Free technology courses offered at Deakin Uni to upskill teachers in technology field

Teachers covering technology classes without a qualification in the field will have the opportunity to upskill for free, leading to better jobs for Geelong students in the future.

Sophia Harris, a teacher in Digital Technologies at North Geelong Secondary College, says having colleagues upskilled into her field would help students. Picture: Alan Barber

Teachers covering technology classes without a qualification in the field will have the opportunity to upskill for free, with two new courses offered from next year.

From February, 2024, secondary teachers teaching digital technologies or design and technologies without specific qualifications will be eligible to upskill with a Graduate Certificate of Secondary Design and Technologies or a Graduate Certificate of Secondary Digital Technologies at Deakin University.

Technology teachers Sophia Harris and Jason dOffay, from North Geelong Secondary College and Geelong High School respectively, said it was important to upskill in the technology field because of its constant evolution.

Ms Harris said she had mentored many who were teaching out-of-field in technology subjects.

She said the sector didn’t have enough technology teachers, so upskilling other teachers was important.

“Because technology is an ever-changing area, you have to keep learning,” Ms Harris said.

Jason dOffay said technology teachers needed to constantly learn, or risk their knowledge becoming obsolete. Picture: David Smith

“(The new course) is such a great opportunity … in this role, you’re working on the cutting edge.”

Mr dOffay, STEM co-ordinator at Geelong High, said working in the “drastically different” digital age meant upskilling teachers ultimately led to better jobs for students down the line.

“We need to be upskilling our students to be able to get jobs in today’s world, so teachers need the skills and capacity to help students be industry ready post-secondary school,” he said.

“The growth of technology is so rapidthat even teachers that have a background in it are out of the loop if they’re not staying abreast with current changes and developments.”

Ms Harris said having teachers upskilled led to students being more engaged in their learning.

She said when the teacher fully understands the curriculum, students are able to have fun and be at their best.

Deakin’s Associate Professor Julianne Lynch said technology subjects were among the hardest learning areas to recruit in due to staff shortages, and had the highest rates of out-of-field teaching.

“More and more we are seeing teachers being required to fill staffing gaps in the curriculum and having to oversee classes they are not qualified to teach,” she said.

“Our new graduate certificates will give them the support they need to deliver the course content effectively and confidently.

“For regional teachers, this is an opportunity to access learning that is otherwise difficult to get to.”

Last year, a Deakin study revealed critical teacher shortages were adversely affecting rural and regional students’ learning outcomes, with fears for their future careers ignited as a result.

Fifty places have been fully funded by the Department of Education in both Graduate Certificates for 2024, with course content delivered part-time over two years.

For more information visit schools.vic.gov.au/secondary-sciences-technologies-and-mathematics-sstm-initiative

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Originally published as Free technology courses offered at Deakin Uni to upskill teachers in technology field