In October 2005 there were 7,424 staff members in compulsory schools in Iceland, thereof 4,841 teaching staff members. The number of teaching personnel has increased by 116 since October 2004. These are statistics from the annual data collection by Statistics Iceland which takes place in October.

Almost 87% of teaching staff are licenced teachers
The proportion of teachers who have a teaching licence has increased and has never been greater since the beginning of the data collection by Statistics Iceland in autumn 1997. In autumn 2005 86.7% of teachers had a teaching licence, an increase of 152 teachers from the previous year. The proportion of licenced teachers is greatest in Reykjavík where 94.0% of teachers hold a teaching licence. The proportion of licenced teachers has decreased in the capital region outside of Reykjavík from the previous year. When considering Iceland outside the capital region the proportion of licenced teachers has increased. In autumn 2004 78.0% of teachers outside the capital region had a teaching licence, more than ever since 1997.

The average age of teachers is increasing
In autumn 2005 1,523 teachers, or 31.5% af all teaching staff are 50 years old or more. In 1998 959 teachers were 50 years old or over, or 23.7% of all teaching staff. In this older age group there are proportionally more licenced teachers than in the younger age groups. In the 50 years old or over age group 92.3% of teaching staff are licenced teachers while 84.1% of under 50 year olds hold a teaching licence.

Women teachers are becoming more numerous
More than 81% of all compulsory school employees are women. The proportion varies by occupation. Of 180 headmasters there were 92 males, or 51.1%. In 1999 this proportion was 65.3%. The proportion of female headmasters has increased considerably since 1999. Almost 80% of teachers and department heads are women, an increase since 1998 when the proportion of women was 76.6%. In the capital area males are 19.2% of teaching personnel. In Iceland outside the capital region the proportion of male teachers is higher or 22.0-26.6%, greatest in the Westfjords and in the Northeast part of the country. Certain jobs within compulsory schools are almost only done by women, such as the work of social pedagogues and work in the school library. The largest proportion of males is found among school caretakers, almost 88%.

Teacher dropout decreased slightly between school years
In October 2005 15.2% of teaching staff members who were employed in October 2004 had left their jobs, a total of 718 teachers. The dropout rate is a little lower than in the previous year, when it was 16.1%. Teacher dropout is greatest among those who do not have a teaching licence and among part-time teachers.