PPTA warns booming rolls and immigration fuelling teacher shortage

PPTA president Chris Abercrombie says the union has struggled for years to get officials to acknowledge there is a shortage of teachers. Photo / 123rf

With classrooms across the country stretched to capacity, the secondary teachers’ union says the Government isn’t facing up to a growing teacher shortage.

The Education Gazette lists 835 vacancies nationwide – up 85% on mid-January’s 450.

That includes 44 principal and senior leadership positions, which includes assistant and deputy principals.

There are 252 vacancies in early childhood education, 254 in primary schools and 266 at secondary level.

Of the 835, 684 are fulltime roles.

Education Minister Erica Stanford told Newstalk ZB that vacancies earlier this year weren’t fulltime roles.

She said the Ministry of Education’s Teacher Demand and Supply report provides a clearer picture of the situation.

The annual forecast released last week shows a surplus of 530 primary teachers this year, but a shortfall of 710 in secondary schools.

The latter figure is up from last year’s estimate of 550.

PPTA president Chris Abercrombie said the union has struggled for years to get officials to acknowledge there is a shortage.

He said Associate Education Minister David Seymour told Parliament a few months ago there were only 31 fulltime teaching vacancies.

“It’s ridiculous that the information is so out of date and wrong,” he said.

“We can’t fix the issue until we actually know what the issue is. And we’ve got a Government who says by 2028 we’ll only need 200 secondary teachers – and [thinks] that’s a good thing.”

Abercrombie said a range of factors contributed to vacancy numbers rising in the middle of Term 1.

“No school I’ve visited recently has had a falling roll. Most are either stable or significantly increasing.

“One school told me they had 25 students arrive at the start of the year unexpectedly, so they weren’t predicted,” he said.

Booming immigration has also led to many schools, particularly in Auckland, hitting or surging above capacity.

Last year, Newstalk ZB revealed 88% of state schools are at or above classroom utilisation rates.

Abercrombie said immigration also significantly impacts rural areas.

“I’ve visited schools where 30% of the student population is Filipino migrant students. It’s awesome but it can add pressure because it is often unexpected arrivals.”

He said more senior students are staying at school because of a lack of employment opportunities and changes to the polytech system, which also affects staffing numbers. Housing developments are another factor.

Abercrombie recalled visiting a school in Auckland experiencing rapid roll growth.

“When I asked why, the principal pointed across the road – a single family home had been replaced with five or six townhouses. So there’s a lot of guesswork from schools to try to manage this space, and sometimes that’s why we have these last-minute appointments being made.”

Jaime Cunningham is a Christchurch-based reporter with a focus on education, social issues and general news. She joined Newstalk ZB in 2023 after working as a sports reporter at the Christchurch Star.