You might hear on the news about teacher shortages, but have you ever wondered what types of teachers are most in-demand? At the end of each year, the Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education publishes a Teacher Shortage Report to illustrate the areas most in-demand within the state of Missouri.
The following facts from the most recent report help illustrate the teacher shortage challenge in the “Show Me” state. The full report is downloadable from the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education.
In the 2018-2019 academic year there were 70,233 full-time equivalent teaching positions in the State of Missouri alone.
You might be surprised by some of the top five shortage areas within the state. From the top ten shortage areas identified in the report, Avila University offers teacher education programs in the following areas (Listed in order of shortage):
- Mild/Moderate Cross-Categorical Special Education, grades K-12
- Elementary Education, grades 1-6
- Biology, grades 9-12
- General Science, grades 5-9
- Mathematics, grades 5-9
- Language Arts, grades 5-9
Financial Aid programs such as the Federal Teacher Student Loan forgiveness program and the TEACH Grant can help make your dream of becoming a teacher a reality. If you have considered becoming a teacher, this can be a great time to move that dream forward.