“...schools spend about 80% of their funding on staff salaries and benefits, according to the Public Policy Institute of California. This leaves districts to choose between unpopular options such as layoffs, school closures and early retirement incentives if budget cuts are needed.
Early retirements often leave school districts with more inexperienced and under-prepared teachers, which research has shown can have a negative impact on student performance, particularly in high-needs schools....
In hard-to-fill areas, such as special education, math, science and bilingual education, districts sometimes have to hire under-prepared teachers who have not completed teacher training to fill vacant jobs. ...
Districts request emergency-style permits to allow teachers who have not completed testing, coursework and student teaching, to work on provisional intern permits, intern credentials and short-term staff permits when they can’t find enough credentialed teachers. Waivers and limited-assignment permits allow credentialed teachers to teach classes on subjects outside their credential...."