This year records the lowest teacher attrition rate in six years with a total of 163 teachers leaving the profession as of March this year, 317 less than last year, according to the 2020 Annual Education Statistics. The report states that reasons for leaving the profession include voluntary resignation, superannuation, and expiry of the contract, among others.
Of the total 163 teachers who left the profession this year, 112 resigned voluntarily, 27 superannuated, three compulsorily resigned, and six left upon contract expiration. This resulted in a decrease in the attrition rate of 1.9 per cent. The average annual attrition rate for the last six years has been 3.6 per cent.
While the report does not provide reasons, the decrease in the attrition rate could be because of the pay revision for civil servants in July last year. The pay hike made teachers the highest-paid civil servants in the country. And another could be as a consequence of the COVID-19 situation that restricted travel movements for those wanting to go for further studies. However, the Education Ministry officials said, the ministry needs to undertake an analysis to understand the reasons for the decrease in teacher attrition rate.
Over the six years, more than 1,700 teachers have left the profession. As per the report, there are over 10,000 teachers in the country today.
Sonam Pem
