Teachers in SA: Supply and Demand 2013-2025
- Teachers demand is influenced by various factors, including demographic trends, learner enrolment and learner progression rates.
- These factors were all used in CDE’s model to predict teacher demand from 2013 to 2025. According to the model, the demand for teachers in the system will rise from around 426,000 in 2013 to a maximum of 456,000 in 2023.
- Since 2007 government has successfully launched a number of initiatives to increase the supply of new teacher graduates, including establishing a bursary scheme for teaching students, expanding university capacity to provide initial teaching education (ITE), assigning more funds to ITE provision, improving enrolment planning and increasing the number of universities offering foundation phase programmes.
- Government must be commended for turning around a severe shortage of teacher graduates in 2009, such that it is meeting its targets of new graduates.
- However, much still needs to be done to address the many challenges inherent in the teaching force, including the quality of ITE provision and the teacher shortages in key phases and subjects.