Hello everyone. Did you know that by 2030, Latin America and the Caribbean will need over 1 million more elementary school teachers, and the forecast is even higher for Europe and North America, with a demand of 1.7 million qualified teachers?
Well, our project is all about understanding some of the working conditions of elementary school teachers post-pandemic, focusing on the United States and Mexico. The goal? To ensure that by 2030, our nations have enough teachers to meet the demand.
Hi, I’m Cecilia Vallejos Parás, and I’m excited to introduce you to our project titled: SUPPORT, that means: ‘Studying US-Mexico Post-pandemic Policies and Practices On Retaining Teachers (SUPPPORT).’ This study is being conducted by an international research team of education scholars including three faculty from Texas State University (TXST) (Drs. Melissa A. Martinez, Dionne Davis, and Rosa Peña) and three faculty from Universities in Mexico (Dr. Cecilia Vallejos-Paras, University of La Salle, Mexico City; Dr. Claudia Fabiola Ortega-Barba, Universidad Panamericana; Dr. Monica Lopez Batiz, Universidad Panamericana).
As highlighted by UNESCO, in the coming years, both the United States and Mexico will require well-prepared and emotionally stable elementary school teachers with the skills and abilities to confront the challenges of the future.
The SUPPPORT project responds to the need for engaging in cross-cultural knowledge sharing in an attempt to address these ongoing concerns related to teacher working conditions and examine the post-pandemic pressures and supports experienced by K-12 public school teachers in the U.S. and Mexico that lead to their retention or departure from the field.