The child has grown up and will soon be wearing the uniform of a first-grader.
But before that moment, parents have to make an important choice – decide on a school.
The location and reputation of the educational institution mean a lot, but the final decision depends on the teacher with whom the little student will take his first independent steps into the adult world.
The founder of the Vector School, Denis Bikbaev, spoke about how private education copes with the shortage of teaching staff. The education expert also explained why teachers are increasingly leaving the profession.
Shortage of teaching staff
"It's not just about salaries": the issue of a shortage of teaching staff is becoming increasingly urgent. If schools used to be primarily concerned with the qualifications of teachers, then every year it is becoming increasingly difficult not only to attract but also to retain specialists.
"More young teachers quit their jobs in Moscow schools in 2022 than in 2020 and 2021. Today, at least 20 regions of the country are facing a teacher shortage."
According to the latest research in this area, the main task is not to attract new staff, but to motivate and retain the existing ones. We all know that the teaching profession is, first and foremost, a calling.
Choosing this path, a person is motivated by an internal desire to "work" with children: to impart knowledge, communicate and be both a friend and a mentor for schoolchildren, as well as to benefit society. Such a need comes from within, and is not born from external needs.
But why are teachers increasingly leaving their jobs and schools? As it turns out, it's not about salary, although this issue should not be ignored.
The modern education system implemented in state schools requires teachers to perform a huge number of extraneous tasks. A teacher at a typical secondary school is a bit of a teacher, a bit of an accountant, and also a programmer and analyst.
"Most Russian teachers would like to reduce the amount of reporting or completely remove such tasks from themselves. Additional work not related to direct responsibilities greatly distracts from the main thing - from children."
Every second teacher points out an obvious drawback of the current education system: the large number of students in a class. Doing your job when you have 30 to 40 people under your supervision becomes physically impossible.
"A teacher does more than just pass on educational material to children. He or she helps teenagers develop talents and form values, teaches teamwork and communication skills, and is an inspiration and example for children that they will carry throughout their lives."
All of the above leads us to a simple conclusion: a teacher must be not only prepared, but also motivated.
The decision on the issue of finding and motivating staff falls on the shoulders of the school administration, and the strength of the school's teaching staff largely depends on the internal rules of the organization.
Work in private education
Today, private education can compete with public education in terms of workload, schedule and financial reward.
Features of work in private education:
1. Due to the smaller number of children in the class, the teacher’s workload is significantly reduced and it becomes easier to carry out their immediate tasks.
2. The private school is ready to offer teachers a more convenient vacation schedule and additional days off during school holidays.
3. The financial issue becomes an important motivation. Private education keeps wages slightly higher.
All this allows us to attract new personnel and retain existing ones.
"Private educational institutions pay teachers' salaries from their own funds, so they can determine the amount and terms of accrual themselves. This applies to bonuses and rewards for extracurricular activities and the organization of collective events for students."
From a legal point of view, teachers of state and private educational institutions have the same rights and guarantees. Benefits depend on the type of activity and length of service of the employee, and not on the legal status and name of the institution.
If the school has been accredited and has a license, all teachers are assigned a pension, as in municipal educational organizations. However, this rule has exceptions.
In some regions, school administrations are forced to go to court and, on the basis of a ruling by the Plenum of the Supreme Court, seek the benefits they are entitled to.
The length of service for teachers of private schools is calculated in the same way as for teachers of MOU secondary schools. Difficulties may arise only in the part of preschool teachers - they do not have teaching experience.
The issue of the shortage of qualified personnel, in addition to attracting new staff, is resolved through training of existing staff.
Development of creative potential, knowledge in the field of psychology and adaptation to changing realities helps to create a high-quality educational environment, interact more successfully with students and make the school curriculum more effective and easier to understand
When choosing a school, the rating of the educational institution is certainly important, but ultimately, a specific teacher is involved in the education of the child. This is especially important in elementary grades.
For this reason, today schools see their primary task as the formation of a strong teaching staff and the creation of a friendly team of teachers who are passionate about their work and motivated for professional development.
"Professional development is a necessary part of teaching. However, due to increased workload, teachers often lose their enthusiasm, without which their work largely loses its meaning. In private education, the issue of teacher motivation is currently better developed."
Personnel really do "decide". It is the teaching staff and the level of involvement of each individual employee that determines how the educational institution will ultimately function and whether parents will want to send their children to this particular school.
Previously, we talked about how to find out what people really think about you.
Expert: Denis Bikbaev
