As we look to the second half of the school year, the Star explores how staffing levels impact classrooms in a two-part series. This part focuses on teachers and the next part聽focuses on educational assistants, which are the categories with the most significant challenges.聽
Up until mid-December, Rachel Birenbaum鈥檚 daughter had no permanent teacher in her Grade 3-4 French Immersion class. Instead, there was often a revolving door of English-speaking substitutes, and kids regularly played computer games such as Minecraft and Prodigy.
Now Birenbaum hopes a newly assigned teacher ushers in a fresh start for her daughter, who along with other students across the province is preparing to return to school Monday聽after the winter holiday.
鈥淚 can鈥檛 even think about what will happen in January if this teacher doesn鈥檛 succeed,鈥 said the 海角社区官网mom, whose child attends a public school in the west end.聽Some parents there are still a little uneasy, hoping nothing聽unforeseen happens聽in the first days back to school聽that sets them back again.
On top of concerns about missed curriculum and learning gaps, Birenbaum says not having a regular teacher resulted in kids with special needs聽falling through the cracks and聽not getting the necessary supports聽鈥 including her daughter who requires literacy help.
鈥淲e need our basic public institutions, especially something as foundational as a school, to be staffed appropriately and to function at a reasonable standard,鈥 she said, adding some kids in the class have had roughly 10 teachers, and a string of occasionals, in three years.
Across the province, principals are sounding the alarm about daily staffing challenges in all employee groups, including teachers and educational assistants who help students with special needs.
Last November, the聽, which represents 5,400 principals and vice-principals in public schools, issued a statement saying: 鈥淭he crisis must be addressed immediately鈥澛犫 concerns echoed by organizations representing Catholic and聽听补诲尘颈苍颈蝉迟谤补迟辞谤蝉.
鈥淪taff shortages have a negative impact on student learning, safety and engagement, and have led to an increase in mental health issues, stress, burnout and illness for staff,鈥 it reads.聽
Since then,聽Ontario Principals’ Council President Ralph Nigro says the situation has become more dire. By December school administrators were grappling with increased staff absences due to illness and thinning resources because retired teachers allowed to work 50 days without it affecting their pension were starting to hit their cap.
Easing the pressure
Staffing woes have been an issue in recent years, particularly during the pandemic, but the situation has worsened in some smaller school boards, Nigro told the Star. Shortages, he says, stem from insufficient staff allocations, vacancies that surface, and not having enough replacements to fill leaves and absences. Some boards can鈥檛 find qualified candidates, some can鈥檛 attract applicants to rural communities, and some say the pay for certain jobs is too low.
When a position isn鈥檛 covered, administrators scramble. It could lead to classes being cancelled or combined; teachers and educational assistants getting reassigned; students dealing with a rotation of substitutes; and unqualified parents and community members volunteering to supervise.
The Ministry of Education is trying to ease the pressure. Last year, about 3,000 educational assistants were hired, and this year more than 2,000 teachers added. It also created a new certificate so students in teacher education programs can work as substitutes; is speeding up certification for internationally educated teachers; and is co-leading a working group with stakeholders to tackle the teacher shortage. To address the French teacher shortage it has launched a four-year plan, and the聽.
鈥淥ur government continues to use innovative methods to streamline the hiring of teachers across the province to support students in getting back to basics on what matters most: reading, writing and literacy skills,” said Isha Chaudhuri, spokesperson for Education Minister Stephen Lecce.
And while the recent contract between the province and the public elementary teachers鈥 union includes hiring about 400 teacher specialists for reading, the Ontario Principals’ Council says that won’t make much of a difference in the daily staffing shortages in thousands of schools, nor address the need for more educational assistants.
Taking on extra duties
An Ontario Principals’ Council survey in the fall of about 1,000 administrators revealed more than half struggled with unfilled jobs multiple times per week and had more unfilled jobs than in early 2023. Nearly 80 per cent said teacher shortages, unfilled teacher absences and support staff absences, were as bad or worse than last year.
Nigro says most elementary school principals and vice-principals take on extra duties during the day, such as being a supply teacher, an educational assistant or lunchroom supervisor. That takes a toll, he says, noting long term disability claims by administrators in public boards have risen more than 500 per cent since the end of 2019. And he notes that across the province a lack of administrators may worsen since there’s a “noticeable decrease” in teachers wanting to become school leaders because of the associated stress.
Among Catholic administrators there has been a 250 per cent increase in mental health claims over the last year, says Michael MacPherson, president of the Catholic Principals鈥 Council of Ontario, representing 2,100 members. He attributes that to 鈥渟tress, shortages, workload, and principals having to take on other people鈥檚 jobs during the day.鈥
Cathy Abraham, president of the Ontario Public School Boards鈥 Association representing English public boards, says, 鈥淲e鈥檙e doing as much as we can to find ways to come up with short-term and long-term solutions鈥 to staffing challenges.
