Honored as a global citizen by the United Nations, Rose Padilla Johnson serves as the CEO of Davis Street Community Center in San Leandro, California. One of Rose Padilla Johnson’s concerns is the state’s shortage of teachers.
California has funded several initiatives to alleviate the problem, such as encouraging bilingual teachers, creating a center for teaching careers, and offering credentials to school staff members. Despite these steps, the outlook is still gloomy, with 88% of new hires to fill vacancies.
Shortfalls are the most serious for science, mathematics, and special education teachers. Nearly 75% of school districts could not find enough educators to meet their needs.
To fill the gap, the state has resorted to lowering the qualifications to include provisional interns and teachers given limited assignments, resulting in teachers having to work outside their subject areas. A report from over 100 researchers made three recommendations to improve the situation.
The first of the recommendations is for California lawmakers to relax requirements for extra coursework and testing for out-of-state applicants. Additionally, schools are encouraged to recruit and mentor community members and staff persons who wish to teach locally. Finally, districts are asked to set up scholarships, loan repayments, and offer bonuses for new teachers and those who stay in the system.
