In the view of the Education and Science Union (GEW) in Saxony, unfilled head teacher positions are a serious problem. Schools need strong leadership in order to manage "the complex daily routine" between a shortage of teachers, a high workload and the expectations of parents, teachers, school supervisory authorities and pupils, said Burkhard Naumann, Chairman of GEW Saxony, when asked by dpa. The attractiveness of these positions has suffered massively due to the enormous workload.
High schools and elementary school particularly affected
According to the State Office for Schools and Education (LASUB), 53 principal positions were vacant on 1 March, with 88 vacancies for deputies. More up-to-date figures are not available. One focus was on secondary schools, where there were 20 vacancies for head teachers and 36 for deputies. At elementary school, 15 head teachers and 42 deputies were missing. According to the figures, 13 head and three deputy head positions were vacant at grammar schools. There are around 1,600 general education schools in Saxony.
According to the LASUB, it is particularly difficult to fill vacancies in rural areas in particularly remote regions. As a rule, it works well with filling vacancies. The state office pointed out that schools are not without a head during the vacancy period. In most cases, the deputy principal or a principal from the region takes over the duties.
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