Jamaica’s Minister of Education Fayval Williams says 167 teachers have migrated, resigning from their employment in the local school system in the last two months.
The Jamaica Teachers’ Association (JTA) warned the country to brace itself for a teacher exodus this year, citing over 400 teachers who have already departed the island for lucrative job possibilities in the United States.
At a press conference on Monday, Williams explained the grim reality ahead of the new school year. “Of course, we are still getting information from our school principals, and so this number (167) could change as we move towards the end of August and into September. The new school year begins on the 5th of September, and even up to that time, there may be resignations,” Williams said.
She said while the numbers are concerning, the problem is under control, noting that the Ministry has put in place many strategies to alleviate the effects of the mass migration.
Williams also informed that 964 newly graduated specialist teachers are now eligible for work in the national school system.
“Looking at our 2022 teacher training graduates by specialization, I see accounting majors, biology, chemistry teachers, computer science teachers, business education teachers; I see 111 early childhood education teachers. We have some 29 English double majors, we have 140 double mathematics majors, we have some physical education teachers as well,” said Williams.
She added: “We’re seeing primary education teachers, 259 of those, and we’re seeing social studies, Spanish, French for a total of 964 teachers with specialization who would have graduated from our teacher education institutions this year and I am sure many of those would be taking up appointments in our schools.”
Fayval Williams stated that 121 of the 964 instructors now available to enter the government teaching system are bonded for five years after completing their studies through the Ministry’s special scholarship program. They are slated to begin work in the upcoming academic year.
She further revealed that among these teachers are 67 mathematics teachers, 32 teachers of physics and chemistry, and 17 with industrial education specialization.
According to Williams, under the Jamaica/Cuba bilateral program, there are currently 70 teachers available. She said there is a framework agreement with the Cuban government under which they will bring these teachers into the system.
She also stated that only instructors who have retired from January 2018 might be sought out to fill any vacancies caused by migration, in addition to the over 900 teachers who are expected to enter the school system for the 2022 academic year.
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