Yukon schools grapple with ongoing teacher shortage

Two months into the school year, Yukon's Department of Education is still struggling to fill ongoing staff and teacher vacancies.

In early August, CBC reported there were 25 vacant teaching positions that still needed to be filled.

As of Tuesday, the Yukon government said there are still 12 openings for teachers across the school board. Four of those are at schools in Whitehorse, while the remaining eight are in rural communities. 

Ted Hupé, president of the Yukon Association of Education Professionals, said the ongoing shortage has continued to present challenges for staff, teachers and students.

Some schools are relying on teachers who are learning assistants to cover classroom assignments because there aren't enough teachers on staff, he said. That means it hasn't been easy for students with special needs to get the one-on-one attention they require.

"In any scenario, whether you'd be in a rural situation or urban, it's the vulnerable students that are suffering the most," he said. 

"How can we expect our students to be as successful as we hope they can be without the proper resources?"

Hupé said principals have also been under significant strain. Because there's a limited number of substitute teachers available, it's been hard for principals to manage when teachers call in sick or are otherwise unable to make it to school.

Hupé said the schools most in need of teachers are St. Elias Community School in Haines Junction, Johnson Elementary School in Watson Lake and Chief Zzeh Gittlit School in Old Crow. 

He's also been monitoring the staff shortages and estimates there are, in fact, 18 vacancies. It's unclear what's causing the discrepancy between the Department of Education's numbers and Hupé's calculation.

First Nations School Board also grappling with shortages

In an email, Yukon's Department of Education said they heightened their recruitment efforts this year in the face of a labour shortage.

Melissa Flynn, interim executive director of the First Nations School Board, said the situation has reached a point where school staff and principals have taken matters into their own hands — even calling people they know to ask them to apply.

"We have principals phoning out to different contacts that they have across Canada, trying to recruit people to their communities," she said. "They're on the phone, they're asking for favours. They're calling old friends that have retired. They're shifting teachers around day to day trying to fill vacancies in the school."

Flynn said the board has been working with teachers to better understand their needs and what recruitment strategies might work in their communities. In the meantime, she said, staff have been putting a lot of work into trying to meet students' needs.

"We need to really give a shout out and really support our teachers and school environment staff right now who are stepping up and filling in during those times when there are low staff numbers."

Housing a problem for recruitment

Hupé said there are a number of factors that might contribute to teacher shortages.

New graduates, he said, might be attracted to places with lower costs of living, higher wages and better job security. But to fill Whitehorse positions, he said, there would have to be better housing options for teachers coming to the Yukon.

In an email, Department of Education spokesperson Erin Scott said the teacher shortage is being felt in provinces and territories across the country. She said the department works closely with the Yukon Housing Corporation to meet housing needs for staff.

What worries him the most is that the current situation might become accepted as the norm. That, he said, would be detrimental both for teachers and students.

"It's very appropriate to have expectations of quality here," he said.