Teacher shortages affect most OECD education systems to varying degrees, with recruitment challenges particularly acute in mathematics and science, as well as in rural, remote and disadvantaged communities, according to a new OECD report.
Education at a Glance 2026, the OECD’s annual compendium of comparable national statistics on the state of education worldwide, focuses this year on teacher shortages. An ageing teaching workforce is set to add to these pressures in the years ahead.
“Today, it is getting harder to recruit, retain and deploy qualified teachers where they are most needed,” said Secretary-General Mathias Cormann launching the report. “School systems need to plan ahead, retain teachers already in the system, and grow the teacher pipeline while maintaining standards.”
Official vacancies tell only part of the story. In all 20 education systems with available data, unfilled posts accounted for less than 4% of the combined primary and secondary teaching workforce in 2024/25. Yet shortages are often concentrated in particular subjects, schools and regions. Among the 16 countries and economies with available data, 11 reported shortages of fully qualified mathematics and science teachers at secondary level.
Qualifications are a particular challenge. In the 2024/25 school year, 9% of primary and secondary teachers were not fully qualified on average across OECD countries. The figure exceeded 18% in Chile, Denmark, Estonia and Germany, while Japan and Korea require teachers to be fully qualified before entering the profession.
Across the OECD, one in four secondary teachers is aged 55 or older, adding to recruitment pressures in the years ahead.
While 85% of teachers report being satisfied with their jobs, only 22% believe that teaching is valued by society.
Pay matters, but it is not the only factor shaping recruitment and retention. On average across the OECD countries, teachers earn between 87% and 95% of the earnings of other tertiary-educated workers, while starting salaries for lower secondary teachers average 61% of the earnings of similarly educated workers. Manageable workloads, professional autonomy, effective school leadership, career development and public recognition also shape the attractiveness of teaching.
Teacher shortages also reflect broader shortages of skilled workers across the economy, with education systems competing with other sectors for highly qualified staff.
Education systems can address shortages by making better use of their existing teaching capacity and broadening pathways into the profession while maintaining standards. Technology, including artificial intelligence, together with specialised support staff, can reduce administrative burdens and allow teachers to devote more time to teaching, supporting students and professional development.
Demographic change provides an opportunity to allocate teachers and resources more effectively. Across the OECD, the number of children aged 5-14 is projected to fall by 9% between 2024 and 2033, although this decline will be uneven across communities. Policymakers have scope to redirect teachers and resources to the schools, subjects and communities where shortages are most acute.
Education at a Glance 2026 analyses the education systems of the OECD’s 38 Member countries, as well as of Argentina, Brazil, Bulgaria, China, Croatia, India, Indonesia, Peru, Romania, Saudi Arabia, South Africa and Thailand. It provides internationally comparable data on education systems across the world, covering attainment, enrolment, finance and the organisation of education systems, with a special focus in 2026 on teacher shortages.
