By Gloria Ramirez, Victoria Handford, and Wei Lin Ang
The increasing teacher shortage is a concerning global crisis. It will reach a shortfall of 44,000,000 teachers by 2030, according to the United Nations Educational Scientific and Cultural Organization.
From rural and remote school districts struggling to recruit staff to urban districts scrambling to cover classrooms, the signs are everywhere: unfilled positions, growing reliance on uncertified substitutes and an overextended workforce.
Canada is no exception. Ontario anticipates a full-blown shortage in core areas like French immersion by 2027. In British Columbia, uncertified teachers filled an estimated 20 per cent of teaching positions in the Peace River South district during 2023–24.
Teacher shortages are concerning because study after study has shown teaching quality is the most important in-school factor for student learning and well-being.
Yet, as our research is examining, internationally educated and experienced teachers (IETs) remain sidelined, underemployed or forced into careers outside education.
Ten years ago, a report by the Council of Ministers of Education, Canada noted that thousands of internationally educated teachers apply for certification in Canada each year.
In our ongoing study with IETs in the B.C. interior, and in our work there, we’ve seen that many IETs have masters degrees or PhDs.
Findings from a 2024 study conducted on behalf of B.C.’s Ministry of Education and Child Care revealed systemic barriers to certification in the province for internationally educated and experienced teachers, including long wait times, unclear application procedures and high costs. The study included more than 730 survey responses and numerous interviews.
Barriers to teaching
Many internationally experienced and educated teachers who participated in the B.C. ministry study expressed frustration. Some considered abandoning their goal of teaching in B.C. altogether.
Key obstacles included requirements such as completing a new practicum and taking additional coursework at Canadian universities. Many study participants perceived these additional requirements as redundant and exclusionary given their prior qualifications and professional experience.
This begs the question, why are highly qualified IETs less able to secure teaching jobs in Canadian public schools?
Canadian teaching standards
The argument made by Canadian credentialing bodies is that their processes are in place to protect Canadian professional teaching standards. No one would argue with the importance of maintaining high standards, particularly in an education system highly regarded around the world, with students ranking comparatively highly on international tests.
One could argue that underneath the surface, these reasons mask unconscious biases that few are willing to recognize and acknowledge. Some researchers have said IETs are viewed as inexperienced, insufficiently attuned to local contexts or suspect. Their education systems are often seen as less rigorous and their professional identities as somehow inferior. There have been calls to use a more personal approach to better assess their qualifications.
The demographics of internationally educated and experienced teachers mirror the diversity of Canadian classrooms. Despite diverse Canadian classrooms, the teaching workforce remains predominantly white. The systemic distrust for internationally educated and experienced teachers comes at a steep price.
Students lose out on the diversity of perspectives and the cultural wealth these professionals bring. Schools miss out on teachers fluent in multiple languages, familiar with global education and research — and ways of teaching experienced in contexts of migration, displacement and resilience.
Ongoing research
Our ongoing study examines the experiences of 11 IETs who are participating in an orientation to Canadian kindergarten to Grade 12 education course and learning in K-12 classrooms in an interior city of B.C.
Early data from interviews with these study participants, teacher mentors and district administrators confirms the benefits of integrating IETs into our classrooms. Students in K-12 respond positively to seeing a teacher in the classroom who looks like them.
Many of the IETs participating in our study have moved from large metropolitan areas in their country of origin. Their ability to move from cities such as Shanghai, Manila, Jakarta, Delhi, Tokyo — with recorded populations of well over 25 million — to a small semi-rural urban centre of less than 100,000 people shows great adaptability.
While the adjustment requires a reorienting of thinking, these IETs do adjust, demonstrating adaptability. They come to love the open space and access to nature that Canada offers. They also value the sense of community found in small cities.
They want to stay. They are willing to relocate to stay. They need to work, and they want to be teachers. They just need an opportunity to demonstrate skills.
Extensive prior experience, resilience
One factor fuelling Canada’s teacher shortage is burnout. Many leave the profession within just a few years, citing overwhelming workloads, lack of support and mental health strain.
Around 25 to 75 per cent of Canadian teachers report experiencing moderate to severe burnout, with high emotional exhaustion affecting up to three quarters of teachers in some provinces.
Against this backdrop, IETs represent a formidable, yet under-tapped, resource. These educators have already demonstrated resilience. Many have taught in environments with class sizes of 50 or more, managed demanding schedules with little institutional support and thrived where resources are scarce.
Learning curve is expected for many teachers
The concern that internationally educated teachers lack Canadian classroom experience is no different from the learning curve faced by novice teachers educated in Canada.
Findings from the 2021-22 British Columbia New Teachers Survey reveal that many new B.C.-trained teachers begin their careers feeling under-prepared for essential aspects of teaching — from managing diverse learning needs to handling workload pressures and classroom complexity.
In contrast, IETs often bring extensive prior experience and resilience.
Fear from employers
The fear — often unspoken — is that recognizing their qualifications would mean lowering standards. But this argument has no validity.
The B.C. Teacher Regulation Branch (TRB) currently grants internationally certified teachers temporary teaching permits, typically valid for three years. But rather than assessing these teachers’ suitability based on demonstrated classroom performance during that period, the TRB requires them to complete multiple additional university courses before obtaining a full B.C. teaching certificate.
The best way to understand existing school systems is to work in them — to teach, to interact with students and colleagues, to participate in the daily life of a school.
By denying internationally trained teachers this route, B.C. undermines its own educational philosophy.
If Canada is serious about addressing the teacher shortage, it must take immediate steps to dismantle credentialing barriers for IETs. Canada cannot afford to let bias stand in the way of solutions. Internationally educated and experienced teachers are not a problem to be fixed — they are part of the solution for a system under strain.
Gloria Ramirez, Associate Professor of Education, Thompson Rivers University; Victoria Handford, Professor, Education, Thompson Rivers University, and Wei Lin Ang, Masters student, Education, Thompson Rivers University
This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.
