The Morrison Government’s reforms to teacher training are delivering improvements.
According to the Australian Institute for Teaching and School Leadership (AITSL) Initial Teacher Education: Data Report 2019 released today:
- 87 per cent of employers were satisfied with the performance of teaching graduates.
- 86 per cent of undergraduates and 81 per cent of postgraduates reported their qualification prepared them for employment (for non-ITE programs – undergraduate: 69 per cent; postgraduate: 75 per cent).
- 64 per cent of ITE entrants had an ATAR higher than 70, up from 58, of entrants who entered ITE using an ATAR.
- Over the past decade, there has been an increase in the number of ITE students who commenced a Masters qualification (eight per cent in 2008 to 21 per cent in 2017).
Minister for Education Dan Tehan said he would ask state and territory education ministers to speed up the implementation of the Gonski Reforms at Education Council next week.
“Teachers can make the biggest difference to a student’s education and that is why our Government introduced reforms to improve teacher education,” Mr Tehan said. “We are starting to see the benefits of those reforms with more confident teachers entering the classroom and nearly nine out of ten employers expressing satisfaction with their teacher’s performance.
“Only 17 per cent of students enter ITE courses based on a reported ATAR, but the increase in candidates with an ATAR higher than 70 demonstrates the profession is attracting an increasingly higher standard of candidate.
“Our Government is driving further reforms to teaching. We have commissioned a review of the red tape burden on teachers and we will establish an evidence institute to promote best-practice in the classroom.
“As part of our focus on literacy, we are working with providers to ensure that trainee teachers learn how to teach phonics to their students. I want my state and territory colleagues to deliver learning progressions to empower teachers to better deliver highly-personalised, informed teaching plans.”
