How school districts and states are trying to attract teachers during the pandemic:
ABC News’ Linsey Davis examines what the future of education may look like after the pandemic ends, and speaks with former Education Secretary John King.When hiring recently for an elementary school teacher position, Superintendent Randy Squier noticed far fewer applicants than his upstate New York school district would normally receive.
"I think everybody is concerned about what we're hearing about the pending teacher shortages, which are very concerning when I think about my grandchildren and the future of public education," said Marty, who has nine grandchildren between the ages of 1 and 13."I worry about the future of our ability to have quality leaders, administrators as well as classroom teachers.
"Districts were eager to reduce class sizes and provide more personalized learning environments and provide all the additional supports that students were going to need coming back into the classroom after more than a year of disrupted learning," Carver-Thomas said.
School districts are finding they have to start their searches earlier, and increase salaries as they compete for a smaller pool of candidates. Some California school districts have focused on streamlining their hiring processes to respond to applicants more quickly amid the competition, said Carver-Thomas, though she noted the issue only highlights the need for states to expand the labor market.
"Dual language teachers and special education teachers are our most difficult teaching positions to fill," Enfield said."So creating a 'grow your own' program was a great way for us to create an ongoing pipeline." "How can we make it easier for them to become certified and get them into the schools and teaching?" he said."We have to do more with filling that pipeline of people who want to become teachers, especially teachers of color and more male teachers."Gabby Pasquinelly, left, who recruits for Reynoldsburg City Schools, interviews a woman during a job fair for substitute teachers in Columbus, Ohio, Oct. 4, 2021.