Anonymous #100

Submitter information

Name

Anonymous #100

Where are you located?

Western Australia

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.

Neither agree nor disagree

Would you like to provide feedback about these actions?

Appropriate pay rises in line with inflation demonstrate the respect of the government towards the teaching profession. Awarding a few teachers out of thousands each year does nothing to elevate the profession. Recognising teachers as highly accomplished or lead is not enough. Often, these programs add copious amounts of extra work to teachers who already go above and beyond. They place too much value on what teachers do outside of the classroom. This pushes teachers out of the classroom either through promotions or burnout. You need to find more ways of placing value on what teachers do inside of the classroom.

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 disagree

Would you like to provide feedback about these actions?

This misses the reason why teachers are leaving the profession. A 1.0 FTE teacher is already doing a job that is too much. The mental energy needed to be a teacher (running 21 lessons a week, marking papers, communicating with parents, attending meetings, completing paperwork, writing up behaviour, differentiating resources, photocopying, etc.) leaves us exhausted. This is why teachers are leaving. The best way to keep teachers in the job is to reduce full time teaching to 0.8 FTE. I understand that this would take huge investment over many years to achieve, but this is what needs to be done. So much has been added to the job in the last 20 years, but nothing has been taken away.

Strengthening Initial Teacher Education (ITE)

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

Somewhat agree

Would you like to provide feedback about these actions?

I agree with targeting teacher literacy and numeracy. Please make sure that they are also being given concrete ways to teach these skills to students in their learning areas. Every teacher should know how to run a guided reading lesson. I also like the proposal to attract more First Nations teachers into the profession. This is vital for improving respect in our students.

Maximising the time to teach

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

Somewhat agree

Would you like to provide feedback about these actions?

This seems good; I like proposals to reduce working load. This needs to be done. Streamlining of comments is important, too. We provide so much written and verbal feedback throughout the year, so report comments often feel superfluous. Parents access to feedback on student progress is much greater, which has added to the workload of teachers. Every time things are added, something needs to be taken away.

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?

Would you like to provide feedback about these actions?

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.

Would you like to provide feedback about these actions?