Nearly 50% of children around the world are not able to read with comprehension by the time they finish primary school, and only two-thirds of children move onto secondary school where more than 600 million are still unable to attain proficiency levels. These numbers are alarming. A significant overhaul is needed in how we educate our students to take into consideration the challenges our schools are facing with teacher shortages and no standardised resources available to support our remaining teachers. The world needs to wake up, or else the next generation will crumble in front of our eyes.
We have a real crisis on our hands. There is a shortage of 69 million teachers in the world with students now facing constant disruptions that come with continually merging classes or even turning students away from school due to lack of staff. If we do not fill this gap by 2030, then basic education will be ruined. Teachers are the backbone of our world, however in recent years we have seen a large turnover rate for this profession which has shaken education to its core. Something needs to change now, otherwise our students will continue to feel the effects of this strain on an already fragile system.
The Covid pandemic placed a huge burden on all teachers around the world. With long, strenuous hours and pressure to keep up the same high standards in the classroom, teaching became a heavy burden that made many people lose their desire to continue. At this moment, at least two out of five teachers want to quit teaching altogether and never return, and more than 80% claim that teaching has gotten worse in the last two years. I don't blame them - it has.
Even in one of the most advanced countries in the world, the USA, more than 80% of the public school system is failing its children and killing the American Dream along with it. Here in Australia, while we have seen increased funding and resources over two decades, student outcomes are significantly behind where they were in the early 2000s.
Covid also put many things in perspective. We are now seeing a rise in the number of families that prefer homeschooling for their children. Currently, there are more than 300 million students in homeschooling curriculums, the largest this number has ever been and a stark contrast from only 20 years ago when homeschooling was widely frowned upon. Many parents who have lost faith in the current education system now see homeschooling as a viable option so that they can oversee their kids' education and ensure their safety from bullying and other forms of violence. Some early research has now shown that homeschooled children perform significantly better than children that attend schools.
With trillions of dollars spent every year on education around the world, it appears that the money is going in all the wrong places. There is just not enough spent on developing resources to support our teachers to deal with the new environment our students are facing, and their historically low salaries are not keeping them motivated to do it on their own. However, simply "paying teachers more" will not alleviate this pressure. Most teachers would prefer to get on with the job of teaching and knowing they have made a difference in the lives of their students than to be swamped with low value admin work. While there has been talk of bringing support staff to assist teachers with these tasks in schools, having an additional layer of complexity in terms of managing more staff in an already chaotic system will be something that will take more time away from educating our students.
It goes without saying that our educational system requires a facelift, but it also requires a solid foundation on which educators can rely. A standardised curriculum is essential regardless of the country. Having this helps teachers to accomplish their jobs and go above and beyond, which affects student outcomes. Our next generation requires teachers who can inspire and guide them to accomplish better, but they will not receive this if the system is overwhelming and does not support those who are most important.
There are substantial benefits to employing a standardised curriculum. It provides more than merely support; it also provides structure, guidelines, and consistency, all of which safeguard children's educational experiences and ensure that all students, regardless of where they reside, have comparable school experiences that result in comparable learning outcomes.
We must act quickly or face a dangerous shortage of skilled teachers, which will have long-term consequences for future generations.
About the Author
Thuy Pham is the founder and CEO of Spectrum Tuition, which strives to make high-quality education available to everybody. Thuy has a Bachelor of Teaching and a Bachelor of Arts in Linguistics from the University of Melbourne.
