Write about the following topic:

These days, in many countries, fewer and fewer people want to become teachers, particularly in secondary schools.

What are the reasons for this, and how could the problem be solved?

Give reasons for your answer and include any relevant examples from your own knowledge or experience.

You should write at least 250 words.

Sample Answer 1:

Recently, in many countries, there has been a steady decline in the number of people willing to become teachers, especially in secondary schools. This essay will look at the reasons for this downfall and propose some solutions.

One of the main problems contributing to the lack of interest in pursuing a career in teaching is lower remuneration. In other words, salaries earned by teachers are lower compared to other professions. For example, a school teacher in Bangladesh earns a salary of 10,000 takas compared to other professions where the salary is at least 25,000 taka. Raising the minimum wage of teachers will significantly encourage people to take up teaching as a profession.

Another cause that magnifies the problem is the difficult behaviours exhibited by secondary level students. That is to say, adolescents, these days behave indecently by showing brash attitudes towards teachers. Such misbehaviour and misdemeanours do little to motivate a teacher to pursue the profession in a high school. According to Psychology Today, 60 per cent of the teachers feel indignant and dejected while teaching high school students. Which causes current teachers to quit and un-appeals prospective teachers. Rectifying students behaviours will encourage more employees to pursue the teaching profession.

The final cause is the amount is workload; both on and off school hours. To elaborate, teachers often have to sacrifice their personal time to check student copies, exam papers at home. Doing so does not allow a teacher to rest and recover from stress, which is hazardous to both the psychological and physical well-being of the teacher. This eventually causes the burnout effect, where the mind and body cease to function properly. An ideal solution to kerb such an effect is to improvise work-life balance by the respective school authorities. This will attract more people to this profession.

In summary, lower remuneration disinterests teachers towards the profession which can be solved by increasing wages. Difficult behaviours by high school students demotivate the teacher causing them to quit or disinterest potential teachers, which can be solved by rectifying student behaviours. Overwork detriments the mental and physical well-being of teachers causing the burnout effect, which can be solved by improvising work-life balance by school authorities.

In conclusion, we need excellent teachers to build a better nation as their contribution as teachers are unparalleled. So we need to solve problems that deter talented and motivated individuals to become teachers.

[ Written by – Saad Yasin]

Sample Answer 2:

These days fewer people are drawn to becoming high school teachers in many parts of the world. Many reasons contribute to this trend and low wages for teachers and teenage disciplinary problems are most significant among them. However, some solutions can be implemented to encourage talented youth to pursue the teaching profession including better remuneration and reasonable workloads, for example.

The interest in becoming secondary level school teachers is declining and young people are taking more interests in becoming engineers, pilots, IT professionals and doctors. Studies show that teachers are not well paid and their salaries are far less than other professionals like bankers or pilots. Moreover, in many countries, being a high school teacher is not a prestigious career and this social dogma deter talented individuals to become teachers. In addition, according to disciplinary studies, high school going pupils’ behaviours is another reason many teachers do not feel like being in the right profession. Parental focus on their children has reduced and consequently, it has created a whole new generation who misbehave in schools.

Some initiatives may encourage the future generation to go into the teaching profession. First, increasing the salaries and benefits for the teachers would be a great step. It would encourage young students to ponder about becoming a teacher. Furthermore, to reduce the teachers’ workloads, schools should employ assistants to help the tutors. Lastly, school authority should get involved in maintaining a better teaching environment and implement corporal punishment for misbehaving pupils.

To conclude, the passion to become teachers, especially at the secondary level, is declining. Nevertheless, proper solutions are there to address these problems to encourage more talented individuals to come into the teaching profession and help build the nation.