According to a report by the European Commission regarding the working conditions of teachers and school leaders in 32 countries, introductory programmes for the individual support and counselling of new teachers by now have become mandatory in 15 European Union (EU) Member States (Germany, Estonia, France, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg, Malta, Austria, Portugal, Romania, Sweden, Slovakia, Slovenia, the United Kingdom and Cyprus) as well as in Croatia (which has become EU member on 1 July 2013, after the report was published) and Turkey.
Although these programmes differ in the way they are organised, they all pursue the same goal: to support young teachers during their period of familiarisation with the occupation in order to minimise the number of teachers who might prematurely choose to abandon this career path.
"A good teacher can make all the difference to a child's future", explains Androulla Vassiliou, European Commissioner for Education, Culture, Multilingualism, Sport, Media and Youth. "That is why I urge all Member States to improve training and support for teachers so that they can fully develop their competences throughout their careers and ensure high quality and innovative teaching to equip young people with the skills they need for modern life."
"Competence frameworks"
Most EU countries have defined competences, which teachers must possess to get a job and progress within the profession; these include pedagogical knowledge, team working, interpersonal skills and professional skills. These "competence frameworks" provide the basis for initial teacher education in all but 8 countries and regions (Belgium - German-speaking Community, Bulgaria, Finland, Iceland, Croatia, Liechtenstein, Slovakia and the Czech Republic).
Most of Europe's 5 million teachers are contractually bound to work a minimum of 35-40 hours a week. This includes teaching time, availability on school premises as well as time for preparation and marking. The number of hours that they have to be actively engaged in teaching varies widely: the number is generally higher in pre-primary education and decreases at higher levels of education. The average number of teaching hours in primary and secondary education is 20.
In about one third of European countries, teachers are expected to be present on school premises for approximately 30 hours per week. There is no such set time requirement in Portugal, Sweden, the United Kingdom (England, Wales and Northern Ireland) and Norway, as well as in Cyprus in secondary education and in Iceland in pre-primary education. In Germany, Greece, Spain, Cyprus, Luxembourg, Malta, Portugal, Romania and Slovenia, the number of teaching hours is reduced after a certain number of years of service.
Majority of teachers are aged over 40
Across Europe, the majority of teachers are aged over 40. Almost half of teachers are aged over 50 in Bulgaria, the Czech Republic, Germany, Estonia, Italy, the Netherlands, Austria, Norway and Iceland. The percentage of teachers below the age of 30 is particularly low in Germany, Italy and Sweden.
In the majority of EU Member States, the minimum basic salaries of teachers are lower than per capita GDP for teachers working in compulsory education (primary and lower secondary education). Allowances, which can make a considerable difference to a teacher's net earnings, are usually in compensation for overtime or additional responsibilities. Only half of the countries surveyed grant allowances to teachers based on positive teaching performance or student performance results.
The Key Data on Teachers and School Leaders survey covers 32 countries (EU Member States, Croatia, Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway and Turkey). It is produced for the European Commission by the Eurydice network and compiles the latest information on teachers and school leaders, from pre-primary to post-secondary education, including data on age, gender, working hours and salaries.
The report combines data and information supplied by the Eurydice network, Eurostat and evidence from international surveys including the OECD's Teaching and Learning International Survey (TALIS 2008) and the OECD's Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA 2009) as well as the Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS 2011) by the International Association for the Evaluation of Educational Achievement (IEA).