The out-of-field mathematics teaching phenomenon: a complex, multilayered, evolving research field

Abstract Out-of-field teaching is an international phenomenon that refers to the practice of assigning teachers to teach subjects or year levels that do not match their training and qualifications. This survey paper presents a narrative review of empirical, conceptual, and policy-related research literature on out-of-field teaching of mathematics, published from 2010 to July 2026. While previous research has documented the conceptualisation and extent of out-of-field teaching, investigated its impacts on teachers and school leaders, and evaluated the effects of local or national responses, such as retraining or upskilling programs, our literature survey has a broader scope. Reflecting on context-conscious understandings of the complexity of the out-of-field phenomenon, we draw on Bronfenbrenner’s ecological systems theory to organise and analyse the literature sources we identified. This ecological perspective allows us to describe relationships and dependencies between the out-of-field teacher, their surrounding classroom and school environments, education systems and policies, and the social and cultural milieu that enables and sustains out-of-field teaching. Our survey highlights systemic factors influencing out-of-field teaching of mathematics, such as the organisation of initial teacher education, opportunities for career changing to facilitate entry into the teaching profession, school funding and administration, and policy settings affecting the availability of teacher professional development. The absence of reliable system-level data on teaching mathematics out-of-field significantly impacts the development of sustainable solutions to address out-of-field teaching in mathematics.