The Queensland Government has committed $54.5 million to support Queensland’s education workforce in key areas of priority including specialist skills and regional, rural and remote communities.
Minister for Education Di Farmer said any investment in the state’s education system is an investment in Queensland’s future.
“Teaching is one of the most rewarding careers and everyone, including teachers themselves, need to value their profession and we are determined to support our current workforce as well as attract and recruit even more teachers,” she said.
“We have listened and consulted widely with the sector to develop these measures that we believe will help deliver more teachers in Queensland state schools.
“Teaching is a calling for so many and we want to make sure that they have the opportunity to work at state schools right throughout the state, and continue to make such a huge difference to the lives of young Queenslanders.”
The funding includes:
- $25.7 million to expand the Turn to Teaching Internship program with an additional 200 places
- $10.5 million to expand the Trade to Teach Internship program with an additional 30 places
- $18.3 million to provide attraction and retention payments to teachers at regional schools who have met workforce criteria
These measures focus on supporting people interested in turning to a career in teaching, those who are already studying teaching, and also to attract, recruit and retain Queensland’s teacher workforce in its highest priority locations in the state.
The government’s Education Workforce Roundtable is supportive of this new investment and are continuing to work on ideas to meeting the state’s education workforce challenges.
The Trade to Teach and Turn to Teaching Internship programs provide financial support and paid internship employment for career changers while they undertake their teaching degree, and a permanent teaching role on graduation.
Trade to Teach supports people with a trade qualification to get a Bachelor of Education (Secondary) with a specialisation in Technologies – Industrial Technology and Design. Turn to Teaching supports people with an existing bachelor level qualification who are committed to get a postgraduate teaching qualification in key specialist subject areas including English, maths, science and languages and/or to work in a teaching role in an in-demand location.
The government is also providing an additional Regional Attraction and Retention payment of $1,200 for 2024 and 2025 on top of the $900 payment already made. The payment is for state school teachers working in high priority regional locations in Queensland.
These measures are in addition to Queensland’s record education budget that included providing free accommodation for newly appointed or transferring teachers in priority regional and remote communities and the expansion of the Rural and Remote Teacher Experience program.
The government is also looking at practical ways to reduce teacher administration workload with the department commencing work on how to reduce the administrative burden on teachers including:
- Reduce the reporting requirements for behaviour incidents.
- Reduce data collection and limiting unnecessary testing outside the curriculum.
- Setting clear expectations for parent contact, including confirming and reinforcing that no teacher is required to communicate with families on weekends or at night.
- Working with schools to review and reduce the number of meetings teachers and school leaders are required to attend.
- Stopping additional curriculum planning that is not required.
