CHARLOTTETOWN, P.E.I. – An opposition MLA says he’s concerned the dwindling number of substitute teachers on P.E.I. could be an early sign of a future teacher shortage.
Kensington-Malpeque MLA Matthew MacKay says while there was a surplus of teachers looking for work in P.E.I. several years ago, many have since left the province or found new career opportunities.
MacKay said now there is a shortage of available substitute teachers.
“Do you share my concerns that if our substitute teacher pool is dwindling it could mean we may be up against a teacher shortage in upcoming years,” MacKay asked during Wednesday’s question period.
MacKay also drew a comparison to health care.
“We see what we are up against with health care professionals and trying to recruit off-Island, lets not make the same mistake with our teaching staff,” said MacKay. “If we’re experiencing a shortage now with substitutes we need to see the forest through the trees and try to fix this problem before we see consequences.”
Education Minister Jordan Brown said he was aware of the concerns and that the issue is not about the number of substitute teachers but rather when they’re available.
Brown said there are about 410 on the substitute list to complement “about 1,600 or 1,700 teachers in the province.”
“I’m not sure that the issue is as much related to a shortage of qualified substitutes in the province as it is ensuring they’re engaged in the places we need them at a particular time,” said Brown.
Brown said when he took over the role of education minister last October there were discussions of substitute teachers not having enough opportunities.
He said the province’s hiring of 151 new teaching staff in the past year has taken a number of individuals out of the substitute pool.
“That (hiring) is something I can say we are proud of but that also has an impact of course on the substitute teaching list because that’s where they come from,” said Brown. “There is a balance, we do need to ensure we keep an eye on that balance.
Brown agreed to MacKays’s request to table the statistics on the current pools of substitutes, including the number of available substitutes and whether they’re certified and actively substituting.
