The New Zealand Ministry of Education is planning an overseas recruitment drive to tackle a severe shortage of teachers, with much of the recruitment focussing on UK-based teachers.
A recent survey recent survey undertaken by the Auckland Primary Principals’ Association (APPA), found that 65 per cent of schools who responded had experienced very low numbers of job applicants.
The ministry’s acting deputy secretary for early learning and student achievement, Karl Le Quesne, has revealed that the organisation’s first focus is on bringing Kiwi teachers back home from the United Kingdom to fill positions – although notes that overseas trained teacher are in demand.
“We’ve been undertaking a series of recruitment drives in the UK, the last of which was in March,” he said. “We are already supporting more than 200 overseas-trained teachers looking for positions in New Zealand. We are matching them to roles where a suitable New Zealand-based candidate cannot be found and helping them through the processes required by a number of government agencies.”
The secretary also added that Auckland schools are currently sending representatives to the UK to interview applicants for positions, and that the pathway for qualified teachers wanting to work in NZ will be eased.
“To back this up, we are speeding up the approval processes for overseas teachers coming to work in New Zealand schools by working with Immigration, NZQA and the Education Council,” Le Quesne said.
A British advertising campaign will be launched by the NZ Ministry of Education in September, ahead of its next UK recruitment drive in October.
Article published 20th July 2016