Qld Govt considers subsidising teacher training in bid to encourage more newcomers

The Queensland government is considering subsiding teacher training to encourage newcomers into the profession.

The state government is considering subsiding teacher training to encourage newcomers into the profession but has stopped short of offering free university degrees.

Queensland has been urged to follow the Victorian government which on Tuesday announced that secondary teaching degrees will become free in a $229m investment.

The (Victorian) scholarships will be available to all students who enrol in secondary school teaching degrees in 2024 and 2025 and is estimated to bring in 4000 new graduates.

It comes with Queensland in grips with an industry wide teacher shortage that has forced hundreds of unregistered teachers into classrooms.

Catholic Secondary Principals’ Association of Queensland president Dan McMahon urged the state government to follow Victoria’s lead.

The Shalom College principal said the teacher shortage had been looming for years and was now a crisis.

“It’s a shame it wasn’t done earlier,” Mr McMahon said of the Victorian decision.

“It’s a wonderful incentive to not have a HECS debt. The more encouragement the better and obviously that would be a very attractive thing for students.

The state government is considering subsidising teacher education as part of a range of ways to reduce the chronic teacher shortages.

“We have to attract more young people. The more encouragement the better.”

Mr McMahon said schools were left “scrambling” to fill voids, and while free degrees would not solve the immediate crisis he said schools would benefit in the long term.

Queensland Teachers’ Union president Cresta Richardson said it would welcome further conversations similar to those proposed in Victoria as well as national considerations for university courses like fee free or subsidised degrees.

Ms Richardson said while the new EBA agreement boosted teachers pay she stressed that Queensland remained in the grips of an industry wide staff shortage.

“Considering different ways to reduce the impact of the teacher shortage is essential for state, territory and federal governments,” Ms Richardson said

“Addressing the teacher shortage requires both actions to attract new teachers and to retain the experienced teachers and school leaders we already have.

“Those actions should include lightening the workload burden on the profession and improving student behaviour, including providing extra resources for those students who need more support.”

When asked if the state government was considering making degrees free, Education Minister Grace Grace said it was always looking at new ways to attract people into its classrooms.

“Teaching is a wonderful profession, and we are always looking at new and innovative ways to attract people from a variety of backgrounds in our classrooms,” Ms Grace said.

“Other programs are being developed, including looking at subsidising the cost of ITE (initial teacher education), and I look forward to being able to make further announcements in the future.”

Some of the existing programs include $20,000 scholarships to deliver high calibre professionals from other fields, including tradies, into teaching.

Aspiring teachers would also be supplied with mentoring support, a paid internship and a guaranteed permanent position in a Queensland state school.