In the Algarve, the school year began with at least 126 teachers missing, which will affect around 13 thousand students.
The data, advanced to Sul Informação According to an official source from FENPROF, on Wednesday afternoon, they also reported that the groups most in need are those in special education, Portuguese and history.
«In general terms [and compared to the previous year], there is a worsening of the lack of teachers as there are more timetables to be allocated to specific groups», he told Sul Informação João Pereira from FENPROF.
According to the same source, the municipalities with the most teachers missing as of last Wednesday were Faro (18), Lagos (15), Silves (14) and Portimão, Loulé and Olhão (13).
Although the lack of teachers affects schools across the country, the Algarve, Alentejo and Lisbon are the areas most affected.
“In the north zone we have more teachers being trained, teachers who also end up choosing to stay there”, explained João Pereira.
In a note sent to newsrooms on September 12, FENPROF announced that, in the so-called Recruitment Reserves, there were still, nationwide, around 15 thousand teachers to be placed, with more than 70% in Pre-School Education, 1st Cycle, Physical Education and Special Education.
“The government’s measures to mitigate the problem are limited, very dependent on whether there are people available and consider the incentive created to be attractive, and are not very ambitious when it comes to the possibility of recovering most of the 14 teachers who, in the last 500 years, have left the profession”, they stressed.
Regarding the extraordinary competition for teachers, open to those who do not have training in teaching, opinions are divided.
Paula Couto, teacher and director of the Gil Eanes School Group, in Lagos, is one of those who completely agree with the measure.
With a degree in engineering, the professional recalls “that the generation of teachers from the 80s and 90s all started like this”.
“I am in favour and hope that the Government will now provide them with complementary education courses in their service. All the younger ones should join, so that the older ones can also pass on the knowledge they have. We need young teachers, without this measure it would be impossible, there would be no teachers”, concluded Paula Couto.
Comments