Günther Fuchs, the state chairman of the Brandenburg Education and Science Union, has issued a warning regarding a massive teacher shortage expected in the upcoming school year.
In an interview with RBB-Inforadio, Fuchs stated that stakeholders should not rely solely on the current listings available on the Potsdam Education Ministry’s website, which currently shows 120 available positions. He noted that the union is simultaneously observing a growing number of teachers who have pledged to work in Brandenburg failing to follow through on those commitments, indicating a significantly higher rate of staff attrition. Furthermore, he pointed out that the number of students in the system is increasing this year.
Fuchs warned that this trend will inevitably lead to larger class sizes. Conducting a flash survey among staff committees, he estimates that approximately 300 to 320 positions will remain unfilled. According to Fuchs, the situation is particularly worsening in regions that have historically struggled to hire sufficient educators, where application numbers are nearly non-existent.
Regarding current recruitment efforts, the Brandenburg GEW Chairman commented that when reviewing hiring statistics, the positions have been least well filled by formally trained teachers, necessitating the recruitment of numerous mid-career professionals entering the teaching field from other sectors.
