In recent years, schools have faced an exodus of older teachers. It cannot be stressed enough just how damaging this is to schools. It is draining schools of invaluable expertise. The quality of teaching will undoubtedly suffer as experienced educators can really help younger teachers to develop their practice.
In many ways, teacher is like a career-long apprenticeship. A major part of its success is the way that experienced colleagues can pass on their best practice to new, younger recruits.
Unfortunately, retention of teachers in schools has become an issue at all levels. It’s often the fact the newly qualified teachers don’t stay in the profession for more than a few years that grabs all the headlines. However, the loss of the experienced ‘old guard’ in schools may well prove to be even more costly overall.
