Global Education Digest 2012 - International Reading Association

DEFINITIONS
Part-time students. Students whose statutory study hours are less than those required of full-time
students in a given level and country.
Full-time equivalent number of students. Generally calculated in person-years. The unit for the
measurement of full-time equivalence is a full-time student. Thus, a full-time student equals one full-time
equivalent. The full-time equivalence of part-time students is determined by calculating the ratio of their
hours studied to the statutory hours studied by a full-time student during the school year. For example, a
student who studied one-third of the statutory hours of a full-time student equals one-third of a full-time
equivalent student.
Survival rates. The percentage of a cohort of pupils or students enrolled in the first grade of a given level or
cycle of education in a given school year who are expected to reach a given grade, regardless of repetition. The
survival rates are calculated on the basis of the reconstructed cohort method, which uses data on enrolment by
grade for two consecutive school years and repeaters by grade for the more recent year of these two years.
Teachers
Teaching staff. Persons employed full-time or part-time in an official capacity for the purpose of guiding
and directing the learning experience of pupils and students, irrespective of their qualification or the
delivery mechanism (i.e. whether face-to-face or at a distance). This definition excludes educational
personnel who have no active teaching duties (e.g. headmasters, headmistresses or principals who do not
teach) or who work occasionally or in a voluntary capacity in educational institutions.
Trained teachers. Teachers who have received the minimum organized teacher training (pre-service or
in-service) required for teaching at the relevant level in a given country.
Full-time teachers. Persons engaged in teaching for a number of hours of work statutorily regarded as
full-time at the particular level of education in a given country.
Part-time teachers. Teachers whose statutory working hours are less than those required of full-time
teachers in a given country.
Full-time equivalent number of teachers. Calculated in person-years. The unit for the measurement of
full-time equivalence is a full-time teacher. Thus, a full-time teacher equals one full-time equivalent. The fulltime
equivalence of part-time teachers is determined by calculating the ratio of their hours worked to the
statutory hours worked by a full-time teacher during the school year. For example, a teacher who works
one-third of the statutory hours of a full-time teacher equals one-third of a full-time equivalent teacher.
Teachers’ salaries. Expressed as statutory salaries, which are scheduled salaries according to official pay
scales. They refer to the average scheduled gross salary per year for a full-time teacher with the minimum
training necessary to be fully qualified at the beginning of his or her teaching career. Reported salaries are
defined as the sum of wages (total sum of money paid by the employer for the labour supplied) minus the
employer’s contribution to social security and pension funding (according to existing salary scales). Bonuses
that constitute a regular part of the salary (such as holidays or regional bonuses) are included in the figures.
Additional bonuses (for example, remuneration for teachers in remote areas, for participating in school
improvement projects or special activities, or for exceptional performance) are excluded from the reported gross
salaries. Salaries at 15 years experience refer to the scheduled annual salary of a full-time classroom teacher
with the minimum training necessary to be fully qualified and with 15 years of experience. The maximum salaries
reported refer to the scheduled maximum annual salary (top of the salary scale) of a full-time classroom teacher
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