April 10, 2024
Turning the Corner? Examining the Increase in the Number of Initially Certified Teachers in Pennsylvania
Since the 2019-20 academic year—the first affected by the pandemic—there have been growing concerns about teacher staffing challenges in Pennsylvania. Since the pandemic year of 2020, there has been a steady increase in the number of teaching positions filled by teachers on an emergency permit rather than a certified teacher. In fact, for the 2020-21 school year, the number of emergency permits issued exceeded the number of individuals obtaining a teaching certificate from Pennsylvania teacher preparation programs (TPPs). In the 2021-22 school year, the number of emergency permits issued exceeded the number of all individuals obtaining initial certification—both in-state and out-of-state.
Recently released data shows how this translates into access to teachers. Figure 1 shows that, in the 2021-22 academic year, 5.7% of teachers in high-poverty districts were employed on emergency permits while 0.6% of teachers in low-poverty districts were employed on emergency permits. Similarly, 5.6% of teachers in districts with high percentages of students of color were employed on emergency permits while 1.0% of teachers in districts with low percentages of students of color were employed on emergency permits.
The Pennsylvania Department of Education recently released data on the number of teachers obtaining initial certification and the number of teachers granted an emergency permit. This report relies on this new data to examine trends in these areas.
I find that the number of individuals obtaining initial certification in Pennsylvania increased by 27.7%–the second greatest increase since data was first reported in 2010-11. Only the 28.0% increase for 2017-18 was greater. Despite this increase, the number of emergency permits granted also increased by 27.2%. Numerically, there was an 1,839 person increase in the number of individuals granted an emergency permit while there was 1,414 increase in the number of individuals obtaining initial certification.