Australian Government Issues Paper: Teacher Workforce Shortages

Introduction to Australia’s Teacher Workforce Shortages

• Teachers serve as the "life-blood" of the education system, exerting the most significant in-school impact on student learning outcomes.

• Ensuring a stable supply of high-quality teachers is essential for:

  • Equitable education delivery across the nation.

  • Meeting Australia’s future skills requirements.

  • Strengthening national productivity.

• Australian schools are currently facing unprecedented challenges regarding teacher supply and retention, identified as one of the single largest issues for employers in school and early childhood education (ECE) sectors.

• This crisis is part of a global phenomenon characterized by a competitive international teaching market and the compounding effects of the COVID-19 pandemic.

• Key contributing factors to the shortage include:

  • Declining numbers of new graduate teachers.

  • Increased demand driven by a growing student population.

  • An ageing workforce in both teaching and leadership positions.

Strategic Projections and National Priority

• The Australian Government Department of Education's high-level modelling indicates a significant gap in the teacher pipeline.

• Between 2021 and 2025, the projected demand for secondary school teachers will exceed the supply of new graduate teachers by approximately $4,100$ teachers.

• Growth in Student Enrolment Projections (2021-2031):

  • Primary school enrolments are projected to grow by $11\%$.

  • Secondary school enrolments are projected to grow by $10\%$.

• Declining Initial Teacher Education (ITE) Statistics (2017-2020):

  • Annual commencements in ITE degrees declined by $8\%$.

  • Total completions of ITE degrees declined by $17\%$.

• Ageing Workforce Trends (OECD 2018 TALIS):

  • $45\%$ of teachers aged $50\,\text{years}$ and over intend to leave the profession within five years.

  • $13\%$ of teachers aged less than $50\,\text{years}$ intend to leave the profession within five years.

• The National Skills Commission (June 2021 Skills Priority List) confirms a national shortage of early childhood (pre-primary school) teachers.

Drivers of Teacher Shortages: Social Status and Prestige

• The social status of teaching is a primary driver of declining ITE commencements. The Quality Initial Teacher Education (QITE) Review highlighted a need to elevate the profession's status to attract suitable candidates.

• Public perception identifies teaching as having a "moderate" social status, consistently ranking below professions such as doctors, nurses, and engineers.

• High-achieving school students are statistically more likely to select professions perceived as prestigious.

• Perception Disconnect:

  • $71\%$ of teachers surveyed in 2019 felt that the Australian public did not appreciate them.

  • Conversely, $82\%$ of the public reported that they felt teachers were respected.

• The COVID-19 pandemic temporarily improved public perceptions of teaching as parents experienced remote learning first-hand.

Working Conditions and Workload Complexity

• Perceptions of unfavourable working conditions and low salary are significant barriers. In the QITE student survey, $51\%$ of respondents cited concerns about low pay as a major deterrent.

• Comparative Workload Data (2018):

  • Australian secondary teachers work an average of $45\,\text{hours}$ per week.

  • This is $6\,\text{hours}$ more than the OECD average of $39\,\text{hours}$.

  • Average workloads increased by approximately $2\,\text{hours}$ per week between 2013 and 2018.

• Administrative Tasks:

  • Australian teachers spend $4.1\,\text{hours}$ per week on general administrative tasks, compared to the OECD average of $2.7\,\text{hours}$.

• Instructional Preparation:

  • $92\%$ of teachers surveyed stated they "always" or "frequently" lack the time required to prepare for effective teaching.

Salary and Career Progression Models

• Salary Structure: Australian teachers start on competitive salaries, but pay scales are characterized as "flatter" than those in comparable nations.

  • Teachers typically reach the top pay point within $10\,\text{years}$.

  • The top teacher salary in Australia is only $40\%$ higher than the starting salary.

  • The OECD average for top salary versus starting salary is $80\%$.

• Career Pathways:

  • Beyond the Highly Accomplished and Lead Teacher (HALT) program, career progression often requires leaving the classroom for school leadership or education bureaucracy.

  • $31\%$ of respondents cited better pay and career progression as potential attractors, especially for mid-career professionals looking to change careers.

Casual Employment and Precarious Labor

• Casual (relief) teachers are essential for managing absences but face issues with job satisfaction and retention.

• Concentration in Early Career:

  • Between 2014 and 2018, an average of $20\%$ of early career teachers (less than $5\,\text{years}$ experience) were in casual roles.

