Teacher Education and Development Study in Mathematics - IEA

146
TEACHER PAY AND STUDENT MATHEMATICS ACHIEVEMENT
Spain
Composition of the teacher labor force
According to the Anuario Estadístico de España 2007 (Statistical Yearbook of Spain, 2007),
published by the National Institute of Education (2007), the number of students enrolled
in Spanish primary schools (both public and private) declined slightly between the mid
1990s and 2004/2005, from about 2.6 million to 2.5 million. Enrollments rose a little
in basic- and upper-secondary schools. The number of classroom teachers increased
considerably, especially relative to the number of students. Between the mid 1990s and
2004/2005, the number of teachers in non-university public schools increased by nearly
19%. These changes resulted in reductions in student–teacher ratios in preschools and
in primary and secondary schools in Spain. Additionally, between the 1994/1995 and
the 2004/2005 school years, the number of young people enrolled in teacher preparation
programs in Spain increased from 68,748 to 95,550 (Ministry of Education and Science,
2004).
In 2005, about 70% of all primary teachers were women, as were 56% of secondary
teachers (Eurostat, 2008). Between 1990 and 2001, the percentage of female students
enrolled in primary teacher preparation programs increased from 40.8% to 73%. The
relative percentage of females graduating from these programs was even greater than
the percentage enrolled, indicating not only that more females than males study to be
primary teachers, but also that females are more likely to complete their programs of
study. At the secondary level, a much larger proportion of female teachers than male
teachers participates in the year-long pre-service course. In 2001, for example, females
made up 80% of all students in these courses. Moreover, the number of females in
secondary pre-service courses increased by 22% between 1995 and 2001. The number of
males studying to be secondary teachers increased by just over one percent (Sanz Vallejo,
Ortiz Gordo, & Álvarez Prieto, 2003). These trends indicate a growing feminization of
both the primary and secondary teacher workforces in coming years.
In terms of the academic backgrounds of secondary education teachers, prospective
teachers tend to come largely from the humanities and social sciences. In 2001, nearly
9.5% of students enrolled in secondary pedagogical aptitude courses had degrees in
foreign languages, more than 17% had backgrounds in geography and history, and
nearly 19.5% had degrees in language. In contrast, a little over eight percent had degrees
in mathematics and just over seven percent had degrees in physics and chemistry (Sanz
Vallejo et al., 2003).
Two final features of the teacher workforce in Spain are its relatively low attrition rate and
its limited mobility. In the five years before 2003, only about one percent of the public
school teaching staff left public school teaching. Workers in the education sector also
remained in their profession longer than workers in most other sectors. Additionally,
most teachers who left the profession did so because of retirement or ill health. Only
in rare cases did teachers apply to permanently leave the profession. Also, although
approximately 25% of public school teachers applied for school transfers during the
five-year period, fewer than one-third of these teachers were granted their requests
(Sanz Vallejo et al., 2003).