Teacher shortage - Special bonuses for teachers attract few educators
Few Thuringian teachers have been lured by special allowances in regions where the teacher shortage is particularly large. This year, such allowances have been granted for 106 civil servants. In 2023, allowances have been approved for 209 civil servant teachers. For context: More than 20,000 teaching staff work at general and vocational schools in the state.
The Free State pays teachers, under certain conditions, additional money since 2022. This applies to teachers, for example, in regions where there is a particularly high demand, or who teach subjects for which there is a particular shortage of teaching staff.
Conditions for Special Allowances
According to the corresponding administrative regulation of the Ministry of Education, newly employed female and male teachers receive a ten percent supplement of their valid entry wage as a special allowance for five years if they meet two of the following three criteria: shortage subject, shortage region, or shortage school type. According to the given information, the following subjects are considered subjects with a particular shortage: physics, biology, informatics, English, sport, and art - provided that these subjects are not taught at a primary school. As a shortage region, the entire Free State except for the free cities of Erfurt, Weimar, and Jena, as well as the districts directly adjacent to these cities, is considered.
Special Allowances are a mosaic stone in teacher recruitment
Although relatively few prospective teachers have been won over by the allowances for teaching, for example, in rural areas, Education Minister Helmut Holter (Left) defends their introduction. The situation in teacher recruitment is complex and dynamic due to demographic changes in schools nationwide, Holter told the German Press Agency. "The special allowances are a stone in the mosaic of many measures to combat the teacher shortage."
Challenges in certain subjects
These additional payments would provide incentives for prospective teachers to focus on specific shortage subjects and work in shortage areas. Without this mosaic stone, Thuringia would likely be less successful in its search for new teachers than it is currently, according to Holter.
However, Holter also made it clear that the search for prospective teachers for Latin and Geography is currently so challenging that these two subjects are likely to be classified as shortage subjects in the near future.
- Helmut Holter, the Education Minister of Thuringia, is supporting the introduction of special allowances for teachers, even though few teachers have been attracted by these allowances.
- Teachers in regions like Erfurt, Weimar, and Jena, or their adjacent districts, are not eligible for the special allowances due to the absence of a teacher shortage in these areas.
- According to the Education policy in Thuringia, subjects such as physics, biology, informatics, English, sport, and art, if not taught at primary schools, are considered subjects with a significant teacher shortage.
- Under the Free State's Education policy, newly employed male and female teachers may receive a 10% supplement of their valid entry wage as a special allowance for five years if they teach in a shortage subject, region, or school type.
