Schools resort to retired teachers as young substitutes disappear

An empty classroom of a middle school in Daegu [YONHAP]

Retired teachers are being forced to return to the education scene as substitutes due to personnel shortages, as younger people avoid the profession.

A high school principal in Seoul was surprised when going through the résumé of substitute teachers for the school’s fall semester last year.

Among the applicants was a retired teacher who was once a principal of a renowned private high school in Seoul.

A high school teacher in Gyeonggi recently reunited with her own high school teacher, who came to work as a substitute teacher for earth science.

“The school wanted young teachers, but there were no applicants,” the high school teacher said. “We couldn’t just leave the class empty until a suitable young teacher arrives.”

Due to the shortage of teachers, even retired teachers in their 50s and 60s have become rare commodities.

Some schools even aggressively search for retired teachers to fill in places immediately.

The Education Ministry’s recent lifting of the age cap on substitute teachers further fuels the recruitment of retired teachers.

The education office recently eased the age restriction on substitute teachers from 62 to 65.

Furthermore, hiring older substitute teachers was previously allowed only when a school failed to fill the position twice.

However, schools can now accept older applicants from the first recruitment notice.

According to the Korean Education Statistics Service's yearly report, the number of substitute teachers was 65,756 last year, 20,000 more than 10 years ago.

The increase in substitute teachers was mainly due to policy changes, especially during Covid-19.

During the pandemic, the education ministry temporarily relaxed the regulation so that substitute teachers could fill in for the class when teachers fell sick.

Since then, schools have been increasing the hiring of substitute teachers.

Yet, while demand grew, schools struggled with the supply of substitute teachers.

A teacher at a private school in Seoul said one of the biggest problems is that young people are avoiding the profession.

“Competition is falling, and even if we post a notification, hardly anyone applies,” the teacher said.

A Seoul Metropolitan Office of Education official said hiring younger substitute teachers grows more difficult during the fall semester when many students at education colleges and universities prepare for their teacher’s appointment exam.

As such, many of the positions are filled with retired teachers.

A Gangwon high school teacher said the school recently hired a 61-year-old retired educator as the school substitute teacher for Chinese characters.

“Even within Gangwon, areas further away from Seoul have more serious problems finding younger substitutes,” the teacher said.

Some teachers are concerned about the teaching methods of elderly substitute teachers.

A North Gyeongsang elementary school teacher raised concern over a 65-year-old physical education substitute teacher that the school hired last year.

According to the teacher, the substitute teacher often leaves the students to play dodgeball on their own.

“The teachers are burdened by the extra work as older teachers are not accustomed to preparing exam questions or attending to administrative work,” said a teacher at a school in Gyeonggi.

Another teacher in Seoul complained that older teachers could not write more than two sentences on school reports, a crucial part of their job.

On the other hand, a high school principal in Seoul said, "The ability of a teacher does not diminish with age.”

“The older teachers can also serve as mentors to their colleagues, offering guidance on how to manage the school or listen to the worries of fellow teachers regarding classes,” the principal added.

Park Nam-gi, a professor at Gwangju National University of Education, said the education office should consider having only people who underwent field training sessions in the substitute teachers’ pool.

The professor added that the education office should also consider stationing personnel who exclusively handle administrative tasks, a burden on teachers.

BY CHOI MIN-JI,SEO JI-WON [kim.jiye@joongang.co.kr]