An annual education report warned Friday that the nation’s teaching workforce was getting older.

According to the Korean Educational Development Institute, the teaching workforce here has gotten older ― by up to three years ― compared to 10 years ago.

Last year, the average ages of teachers at kindergartens, elementary, middle and high schools were 31.8, 39.7, 41.3 and 41.5, respectively.

Compared to 2000, the figures increased by 2.5 years, 0.8 years, 2.9 years and 1.7 years, respectively.

The aging trend among school teachers becomes more apparent when considering the percentages of different age groups, the report said.

In elementary schools, teachers aged 29 or younger accounted for 20 percent last year, down from 24.7 percent in 2000, while those in their 50s and 60s increased from 19.8 percent to 21 percent.

In middle schools, 20-something teachers accounted for 13.4 percent, down from 16.1 percent 10 years ago, while teachers in their 50s and 60s rose from 13.9 percent to 21 percent.

In high schools, the senior teacher group took up 22.9 percent, up from 14.4 percent in 2000, while 20-somethings grew by only about a percentage point to 12.6 percent.

Universities, in particular, saw a surge in teachers aged over 50 in a decade, with the percentage increasing from 29.5 percent to 45.3 percent last year.

“Given that the aging teaching workforce is becoming a universal problem found in OECD member states, the Korean government needs to take follow-up measures to fill the potential teacher shortages,” the report said.

A number of countries are already experiencing the issue of an aging teaching force.

In its report “Teacher Exodus ― The Meltdown Scenario,” the OECD had urged earlier that its member nations prepare for severe teacher shortages in the near future.

Another OECD report said in 2001 that those aged 50 and over accounted for 49 percent of teachers in upper secondary education in Sweden and similar situations are found in other countries such as Germany and New Zealand.

The report pointed out that the immediate effect of a teacher shortage could be low quality teaching, heavier workloads for teachers and an increased number of students per teacher.

By Lee Ji-yoon (jylee@heraldcorp.com)