Ageing is not the only problem. Many of those who do decide to join the teaching profession leave for other jobs long before reaching retirement age. Governments need to act now to make the profession more attractive. Specific policies affecting financial incentives, working conditions and professional development are needed if serious shortages are to be avoided. It would be unfortunate if the demand for quality in today s school systems and indeed the pressing demands of knowledge-based economies were to be subverted by teacher shortages.
Gender is also an issue here.
In no country is the proportion of women decreasing, and if anything the overall trend is upward. But the overall gender imbalance in the profession translates into what many educators consider an inadequate presence of male role models. This is compounded by the fact that recruitment practices are limited in their scope, perpetuating the predominant presence of women. Improving the status of the profession would attract more men back into education. In fact, this would have the added benefit of encouraging a flow of talent men and women from other professions into teaching, reversing the outflow we see now.