Half of Young Teachers in Latvia May Leave the Profession in the Next Five Years 0 25

This is the highest rate among OECD countries. This trend is characteristic of all Baltic states – in Lithuania, 50% of teachers under 30 reported this, while in Estonia, the figure is 49%.

However, the study also notes several positive trends within the Latvian teaching community. A significant number of school directors indicate a shortage of teachers, so efforts to retain new teachers in the profession will continue.

The generational change in the teaching profession is occurring slowly, as the study results show. In Latvia, 62% of teachers have more than 20 years of teaching experience. Most educators are nearing retirement age or will retire soon.

At the same time, young teachers – those with up to five years of experience – make up only 13%. The highest proportion of young educators is found in schools in large cities – 17%, while the lowest is in rural schools (12%).

78% of Latvian teachers who started working in schools in the last five years participated in formal or informal induction programs. This is 35 percentage points higher than in 2018.

83% of young teachers work in schools that offer mentoring programs. However, only one-fifth – 26% – of new teachers have an assigned mentor. Since 2018, this figure has increased by 10 percentage points.

The study gathered opinions from teachers and school directors about the development of the teaching profession, working conditions, teaching practices, the use of technology, and social-emotional learning, as well as the well-being of educators and their future plans.

The fourth cycle of the "TALIS 2024" study is taking place from 2021 to 2025, with the main data collection phase occurring in the spring of last year. This cycle focused on four aspects of education – diversity and equality, the use of technology, social-emotional learning, and education for sustainable development. Three major themes were also examined – teacher training and development, everyday professional practice and self-perception, as well as the educational environment of schools.

In total, 54 countries participated in the study. Teachers from grades 7–9 and their school directors were surveyed. Latvia contributed 4,088 teachers from 215 schools and 213 school directors to the study.

Latvia has been participating in this study since 2013.