How many teachers called it quits during the pandemic?

By Garrett Stell

January 3 2023, 11:45 am

School systems around the world reported teachers fading away from classrooms during the pandemic. But how did the workforces in the north and north-east fare? Image: Shutterstock

North and north-east councils dodged the mass teacher exodus that complicated many education systems during the pandemic.

Stories worldwide showed how teachers quit during the pandemic because they were feeling burnt out, underappreciated and stressed.

In the United States, The National Education Association reported that schools were facing a nationwide shortage of 300,000 teachers heading into the 2022-2023 school year.

But statistics acquired through freedom of information requests show that councils across the north and north-east managed to largely retain their teaching workforce during the pandemic years of 2020 and 2021.

Teachers braving the worst of the pandemic

Despite the higher risk of working in a public-facing role and the many disruptions, fewer teachers quit during the pandemic in 2020 and 2021 than in the years before or after.

And although the differences aren’t large enough to point to any cause, it’s notable that northern councils have so far retained teachers during and after the pandemic.

The numbers from councils also fly in the face of a member survey conducted by the Educational Institute of Scotland (EIS).

EIS represents the majority of teachers in the country and, despite the survey showing that 88% reported an increased workload and another 93% said they worked outside their contracted hours in 2021, the new statistics show that many were willing to stick to their post.

Here’s how the landscape shifted in each of our north and north-east councils, and what the councils themselves had to say about the numbers.

Aberdeen City

In Aberdeen, 327 teachers left their jobs in the 2020 and 2021 school years, compared to 491 in the two years before the pandemic.

A city council spokesperson said that the council makes retaining employees a priority.

“We have introduced a teachers’ voluntary transfer scheme, where existing teachers can submit a request to be considered for a transfer to a teaching opportunity at an alternative school within the city.

“This again supports our teachers’ development and encourages them to stay with the council.

“In addition, we also have a Flexible Retirement/Winding Down policy available to teachers who are thinking about retirement, as a means of retention and an employee benefit.”

Aberdeenshire

Teacher retirements and resignations in Aberdeenshire declined in the major pandemic years of 2019-2020 and 2020-2021.

There were 927 teachers who retired or left their jobs for some other reason in 2018 and 2019. But during the two years when the pandemic was having its biggest impact on education, 777 Aberdeenshire teachers left their jobs.

Aberdeenshire has one of the biggest school estates in the north (more than 160 schools across 2,238 square kilometres), second only to Highland Council.

Banff teacher shortage: Small part of a bigger problem — Banff Academy is one of the north-east schools being hit by a shortage of new teachers. Image: Jason Hedges/DC Thomson.

In each year, resignations accounted for the most teacher departures. In the past five years, more teachers resigned in 2019 (292) – the year before the pandemic began – than in any other year.

Despite the fact that Aberdeenshire appears to have escaped a mass teacher exodus, there are still lingering issues with recruitment that the pandemic didn’t help solve.

At Banff Academy, parents recently spoke about a serious lack of math teachers. The issues in Banff illustrate a growing concern across the north-east, which is that Aberdeenshire and other councils north of the central belt aren’t getting as many new teachers as they need.

Highland

Highland Council was the only northern local authority that saw a spike in teachers who quit or left their jobs during the pandemic years. But the trajectory shows that the increase began in the year prior to the start of the pandemic and has continued to decline.

Still, it appears that teacher choice was a major motivating factor in the departures during the peak pandemic years.

In 2020, council records show that 79 teachers left at the end of their contract; 70 retired; and another 75 retired early.

A spokeswoman for the Highland Council said that the authority did not consider there to have been anything abnormal in the number of teachers who left during the pandemic.

Efforts to add to the workforce in Highland Council were made to help students make up for time lost during the pandemic, she added.

“There has been a focus on the wellbeing of pupils and staff during and following the pandemic. Additional teachers and support staff were recruited over the last two school sessions to assist pupils with education recovery.”

Moray

Of the three large mainland councils in the north, Moray reported the steadiest levels of teacher retention during the pandemic. Over the past five years, there was a difference of just 30 between the year that saw the most teachers leave (2018) and the fewest (2021).

In four of the five years, “end of contract” was listed as the most common reason for departures.

The Islands

Because of the smaller sample size, it can be difficult to identify trends and causes from island councils’ statistics.

Still, it’s clear from the numbers that the Islands didn’t experience any significant increase in teachers who left during the pandemic.

Orkney

Shetland

Western Isles

Teacher troubles didn’t stop with Covid-19

Although the worst of the Covid-19 pandemic appears to be behind us, 2023 still promises to be a monumental year for local teachers.

In June 2021, the Scottish Government announced that it was pulling the plug on the Scottish Qualifications Authority (SQA). The Government’s years-long process of overhauling the qualifications system will take a big step forward in spring 2023, when the leading education reformers will present plans for a new system to ministers.

The public consultation for the new system is open until January 13, and people in the north and north-east are being encouraged to make their voices heard.

To add to the importance of 2023, Scotland’s main teaching unions are all planning further strike action this year.

The strikes are in response to ongoing negotiations over a pay rise, with unions refusing to budge on their demands and the Scottish Government and employers seemingly unable to meet them.