It’s simple supply and demand. If the supply goes up by 13% but the demand goes up 2%, you are going to have a glut of teachers.
Unless those with teaching degrees go work at Starbucks, there is going to be an overabundance of teachers overall. That’s not to say that there won’t be shortages in specialized areas.
But the problem with government education is that instead of focusing on filling the gaps, they want to pretend that gaps do not exist.
Teacher Recruitment and Retention: It’s Complicated
At a broad national level, statistics tell us there is no teacher shortage. In fact, the number of U.S. teachers has grown by 13 percent in four years, far outpacing the 2 percent rise in student enrollment during the same period. But that doesn’t mean teacher shortages aren’t real.