A study on the global education system, released in Pretoria on July 2 2019, found that more than half of South African teachers initially had a different career path in mind. The Teaching and Learning International Research Study was made public by Basic Education Minister Angie Motshekga, and stated that only 49% of teachers said teaching was their first career choice.
The study also revealed that more women than men have careers in education in South Africa – 60% of all teachers are female – however, only 20% of female teachers have leading roles such as principal of a school.
It was found that only 66% of South African teachers were estimated to be using classroom time effectively, compared to 78% of their international counterparts.
The survey reported that only 42% of teachers from countries around the world who are a part of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development have been part of an induction when they started teaching, and 69% of South African teachers were found to have been part of an informal or formal initiation.
The report presented data gathered from 48 different countries – The US, Australia, Norway, The UK, Norway and Korea were all also part of the survey – over 15 000 different schools, and 260 000 teachers participated in the report. All countries involved in the study reported on working conditions and the learning environment.