Policy brief: Addressing teacher attrition in Poland’s general education through Lortie’s framework

Abstract

The Polish education system has achieved remarkable success since joining the European Union in 2004, as seen by rapidly improving PISA scores and a highly qualified teaching force. However, despite these achievements, the system faces a great challenge of teacher shortages. New teachers are leaving the profession at alarming rates, while the existing workforce is strained by an ageing demographic and mass retirements. The primary drivers of teacher attrition are non-financial, including excessive administrative workloads, diminished professional autonomy, and unmet emotional needs. This policy brief examines the underlying reasons for teacher attrition in Poland through Lortie’s theoretical framework of presentism, conservatism, and individualism. The recommendations include diversifying pathways to higher education, rebalancing subject weightings beyond numeracy and literacy, slowing the pace of educational reforms while increasing teacher participation in policy-making, and restructuring continuing professional development to facilitate meaningful collaboration among educators.