Anonymous #215

Submitter information

Name

Anonymous #215

Where are you located?

Victoria

What type of area do you live in?

Metropolitan

Are you an education professional?
(e.g. teacher, school leader, learning support assistant, teacher’s aide)

Yes

Which sector do you work in?

Secondary

What is your occupation?

Teacher

Elevating the profession

The actions proposed recognise the value teachers bring to students, communities and the economy.

Somewhat agree

Would you like to provide feedback about these actions?

I do believe that the public perception of teachers needs to change.
I don’t agree with singling our individuals for awards. By it’s nature, education is collegiate, so your plan would contradict that and speak to the neo-liberal ideal of the individual above the group.

Improving teacher supply

The actions proposed will be effective in increasing the number of students entering ITE, number of students completing ITE and the number of teachers staying in and/or returning to the profession.

Somewhat agree

Would you like to provide feedback about these actions?

Many of these initiatives seem like band-aid responses to problems that emerged several years ago and have been exacerbated by the pandemic.
Some things you could do to help in this area are:
-Improve teacher training courses by making them more like apprenticeships (mine offered very little information about the realities of teaching but cost a lot)
-pay student teachers some money so they can live while they’re on teaching rounds (the only really effective part of teacher training)
-stop charging student teachers to complete the literacy and numeracy tests
-increase the pay for existing teachers (I’m at the top of the pay scale so won’t ever get more but am not impressed seeing your offers to others for thousands just to enter teaching when I’m here in the thick of it and things are getting harder for me because I’ve got increasing numbers of graduates to work with)
-make the pay scale bigger (I feel like I have no financial incentive any more which is one more reason why I might leave teaching).

Strengthening Initial Teacher Education (ITE)

The actions proposed will ensure initial teacher education supports teacher supply and quality.

Neither agree nor disagree

Would you like to provide feedback about these actions?

Again, band-aid responses.
Much of what is written under number 10 is based on data which, while important, simply isn’t the whole story. Stop trying to quantify every aspect of human experience.

You can write all you like about literacy and classroom management skills, but the reality is those things are not what takes up most of a teacher’s time. What does take up time is dealing with demanding parents, trying to differentiate for the immensely different needs within the classroom and the crushing amounts of paperwork.
Change those things, and you’ll retain staff.

Maximising the time to teach

The actions proposed will improve retention and free up teachers to focus on teaching and collaboration.

Somewhat disagree

Would you like to provide feedback about these actions?

For years, my colleagues and I have been spending hours a week doing admin work that does not require a teaching degree. All you need to do is employee good admin assistants, the teacher workloads (particularly for LTs and other leadership) will reduce and they’ll be able to focus on teaching and learning.
The TIL changes in Victoria mean that my school will simply put on fewer camps and out of school hours activities, reducing the quality of our programs.
The reduced face-to-face hours have manifested in fewer sessions for my POR, not less actual class time.

Better understanding future teacher workforce needs

How effective are the proposed actions in better understanding future teacher workforce needs, including the number of teachers required?

Slightly effective

Would you like to provide feedback about these actions?

I like the idea of removing barriers to working interstate without having to jump through metaphorical hoops.

Teachers are leaving because the workload is too much, public perception of us is incorrect, and our pay isn’t great.

Better career pathways to support and retain teachers in the profession

The proposed actions will improve career pathways, including through streamlining the process for Highly Accomplished and Lead Teacher (HALT) accreditation, and providing better professional support for teachers to retain them in the profession.

Neither agree nor disagree

Would you like to provide feedback about these actions?

I got a Master’s Degree while teaching which cost a lot and I’m still paying for. I use it in my teaching and POR roles. Getting rid of my debt would be a good incentive.
I don’t want to be in school leadership, but I do want to improve my teaching, so I’d like to see you support teachers who want to improve their practice, not just become principals.
PD is fine, but some of it is so far from the reality of teaching that it’s impossible to implement in our school.
I’d love to see more First Nations teachers in the system.