Again, this probably isn’t news to anyone who has been paying attention to the trends. But here it is. -George
From: imte-bounces AT lists.mste.illinois.edu [mailto:imte-bounces AT lists.mste.illinois.edu]
On Behalf Of Jerry Becker
Sent: Thursday, January 21, 2016 4:40 PM
To: JERRY-P-BECKER-ICT-L AT LISTSERV.SIU.EDU
Subject: [IMTE] Profession in Decline - teacher shortage in IL
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From The Southern Illinoisan, Saturday, January 16, 2016, See
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Profession in Decline - teacher shortage in Illinois
A new survey has all but confirmed a trend that many educators long have suspected: Illinois is in the midst of a teacher shortage.
According to the survey, conducted this past fall by the Illinois Association of Regional Superintendents of Schools, 76 percent of Illinois districts saw fewer qualified candidates applying for positions in their districts during 2015.
District administrators said openings in special education, math and science have been particularly tough to fill. High school districts and unit districts (those that serve students in all grades) had the most difficulty filling spots.
The problem was more pronounced in west and northwest Illinois - and in rural Illinois generally, wherein 83 percent of districts reported fewer qualified applicants. In rural districts, 51 percent of administrators also reported their candidates were "worse"
than previous years.
In Southern Illinois, some administrators said the problem already has impacted programs they can offer students, while others said its impact is likely to be felt a few years down the road.
Steve Webb, superintendent of rural Goreville Community Unit School District 1 in Johnson County, said a shortage of applicants already has led him to cancel the district's Spanish program, opting instead to utilize a distance-learning foreign language program
through Kansas State University.
"If you have a position open in a rural area where your population is already very sparse © you're going to get very few applications for that," Webb said. "And even if you do get one or two applications, typically they're coming from a large area. As soon
as they get a job back in that area, they're going to be gone."
Having fewer students also means teachers often have to pull double duty, teaching not only chemistry, for example, but also physics or even math. Webb, whose K-12 district logged 626 students during 2014-15, said he's dreading the day, three years down the
road, when one of his high school science teachers retires.
"It's just becoming more and more difficult," he said, adding that teachers with endorsements in multiple specialty areas are especially hard to come by.
In Herrin, Superintendent Mark Collins said applications definitely have fallen off in the past couple years. Where once he might have received 150-200 applications for elementary teaching positions, he now receives 20-25. The decrease hasn't impacted programs
yet, but it has the potential to be "devastating," he said.
"It's going to hit hard four or five years down the road," Collins said.
Chris Grode, superintendent at Murphysboro Community Unit School District 186, said he hasn't had difficulty filling positions. The proximity of Southern Illinois University has helped, he said.
Causes and Solutions: 'We're Burning Them Out'
The survey's authors cited a number of reasons teachers are in short supply, including decreased enrollment in teacher-education programs and roadblocks in out-of-state teachers meeting Illinois licensure standards.
Between 2005 and 2014, enrollment in SIU's College of Education and Human Services decreased by 31.7 percent, from 3,956 students to 2,702.
The college has been sending fewer and fewer student teachers to local districts, too.
But the teacher-shortage trend also has been noted nationwide, and Illinois educators said at the heart of the problem is a widespread decline in interest in the profession.
Reliance on standardized testing combined with low pay and enhanced accountability measures have left teachers feeling disillusioned. According to studies, anywhere between 17 and 50 percent of teachers leave the profession within the first five years.
"We're demanding so much of our teachers today," Collins said. "I hate to say it, but we're burning them out. We're asking more and more of them and giving them less and less pay."
Collins said he and other educators do their best to encourage their own students to enter the field, but that's becoming more and more difficult.
"There's no carrot I can dangle in front of them to persuade them that, 'Education is right for you,'" he said.
The problem is compounded by the fact that in Illinois, teacher licensure has become a more difficult - and expensive proposition.
A licensure test now includes a student-teaching video requirement. The passing score for a separate entrance test just increased. The teacher-licensure process includes multiple fees along the way.
Nancy Mundschenk, director of teacher education at SIU, said while those fees may impact recruitment, they aren't driving the teacher shortage.
What will help solve the problem, she said, is changing the way educators talk about teaching.
"It's about shifting the narrative to: 'You will change lives as a teacher. Let us help you learn and develop the skills with which you can do that.'"
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Jerry P. Becker
Department of Curriculum & Instruction
College of Education and Human Services
Southern Illinois University Carbondale
625 Wham Drive / MC 4610
Carbondale, Illinois 62901
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