Teaching is more than imparting knowledge; it is inspiring change. Learning is more than absorbing facts; it is acquiring understanding.
– William Arthur Ward
THE Education Ministry must act fast to find out why more and more teachers opt to retire early.
The ‘trend’ is mind-boggling given teachers are paid reasonably well compared to many other professions that also require equivalent academic qualifications.
It is common knowledge that the trend is on the increase despite not being at a critical level yet. But what are we doing to address it? Are we, especially the relevant authorities, waiting for things to go beyond our control?
The prevailing trend, if left unchecked, will aggravate further the current acute shortage of teachers in Sarawak. As such, the relevant authorities must act fast because there is simply no room for procrastination.
The issue has been festering for at least four years now or even longer with no clear solution in sight. It is timely for the authorities to act and get to the root cause of the problem and find effective solutions.
Based on available statistics, no fewer than 500 teachers in the state have opted for early retirement over the last four years.
To amicably resolve the issue, all stakeholders must play their part. On their part, teachers must be honest about their reasons for quitting. Honesty is especially important in the teaching profession.
Teachers leaving their positions must honestly and clearly give the reasons even though they are difficult or uncomfortable to discuss.
By approaching the situation with tact and professionalism, they will help the relevant authorities, the Education Department in particular, to identify issues within the organisation or the education system, and take steps to address them to improve working conditions for teachers and ultimately improve the quality of education for students.
Giving vague or partially true reasons for their departure can cause confusion and mistrust within the organisation, and potentially damage their professional reputation.
Of course, they must avoid being overly critical and instead focus on constructive feedback that can help the organisation to improve the situation. Also, they must respect the confidentiality of any sensitive information or personal issues that may contribute to their decisions to leave.
At the same time, the relevant authorities must look at the reasons objectively and not simply cast them aside or put them on the back burner.
According to official feedback, most if not all of those who have opted to retire early simply attributed their decisions to health reasons. For others, it’s either their desire to pursue a different career or focus on their families.
It is not my intention to question the reasons for the early retirement. I am well aware that careers personal matters.
Some teachers genuinely retire early due to health reasons, desire to travel, or start new careers or even business ventures.
On the other hand, I suspect that many gave vague reasons for quitting because they want to be diplomatic, especially after serving in the department for so many years. They don’t want to be branded as being ungrateful.
There is no denying that some quit due to the never-ending struggle to catch up with the extensive and mostly digital changes in the education system.
Some simply cannot bear the amount of work not directly related to teaching, and the vague and often changing directives from the education authorities.
Sadly, some of the reasons given by the teachers seem to address surface-level symptoms and not the root causes.
They failed to have comprehensive understanding of the underlying issues. At first glance, they may seem valid but upon closer examination, they do not hold up. So what contributes to their health issues, for example?
Education is currently under the federal government’s purview and the state authorities are only assisting in administrative matters.
Under the Minimum Retirement Age Act 2012, notwithstanding any other written law, teachers are eligible for retirement between the ages of 55 and 60 if they started working before the age of 25 with a bachelor’s degree and accumulates 30 or more years of service.
I have met many teachers who, on the whole, have expressed disgruntlement with the increased administrative and non-teaching duties, previously handled by their school clerks, taking the focus away from their core business of teaching.
Their non-teaching duties are killing their love for their profession, giving them “hell lots of headaches”.
So, why are they not telling the whole truth when they decided to quit?
The authorities must not be in denial, but be proactive in tackling the issue. If left unchecked it will have serious implications for the quality of education and the future of students.
Worst of all, it will result in many young generations shunning teaching careers which would lead to a serious shortage of teachers.
This will then cause even bigger problems such as larger class sizes, overworked and stressed educators, lower student achievement, teacher burnout and higher turnover rates.
So, early retirement must be seriously looked into to ensure healthy growth of the education sector not only in Sarawak but Malaysia as a whole. After all, happy teachers make happy students and this in turn will lead to a happy state and nation!
