7,778 female teachers lost jobs during 2020-2021 academic year — SIGI

AMMAN — The annual statistical report for the year 2021 issued by the Department of Statistics showed that the number of teachers decreased by 7.2 per cent during the scholastic year 2020-2021 compared with 2019-2020.

Nearly 7,778 female teachers and 2,381 male teachers lost their jobs, whether by resigning or the termination of services, the report showed, highlighting that the pandemic, the shift to distance education and the closure of schools during the curfew periods were the major reasons for that decline.

The Solidarity Is Global Institute (SIGI) pointed to the importance of addressing obstacles the teachers face and supporting them to revive education, especially in the stage of recovery from the pandemic.

SIGI also underlined that supporting teachers financially, motivating them and training them, are essential guarantees for future generations.

Quality education can broaden the horizons for better living conditions in the future, SIGI noted.

According to the report, the number of students enrolled in primary and secondary stages for the scholastic year 2020-2021 reached 2,177,307, 49.4 per cent of whom were female students, totalling 1,074,656.

The number of students constituted 19.7 per cent of the Kingdom's population, the report added, highlighting that there are 7,127 schools in Jordan.

The report also found that there were 424 less schools during the most recent academic year, compared with 2019-2020, when there were 7,551 active schools. 

The number of teachers in all schools in the Kingdom for the academic year 2020-2021 has reached 130,089, including 90,436 female teachers (69.5 per cent), compared with 140,248 teachers in 2019-2020, including 98,214 female teachers.

Significant differences were detected in the ratios of male to female teachers in public versus private schools, where female teachers constituted 62.9 per cent of the teachers in public schools, with 53,989 female teachers and 31,856 male teachers.

In private schools, female teachers constituted 89.2 per cent, with 33,893 female teachers compared with 4,117 male teachers.