Anonymous #209

Submitter information

Name

Anonymous #209

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?

Primary

What is your occupation?

Teacher

Elevating the profession

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

Strongly agree

Would you like to provide feedback about these actions?

The media, government and education department, need to spread the positive work teachers do! Teaching today is not just about teaching academics, there is more to the job and these other areas should be shared with the community! When you are in a classroom, it is like a family, and in this we as teachers invest in and support children, parents and colleagues in so many different ways! Teachers and schools need to be celebrated for all that we do and I feel that teachers are not valued enough and sometimes the media can be negative on schools and teachers!

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.

Strongly agree

Would you like to provide feedback about these actions?

Becoming a teacher should be an apprenticeship, students need to be in schools, this will support schools and student teachers would get on the job training! Student teachers would need to be given payment for this to be successful as they need to be able to support themselves!

Attracting students and keeping teachers in school all comes down to money/funding. Each year that I have been a teacher (27 years) my roles and responsibilities have increased and my hours of work have also increased. Wages need to be attractive to keep teachers in teaching and to attract students to take on teaching!

Strengthening Initial Teacher Education (ITE)

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

Would you like to provide feedback about these actions?

Maximising the time to teach

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

Strongly agree

Would you like to provide feedback about these actions?

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?

Moderately effective

Would you like to provide feedback about these actions?

As mentioned in my earlier statements, it all comes down to adequate funding! Schools funding needs to reflect the experience of the school! We should not be made to feel guilty because we are at the top of the pay scale or deemed too expensive! Class sizes need to also be monitored! A better formula needs to be created! The current formula of number of students divided by the number of teachers does not work, as the average seems low but some classrooms have 27-29 students and this is far too much! Schools should also be funded to cap classrooms at 20 students at P-2 and 24 at 3-6.

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.

Strongly disagree

Would you like to provide feedback about these actions?

Paying some teachers an increase to their wage is disrespectful to all teachers! All teachers deserve a pay rise, not the chosen few! This will create division and will force current teachers to leave the profession due to being made to feel inadequate! Another thing is that schools need to funded based on the expertise of that school! Every year we are told that our budget is in deficit due to the number of teachers we have at the top scale! We should not be made to feel bad because of our position on the pay scale! Again, schools need to be funded to accommodate the experience that, that school has! Wages funding should be seperate to student funding!