  • Only $10\%$ of teachers with at least $5\,\text{years}$ of experience remained in casual roles.

• Challenges for Casual Staff:

  • Limited assistance/support during formative teaching years.

  • Increased classroom management difficulties.

  • Physical and professional isolation.

  • Lack of job security/assurance of continuing positions.

  • Reduced resources or agency for efficient lesson planning.

Initial Teacher Education (ITE) Pipeline Trends

• The proportion of young high achievers (aged $20$ and under with an ATAR of $80$ or more) choosing teaching has declined by nearly one-third since 2006.

• Six-Year Completion Rates (Declines between 2010 to 2015):

  • Undergraduate ITE: Declined from $56\%$ to $48\%$.

  • Postgraduate ITE: Declined from $79\%$ to $74\%$.

• Job-Ready Graduates (JRG) Reforms (2021):

  • Maximum student contribution for education courses decreased by $42\%$, dropping from $\$6,804$ to $\$3,950$.

  • Commonwealth contribution increased by $15.6\%$, rising from $\$11,462$ to $\$13,250$.

• New South Wales and Victoria have introduced minimum entry benchmarks (e.g., minimum ATARs) to attract higher-quality candidates.

Skilled Migration and Areas of Need

• Student Population Growth Scenarios (2022-2030):

  • Medium migration scenario: $11\%$ growth.

  • Zero migration scenario: $1\%$ growth.

• Migration Data (January - June 2022):

  • Total overseas qualification assessments deemed suitable: $1,332$.

  • Breakdown: $680$ Early Childhood, $107$ Primary, $517$ Secondary.

• Out-of-Field Teaching Statistics:

  • Mathematics: $40\%$ of the time.

  • Science: $29\%$ of the time.

  • Design and Technology: $46\%$ of the time.

Early Childhood and Workforce Diversity

• Early Childhood Sector:

  • Projected employment growth of $21,800$ staff (educators, teachers, managers) in the five years leading to November 2026.

  • Challenges include significantly lower pay/conditions compared to other sectors and increased turnover due to COVID-19.

• Diversity and Indigenous Representation:

  • Indigenous students make up $6\%$ of the student population.

  • Indigenous teachers and leaders make up only $1\%$ of the workforce.

  • Indigenous student ITE commencements increased from $1.8\%$ (2006) to $3.2\%$ (2020), but completions only reached $2.2\%$.

Jurisdictional Initiatives and Policy Responses

• Data Improvement: The Australian Teacher Workforce Data (ATWD) initiative connects ITE and workforce data, though it lacked a unified national demand/supply approach prior to recent QITE recommendations.

• NSW Action: "Quality Time" program to simplify administrative processes. Target of $2,500$ HALT-level teachers by 2025.

• Victoria Action: Reduced face-to-face teaching time by $1\,\text{hour}$ (2023) and an additional $0.5\,\text{hours}$ (2024). Created "Learning Specialist" and "Leading Teacher" roles.

• Queensland Action: "Teacher Rapid Response Team" to fill vacancies and "Turn to Teaching" program for postgraduate support.

• Northern Territory Action: Remote Aboriginal Teacher Education (RATE) program supporting teachers living on country.

• Federal Action:

  • $20,000$ new Commonwealth Supported Places (CSPs) in 2023-2024.

  • $\$50.8\,\text{million}$ for $5,000$ high-achiever bursaries.

  • $\$71.5\,\text{million}$ for the High Achieving Teachers Program (career switchers).

  • HELP debt reduction/waiver for teachers in very remote areas.

Questions & Discussion

• Data and Evidence:

  • How can we improve the ATWD collection to better track demand by subject and location?

  • What data is needed to understand why ITE students fail to complete degrees or why early career teachers leave?

• Status of the Profession:

  • How effective would a national recruitment campaign be in attracting and retaining teachers?

  • What other approaches can raise the status of the profession?

• Pathways and Conditions:

  • How should governments support professional development for those who wish to remain in the classroom?

  • What administrative tasks can be shifted to support staff who lack teaching qualifications?

• ITE Interventions:

  • What interventions are needed to address declining completion rates?

  • How can innovative ITE models (accelerated/employment-based) be designed for specific needs?

• Skilled Migration:

  • What other methods can attract overseas teachers, and what supports are needed for them once they arrive?

  • How do we ensure addressing shortages in early childhood does not worsen shortages in schools and vice versa?