New Teachers Hardly Feel Prepared for Everyday School Life

Poor grades for the current teacher training: Only 42 percent of new teachers at middle schools and lower secondary schools feel well prepared for teaching practice after graduation, according to the latest edition of the OECD teacher study TALIS 2024. In 2018, it was still 79 percent. Austria is currently well below the average of the 54 participating countries and regions (61). Criticism has been around for a while, and the training will be restructured in 2026.

Austria's teacher training fails in practice

Although a total of 72 percent of new teachers stated that the quality of their training was generally high, among those who completed their studies no more than five years ago, the figure is significantly lower (63).

More graduates feel well prepared in terms of subject knowledge than in the last survey (almost 70 compared to 64 percent). The numbers have also increased in terms of subject didactics and pedagogy, but still, only slightly more than half of the new teachers are satisfied with their training in these areas. When it comes to using digital tools for teaching, only 43 percent currently feel well equipped, but in 2018 it was significantly less at 33 percent.

Only a quarter feel prepared for multilingual classes

When it comes to teaching children with different native languages and from different cultures, only 26 percent feel well-prepared. There has been no change compared to 2018 - and this is despite the fact that over a quarter of students in this country now report a first language other than German. According to TALIS, in Austria, one in four surveyed teachers teaches at a school where more than ten percent of students have problems with the language of instruction.

63 percent of teachers state that more than ten percent of students at their location have a migration background - this is 12 percentage points more than in 2018 - and 80 percent work in a school where at least one percent of students have a refugee background. In both cases, this is the highest value among the TALIS participant countries and regions, on average it is a quarter or half of the teachers.

Teacher Training Will Be Reformed by 2026

Meanwhile, the proportion of teachers at schools where more than ten percent of students require special educational support is significantly lower than in other participant countries (eight percent compared to 46 percent). However, in Austria, there are special schools for children with disabilities (teachers from these were not surveyed, note).

With the academic year 2026/27, teacher training for secondary education (middle school, high schools, vocational middle and higher schools/BMHS) is to be reformed. Then, mandatory basic modules in German as a second language and inclusive pedagogy will be required for all students. The training is to become more practice-oriented, the master's degree more compatible with working life and streamlined, and the training period shorter. Instead of four years of bachelor's plus two years of master's, there will be a three-year bachelor's and a two-year master's program in the future.

(APA/Red)

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