Posing an ongoing challenge for California educators trying to tackle a critical teacher shortage area, the number of credentials issued to new math and science teachers in California continues to decline, according to new figures released Monday by the California Commission on Teacher Credentialing.
In the 2014-15 school year, a total of 1,119 math credentials were issued, down 8.4 percent from the 1,221 in the previous school year. For that same year, there were 1,347 science credentials issued, down 6 percent from the 1,434 issued the year before.
The figures underscore the difficulty California still faces in addressing the longstanding shortage of math and science teachers in the state, a problem other states are also grappling with.
“The teacher supply issue that California is experiencing is definitely not limited to California,” said Joshua Speaks, legislative representative with the California Commission on Teacher Credentialing. “Other states are struggling to get enough teachers in the classroom. It extends through almost all disciplines. The supply problem is most acute in math and science.”
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