Ministry of Education Claims Entry of 25,000 New Teachers Starting November

The Ministry of Education, in response to the shortage of teachers in schools, claimed that 25,000 new teachers will enter the educational system starting from the beginning of November. The spokesperson and deputy for planning and resource development stated that these new teachers will begin teaching in classrooms and asserted that "the issue of teacher shortages will be resolved." Ali Farhadi emphasized that an announcement for the recruitment of 11,000 educational coaches in schools will also be published soon. This claim comes at a time when the shortage of teachers in schools has reached a point where the 'Shahrak-e Sharq' website reported on the problems caused by the teacher shortage in Iranian schools, noting that some school administrators have asked families to attend classes and review last year's lessons with students. According to this report, the teacher shortage has occurred across various educational levels and is not limited to a specific grade. The report stressed that not only are there shortages of teachers, but also of principals and vice-principals in some schools. On the first day of Mehr, reports emerged indicating that at the height of the teacher shortage crisis, the Ministry of Education had prevented the continuation of work with "student teachers." The issue of teacher shortages has also reached the parliament, with Hossein Ali Hajideligani, a member of parliament, addressing Baqer Qalibaf on Sunday, October 23, stating, "You quoted the Minister of Education saying that the teacher shortage problem in all schools has been resolved, but this has not happened." In response to this remark, Qalibaf stated that an "informal" meeting with the Minister of Education would be held. The Young Journalists Club, affiliated with the Islamic Republic's broadcasting organization, also reported on October 15 that "our citizen reporters from across the country have sent messages about the teacher shortage in some schools and requested that officials address the issue." Following the news of a teacher shortage for 23,000 classrooms, the secretary of the Teachers' Association cited severe budget deficits in education as a primary factor in this issue. Mohammad Taghi Fallahi emphasized in an interview with the online newspaper 'Faraz' on Wednesday, October 4, that policymakers' neglect of education has led to the Ministry of Education not receiving sufficient financial resources over the past 40 or 50 years, resulting in a "heavy budget deficit." In the early days of October this year, the Minister of Education also stated that a number of classrooms had "remained without teachers," and that teachers would be provided for them by mid-October. The teacher shortage and the promises of Islamic Republic officials to "provide teachers" for classrooms without teachers have plagued Iran's educational system, while educators and teachers have repeatedly protested in recent years to achieve their professional and livelihood demands and criticized the prevailing educational policies in the country. The Teachers' Union of Bushehr condemned the arrest of two educational activists, and the issuance of prison sentences and confiscation of assets for four members of the Teachers' Union of Bushehr province coincided with the expulsion of "student teachers"; the Minister of Education reported on "classrooms without teachers". The continuation of livelihood protests has been marked by gatherings of retired civil servants in at least six provinces of Iran.