Malcolm Byrne (Wicklow-Wexford, Fianna Fail)
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268. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills the subject areas that are currently identified where there are staff shortages at second level; the measures in place to address this; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [62443/25]

Helen McEntee (Meath East, Fine Gael)
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This Government is fully committed to ensuring that every child has a positive school experience, with access to qualified and engaged teachers who are dedicated to supporting their learning.

There are more qualified teachers than ever working in schools with analysis of payroll data from March showing over 79,000 teachers employed nationwide in our schools including 36,000 in post-primary schools. This analysis found that over 98% of post-primary allocated teaching posts were filled nationwide. Additionally, research undertaken in 2024 found the following subjects that had vacant teacher posts: Gaeilge (55.7), maths (52.8), home economics (31.5), English (19.2) and engineering (10.5). It was found that all other subjects had less than 10 vacant teacher posts.

As with other sectors, recruitment challenges exist in some schools. To address teacher supply and retention issues, my Department has implemented several measures that have led to:

• an increase of 20% in Initial Teacher Education graduates (student teachers) between 2018 and 2023, and over 30% increase in the number registered with the Teaching Council since 2017, and
• between 2018/19 and 2024/25, through record investment by Government, the number of teaching posts has increased by 11,752 with 5,886 (20.7%) in post-primary

Earlier this year, I also announced measures to help teachers to gain permanent roles more quickly. My Department is working on the implementation of this measure.

A number of measures have been introduced to increase teacher supply in specific subjects including:

• introduction in Budget 2025 of a €2,000 bursary for student teachers in STEM fields, payable in the final two years of their undergraduate programme, in exchange for a two-year teaching commitment. Work has begun on the implementation of this initiative, which aims to increase the number of STEM subject teachers available to post-primary schools,
• expansion of upskilling programmes: registered post-primary teachers, regardless of employment status, can avail of free upskilling programmes, including in Irish, foreign languages and STEM subjects. These flexible programmes boost teachers’ employment opportunities while addressing subject-specific teacher shortages. New programmes in Irish, French, politics & society, and computer science commenced in 2025, with over 160 teachers registered on these programmes and complement existing programmes in maths, physics, and Spanish,

Two seconded teachers and COGG bursaries have been provided to support the Máistir Gairmiúil san Oideachas (Irish-medium PME for post-primary teachers) in the University of Galway since 2017. 55 students are enrolled in this programme in the 2025-2026 academic year.

Funding is provided for an M.Ed. in Irish-medium and Gaeltacht Education for practicing teachers and school leaders and this programme is currently being delivered by Trinity College Dublin. 48 students are enrolled on this programme for the current academic year.

The Department continues to promote the teaching profession through development of the Teaching Transforms campaign, which promotes the teaching profession and encourages students to follow a career in teaching. Promotion campaigns have been developed to coincide with the CAO closing date and change of mind deadline in recent years.

My Department is developing a strategic workforce plan for the school workforce which includes a project lead by UNESCO incorporating feedback from stakeholders to develop a strategic workforce plan for teachers. A report from UNESCO with recommendations is due in Mid 2026.

These measures reflect the commitment to ongoing investment in the education system to address teacher supply. he measures are designed to ensure a steady flow of qualified teachers, including in high demand subjects, into the profession.

Teaching is an attractive career choice:

• 1,781 newly qualified post-primary teachers registered with the Teaching Council in 2025 and over 126,000 in total now on the register.
• An analysis of CAO applications spanning from 2017 to 2024 indicates a sustained and robust demand for undergraduate teaching programmes. On average, 6% of first preference applications during the period from 2017 to 2024 were for either primary or post-primary teaching programmes. First preference data from the CAO published for February this year showed increases in post-primary of 5%.
• Teacher’s pay has increased significantly in recent years with a new entrants’ current rate of €46,448 for post-primary teachers. Over 75% of new post-primary teachers are employed full-time and 93% of teachers with 5+ years’ experience hold permanent full-time or pro-rata contracts.