アメリカにおける教員不足問題と教育行政の対応

抄録

The purpose of this paper is to use the American state of Wisconsin as an example to examine responses to the problem of teacher shortages by the state education administration.

The teacher shortage has been reported in Wisconsin using the number of emergency licenses issued as an indicator, and from 2011 to 2021, the number of emergency licenses issued has tripled, and the number of people taking teacher training courses has decreased by 35%. The reason for Wisconsin's teacher shortage is that teachers' unions lost their collective bargaining rights with the passage of Act 10 in 2011, which resulted in teachers' salaries and remuneration decreasing compared to other professions, and the implementation of teacher evaluations based on student test scores.

In order to respond to the teacher shortage, the state educational administration revised the teaching license regulations in 2017, changing the previous three-tier license to a four-tier license and introducing license with restrictions for non-regular teachers. License with Stipulation 1 year and 3 year have been established. In addition, the requirement to pass standardized tests as for obtaining a license has been waived, giving the option of having the evaluation conducted at a training school.

As a result of these revisions to the teacher license regulations, the number of emergency licenses issued has increased by 150% even after five years, and the number of people completing teaching courses, obtaining licenses in the state, and entering the teaching profession has decreased. Growth has been sluggish, and the shortage of teachers has not been resolved.

Some argue that having people who have not passed the prerequisite exam or who have not completed the teacher training course teach may lead to unfair educational opportunities for students. As outlined in the Professional Standard Council's "Wisconsin Talent Development Framework", it is desirable to promote comprehensive reforms to attract, train, and retain talented human resources, including improving working conditions.