Illinois is still facing a teacher shortage.
Jeff Vose, president of the Illinois Association of Regional Superintendents of Schools, said there are two issues. School districts are scrambling to plug the last few holes in their classroom for the coming school year, while facing the prospect of baby boomers’ ongoing retirements.
Vose’s group surveyed schools last year and found that 60 percent of schools had trouble finding teachers, and 76 percent had trouble finding qualified applicants.
“(We need) special-education teachers,” Vose said. “I know there are several districts trying to get English teachers.”
Vose said math and science teachers are always in demand, but beyond immediate needs, Vose said there’s an even larger shortage brewing.
“As more baby boomers retire in the next several years, we’re going to have an even more challenging (task) of getting teachers into the classroom,” Vose said.
One reason for the teacher shortage: too few students are able to pass Illinois’ basic skills test for educators.
The Illinois State Board of Education said just 30 percent of students who took the basic-skills test from January through March managed to pass.
Adding insult to injury for many local school districts struggling to fill teacher slots is a shortage of substitute teachers.
Should a district settle for sub-par teacher candidates, it’s tough to bring them up to speed with professional development if there’s no one to sub.
That’s why many teachers are spending their summer “time off” training and adding and updating their certifications.
Drastic measures have been taken to develop educators midyear. Anji Garza, director of professional development for the Lee-Ogle-Whiteside Regional Office of Education, said several principals have filled in for teachers — even in kindergarten classes.
The solution is simpler than you might think. In fact, with little work, you could be part of it. Anyone with a four-year degree — not necessarily in education — from a accredited university can get a sub license from their regional office of education or a specific school district. After paying fees, they’ll go on the district’s list.
“There really aren’t a whole lot of hoops to jump through,” Regional Office of Education Superintendent Bob Sondgeroth said.
That is, except for a couple of exceptional hoops the Illinois State Board of Education has put in place. If regular teachers don’t fulfill required professional development, their licenses will lapse, at which point they can’t get a substitute license.
The blackballing applies in several common-sense scenarios, Sondgeroth said — for instance, a high school math teacher whose license lapses while she’s on maternity leave.
“If you have a teacher who was the best math teacher, and their license lapses, it used to be that they could get a substitute license. Now they can’t,” Sondgeroth said. “What it ends up doing is punishing teachers for not keeping up on their professional development.”
Another exception, in terms of simplicity in becoming a sub, is paraprofessional substitutes, who need 60 credit hours in that area.
Sondgeroth believes there’s a treasure trove of subs out there. They just might not know their value yet.
“There’s an opportunity for stay-at-home moms and dads,” Sondgeroth said. “Especially if they sub in the district where their kids go to school.”
