Sir, – Further to “Secondary schools struggle to fill hundreds of posts” (News, January 1st), I think I’ve solved the problem of the missing teachers. They’re living and working in Sydney.
I teach in a small special needs/diverse learning school in Sydney’s inner west. We have a classroom staff of around 45, of which about a third are young Irish teachers in their mid-twenties. There is a large table in the staff room which is abuzz with regional accents from around the country. A few months back we were joined by a teacher from Tyrone which completed the set of staff from all four provinces.
Why are they here? Travel and adventure? Lifestyle? They certainly congregate in the beach-side suburbs. Better pay and opportunities? Certainly. The pay rates in Sydney are much higher than London, and I guess higher than Dublin too.
What can you do to entice them home? That’s an issue for your Department of Education, but family connections are important to these teachers.
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Meanwhile, I have a new role at home – Senior Pronunciation Officer for the local staff: “Steve, how do you say Aoife/Muireann/Caoimheán?” – Yours, etc,
STEVE DOWSE,
Newtown,
New South Wales,
Australia.
