Labor’s $5000 scholarships for men taking up primary and women science teacher degrees

Labor says it will offer $5000 to university students to become teachers, and demand a higher admission score to get into the course.

Scholarships worth $5000 for university students learning to be teachers will be created if Labor wins the state election.

The 400 scholarships would aim to encourage more men to become primary teachers, more women to teach sciences and more Aboriginal people to join the profession.

“This will change the future of hundreds of South Australian graduates and, in turn, the future of potentially thousands of students for years to come,” Opposition higher education spokeswoman Susan Close said.

A Labor government would also try to persuade universities to set minimum Australian Tertiary Admission Rank scores of 70 for entry into teaching courses.

Labor said entry ATAR scores had been in the low 60s in the past, although universities said there had been few or no courses with an ATAR entry below 70 this year.

Opposition Leader Peter Malinauskas said the quality of teaching was crucial to SA’s future.

“Young people represent our best chance to continue to enjoy living in an incredibly prosperous state with a bright and optimistic future,” he said.

“Nothing, absolutely nothing, is more important to the future of our state than the opportunities we provide young people – and education is absolutely central to that endeavour.”

Opposition Leader Peter Malinauskas and deputy Susan Close.

Newly graduated primary school teacher Romney Granger and son Saxon, 4.

Dr Close said preliminary discussions with university vice-chancellors had been positive.

Labor would not seek to intervene by changing legislation which gives university councils “unfettered discretion … to conduct its affairs in the manner it thinks fit”.

The strong relationship between a Labor government and universities would be employed to persuade universities on ATAR scores, Dr Close said.

She acknowledged many students get into courses by other pathways but hoped universities would accept the principle of lifting standards for entry.

Flinders University vice-chancellor Colin Stirling said the ATAR threshold for education was already 70 but not the only determining factor.

“ATAR is not, and should not be, the only basis for university admission; for example older students are often admitted on the basis of later qualifications or experience,” he said.

Adelaide University deputy vice-chancellor Jennie Shaw said all 2021 entrants for teaching based on ATARs were above the 70 mark.

“Many of our new teaching students achieved ATARs in the 90s, with some achieving above 99,” she said.

A UniSA spokeswoman ATARs were only one measure and the university looked to broader indicators.

The spokeswoman said UniSA backed initiatives such as scholarships, particularly if they helped address issues such as teacher shortages in regional areas.

There would be 100 scholarships a year for four years, and they would be competitive.

Selection criteria and other conditions would be set after consultation, with the aim of attracting men to primary schools, women to sciences and more Aboriginal people.

The $5000 would be paid upfront to help cover the high initial costs faced by students and would not necessarily have to be paid back if a student dropped out.

Opposition education spokesman Blair Boyer said low entry scores to teaching degrees had the perverse effect of making the courses less attractive to school leavers.

“Teaching is a highly respected profession around the world and we need to make sure talented people from diverse backgrounds consider it as an option,” he said.

On Thursday, the ALP told The Advertiser it was scrapping long-held Labor policies on dealing with underperforming teachers.

Principals would have greater powers to instigate improvement training followed by dismissal within 10 weeks if a teacher failed to respond.

New UniSA graduate Romney Granger is awaiting his teacher registration ahead of starting his career in primary schools next year.

“Having more men will provide role models to both boys and girls to show that men can be kind and nurturing,” he said.