The Ministry of Education, Youth and Sport is recruiting 3,600 qualified teachers for the 2021 school year in order to reach the appropriate student-teacher ratio in provinces, districts and communes, according to a statement released on November 18.

The ministry is seeking instructors for kindergartens, primary schools and higher educational institutions who will be deployed in rural areas to address a teacher shortage and meet the educational needs of students across the Kingdom.

Ministry spokesman Ros Soveacha said the date and location of upcoming teacher qualification exams had not been determined because the ministry was waiting to receive applications from candidates.

He said the call for more teachers was meant to meet the shortage, provide support to poor students, increase overall enrolment and help more young Cambodians extend their education past primary school.

“The ministry is recruiting so many teachers because it is dividing the workload according to the real needs of every educational institution in all parts of the country,” he said.

Ouk Chhayavy, president of the Cambodian Independent Teachers Association, said recruiting more teachers was the right thing to do because qualified educators were in high demand. She stressed, however, that the recruitment process must be transparent and based on examinations, rather than teachers being selected through political parties or affiliations.

“We see that now there are more retired teachers, so there must be teachers to replace them. It is not good for a teacher who has reached the age of retirement to be asked to teach,” she said.

Accusations against teachers who take advantage of students had been almost completely eliminated, she said, referring to part-time teaching that some teachers conducted outside school hours.

“Everyone always values teachers as their second mother or father, so a teacher wants to maintain their reputation,” Chhayavy said.

Soveacha said the ministry does not prohibit part-time teaching as long as the arrangement is agreed to between service providers and recipients. He said schools and teachers must strictly implement the Ministry of Health guidelines.

The ministry also does not prohibit teachers from teaching on Sundays or holidays, he said.