Most countries require pre-service teacher training, but untrained teachers can teach in many low-income countries.

 

Globally, three quarters of countries’ pre-service training requirements include Initial teacher education; however, North Africa, East and Southeast Asia and Oceania have the fewest countries requiring a teaching diploma. Of the different types of requirements for teaching in addition to academic level qualifications that were collected in the data, the requirement to have a teacher diploma that is granted by a teacher training program was the most prevalent. About three in four countries require a teaching diploma, and in all but three regions, South and Southeast Asia, Oceania and North Africa, 70 percent or more countries required a teaching diploma (Figure 7). Note that teacher training programs are based on national definitions and differ by country (see discussion in Box 3).

Many low-income countries have alternative pathways to teaching that do not require any pre-service teaching. Many countries that have experienced rapid expansion in access to education or do not have a sufficient supply of teaching graduates have had to rely on creating alternative pathways to teaching. This need for alternative pathways differs in prevalence according to the level being taught and/or to the specific subject being taught. For example, it might be the case that The gap between the supply and demand for teachers of math, science, English as a second language, and special education has been particularly wide (US Department of education, 2022). Alternative pathways can include some sort of specific training program, or they may require no training. This latter type only exists in a few low-income countries, where between 1 and 2 out of 10 countries, depending on the level being taught, have alternative pathways that require no training at all (Figure 8). In comparison, in upper-middleincome and high-income countries the alternative pathways to teaching are more common existing in 2 to 4 out of 10 countries and in all cases involve pre-service teacher training.

Besides training and qualifications, the most common prerequisites for teaching are teaching practicum and induction. Many countries around the world have requirements in addition to academic diploma and teacher training. These include competitive examinations, licensing, language requirements, citizenship, medical exams, a criminal record check and age requirements. The most common of these is a teaching practicum which would involve teachers spending a set amount of time in a classroom, interacting with students, in preparation for their teaching career. Many countries also require teachers to complete an induction program before they are considered qualified. This, like the teaching practicum, varies by education level but less so. Age and citizenship requirements are prevalent in only 10% of countries (Figure 9).