AN exodus of teachers from classrooms this summer will jeopardise one of the Governor's key school reform pledges, senior education sources said yesterday.
Thousands of teachers have left the profession annually in the past few years for better paid and less stressful jobs. The trend is expected to continue this year.
With almost every school forecast to lose staff, many teachers are concerned that recruitment will not be able to keep pace. Staff wastage will be discussed this afternoon at a meeting of the Advisory Committee on Teacher Education and Qualifications.
Most at risk is Chris Patten's pledge to cut class sizes in Primary One from 40 pupils to 35 this September. An extra 780 teachers are needed on top of replacements for those leaving their jobs to make this possible.
Although a large recruitment drive is underway, some members of the profession are sceptical that enough suitably-qualified people can be found.
Others are critical that stopgap measures recommended to principals by the Education Department, such as re-hiring retired teachers, will cause more problems than they solve.
