California Teaching Credentials Decline by 16%

Despite billions of dollars spent on educator recruitment efforts, the number of new teacher credentials issued by the state declined by 16% last year. That’s according to a new report from the California Commission on Teacher Credentialing.

The decline follows a seven-year increase in newly credentialed teachers, which had raised hopes that California was beginning to ease the teaching shortage.

In 2019-2021, there were 19,659 new teaching credentials issued in California. That number dropped to 16,491 in 2021-2022.

The decline was highest for multiple-subject credentials, which could leave elementary schools disproportionately affected.

To compensate, the state increased the number of emergency teaching permits, raising questions about the quality of California’s educators. California issued 4,065 provisional intern permits and short-term staff permits in 2021-2022, representing a 28% increase over the previous year.

“The past few years have been really tumultuous for students and teachers, and many factors have impacted that,” Jana Luft, interim associate director of educator engagement at The Education Trust-West, said in an interview with EdSource. “It may be a while to see if there are declines this year, whether they will stick or be an aberration.” 

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