A recent BBC Scotland News investigation has set out just how serious the shortage of specialist secondary teachers has become in Scotland.
The Association of Directors of Education in Scotland (ADES) is calling the current specialist secondary teacher shortage a full-blown “crisis”, with maths, science, design technology and computing among the worst-hit subjects.
The BBC’s findings
Analysis by BBC News found that more than 4,300 places on Scotland’s main secondary teacher training course, the PGDE, went unfilled between 2016 and 2025. Chemistry recruited just 54 trainees against a target of 159; English brought in 138 against a target of 248; and maths managed only 75 out of a target of 250.
Meanwhile, PE and history have consistently overshot their recruitment targets and universities have taken on more primary trainees than needed, which has created an unbalanced workforce that doesn’t match where the real needs are.
Finding solutions
For head teachers, it’s a constant challenge. One head teacher described how timetables are increasingly built around whichever teachers can be recruited, with some subjects even being taught on to stretch specialist staff across year groups.
One proposed remedy is a four-day school week, potentially combined with a fifth day of online learning that would let specialist teachers be shared across schools; this is a model already used for some Advanced Higher subjects. It’s a controversial idea, however, with some parent groups warning that it could be unworkable for families and may risk students losing a day of learning.
Staying positive – and realistic
The Scottish government says it has made much progress, with record teacher numbers and the lowest pupil-teacher ratio in the UK. It also says that its training targets are adjusted yearly based on actual recruitment.
However, the response from schools does not reflect this, with the measures leaders are having to take to keep subjects alive. It’s a real risk that without a better plan, the curriculum pupils can access will keep shrinking.
References
- Children are adopting AI technologies more than three times faster than adults. Available at: https://www.unicef.org/press-releases/children-are-adopting-ai-technologies-more-three-times-faster-adults. (Accessed 2 July 2026)
- Snapshot of AI Usage and Concerns Among Children and Parents – Insights from 10 countries. Available at: https://www.unicef.org/innocenti/documents/snapshot-ai-usage-among-children-parents (Accessed 2 July 2026)
