Unqualified teachers employed in 98% of primary schools

New figures obtained from the Department of Education under the Freedom of Information Act, show that 13,540 unqualified individuals were employed to teach in 3,501 Irish schools in 2024.

Tonight, Tuesday, on current affairs programme 7 LÁ on TG4, a report will reveal that 98% of Irish primary schools (3,029) and 65% (472) of secondary schools employed unqualified individuals in the 2023/2024 school year. 

In a statement the INTO said that it was “deeply concerned by the revelation that a substantial number of unqualified substitutes had responsibility for curriculum delivery in primary and special schools during the 2023/24 school year. This is yet another stark reminder of the ongoing teacher shortage crisis, which continues to place enormous pressure on schools. The scale of this crisis demands an urgent, whole-of-government response."

The INTO is calling for: an extra 300 places per year on initial teacher education courses each year until the crisis is overcome; a national teacher supply commission to develop long-term solutions for teacher supply; an immediate response from government to the claims lodged by the union under the local bargaining process within the current public service agreement, as INTO’s claims for the restoration of teaching allowances, shortening of teachers’ pay scales and career progression opportunities are fully focussed on making teaching and school leadership more attractive here; a targeted international recruitment campaign to bring experienced Irish teachers home; an urgent action on housing, living costs, and working conditions to retain existing teachers.

The ASTI said that the “data confirms that there is an unprecedented number of teacher vacancies in Irish schools. A key factor behind the teacher supply crisis in Ireland is that teaching is no longer seen as an attractive and sustainable career. Newly qualified teachers are struggling to get secure contracts and affordable accommodation. 

"The salary scale for these teachers is excessively long. Second-level schools are under-resourced. Teachers face too-large class sizes and the resulting heavy workload. An overloading of new initiatives and programmes without adequate funding has damaged teacher morale.”