鈥淓very administration, and teacher, recognizes the importance of having a consistent person in front of the classroom,鈥 she said. 鈥淐ontinuity ... really matters.鈥澛
Cancelled classes
Rachel Chernos Lin, chair of the 海角社区官网District School Board, the county鈥檚 largest with 235,000 students, says staffing issues are a 鈥渟ignificant concern.鈥 And a 鈥渧ery generous sick leave policy鈥 means 鈥渢he other challenge is that we spend an awful lot of money replacing people.鈥
In Ontario, permanent staff 鈥 including administrators, teachers and education workers 鈥 are entitled to 11 sick days at full pay, and 120 days of short-term leave at 90 per cent of their salary. (A provincial task force will examine sick leave data and teacher absenteeism.)
Unfilled positions kick-start a cascading chain of events. Students miss out on curriculum; administrators may need to supervise classes; and teachers get reassigned, losing out on preparation time, which is when they create activities, mark tests and contact parents.聽
Helen Victoros, president of the Elementary Teachers of Toronto, says it鈥檚 鈥渢errible鈥 when teachers who support special education or English language learners have to cancel classes and be reassigned, because it impacts 鈥渟ome of our most vulnerable students.鈥 鈥淓verybody is just scrambling to try and make do with diminishing supports and resources,鈥 says Victoros, whose local chapter represents 11,000 public-school teachers.
The TDSB says a key聽challenge is when supply teachers 鈥 the board has a full roster 鈥 don鈥檛 pick up available jobs. This happens for various reasons, including someone who doesn鈥檛 want to be at a particular school or isn鈥檛 available because they鈥檙e working at another board.
Helen Victoros, president of the Elementary Teachers of Toronto, whose local chapter represents 11,000 public-school teachers, says staff are聽“scrambling to try and make do with diminishing supports and resources.鈥澛
Isabel TeotonioCoverage for absent teachers between September and early November was on average 91 per cent for elementary and secondary teachers, compared with 96 and 99 per cent, respectively, during the same period in 2018. Still, it鈥檚 better than the聽historic lows during the pandemic聽with percentages in the 70s, and聽last spring when they were in the 80s, prompting the board to redeploy about 100 central staff and hire an extra 235 supply teachers.
鈥淲e鈥檙e actively working on how we can increase those fill rates to ensure that jobs are covered,鈥 said a board spokesperson.
In the York Region District School Board, which has 128,000 students, average coverage in mid-December for elementary and secondary teachers was 96 and 90 per cent, respectively. It started with a full roster of supply teachers in September, but some were hired into long-term occasional and permanent positions, so it鈥檚 looking for replacements.
And even though the Peel District School Board, which has 153,000 students, hired 470 substitute teachers in the past year, there鈥檚 鈥渓imited supply鈥 because many also work for other boards.聽 There, coverage聽from the start of the school year to聽early December聽has聽ranged,聽at times as high as 98聽and low as聽83 per cent for elementary teachers, and 96聽and聽69 per cent for high school teachers.聽The board says it鈥檚 making every effort to hire teachers and has participated in university hiring fairs聽and recruited new teacher graduates.
While teacher shortages are occurring nationally and internationally,聽聽attributes the shortage in the province to an increase in annual retirements, pandemic disruptions prompting some to quit, enrolment growth in some regions and fewer certifications. (After a decade-long teacher surplus,聽聽to two years and cut enrolment. In 2022, there were about 4,500 admissions to teachers鈥 colleges, compared with 6,300 in 2014.)
鈥淥ntario population growth, along with teacher retirements in the years ahead, may worsen shortages in many regions of the province,鈥 it reads.
Searching for solutions
Organizations representing administrators are in talks with the province and have made recommendations. For instance, they suggest minimizing the time between hiring and onboarding staff, returning to a one-year certification program for teachers and increasing student enrolment. Also, allowing retired educators to work as substitutes for 95 days in an instructional year up from 50 鈥 this was temporarily allowed during the pandemic, but ended in June.
Chaudhuri, the minister鈥檚 spokesperson, said 鈥渆xtending the number of days retired educators can work is a positive intervention.鈥
To boost the number of qualified teachers, starting Jan. 1 the Ontario College of Teachers cut application processing times for internationally educated teachers from 120 to within 60 business days. And to address short-term needs, a new聽聽was launched in August, allowing eligible students in teacher education programs to work in schools while finishing their program. (In 2021 and 2022, the province introduced a similar certificate, but it was a temporary emergency measure.)
The province has also launched聽聽and this academic year an extra 40 teacher education spaces at the Universit茅 de l鈥橭ntario Fran莽ais and 70 at the University of Ottawa were funded. (The province has added 780 French and English language teacher education spaces since 2021.)
Meanwhile, the province and the Ontario Teachers’ Federation are co-leading a working group with education stakeholders on improving recruitment and retention for occasional and permanent teachers. The plan is to implement solutions this academic year.
Patrick Daly, president of the Ontario Catholic School Trustees鈥 Association, representing English Catholic school boards, says the ministry has been 鈥渧ery, very open鈥 to suggestions.
鈥淣o one can just wave a wand, and this will be solved,鈥 said Daly. 鈥淭hese are very complex issues. But I know that everyone, for sure, is searching for solutions.鈥
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