taxes.

As a result, districts serving more affluent white students tend to have better resources than those serving lower-income students and students of color.

This is partly why areas with extreme poverty, due to a lack of money to increase the number of teachers and other resources, are likely to suffer from a teacher shortage today.

“Even if we do cover classes, it's not like having your own tutor,” says Patterson School Principal Elaine Schaeffer, adding that the district often handled job vacancies and was usually able to fill positions before September.

In Paterson, where 60% of students are Hispanic and 25% are black, two-thirds of students are economically disadvantaged, according to New Jersey data, where government funding does not bridge the local funding gap in poor school districts;

Although the city of Paterson has been negotiating contracts for employment with the teachers' union, which is demanding higher hiring and regular increases.

And while teachers have long raised concerns about being underpaid, the pay gap between teachers and other professions has only worsened over time.

In 2021, teachers earned 23.5% less than other college graduates, with a similar level of education, a record number since 1996, according to the Economic Policy Institute.

In an effort to fill vacancies, Paterson Public Schools evaluates job candidates each month, and plans to prioritize hiring for new college graduates in December and May each year.

The district, too, offers a reward of $7,500 to teachers who sign a two-year contract.

Teacher Mobility

 Students in American schools did not get enough education during the pandemic.

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Some areas are struggling more acutely;

Schools serving more students of color, and schools in extremely poor neighborhoods, reported a higher percentage of teacher vacancies;

Compared to schools that serve predominantly white students, schools are in more affluent areas, according to a January survey by the Department of Education.

Even before the pandemic, high-poverty schools had about twice the teacher turnover rate in low-poverty schools.

The problem of teacher shortages is not limited to Paterson, but spreads throughout the United States.

The “Covid-19” epidemic has led to a significant drop in educational achievement, the lowest in the past 50 years.

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Teaching job vacancy across the United States.

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