Inquiry head confirms teacher supply concern

by Jennifer Leete

The decreasing number of teacher graduates concerns the person reviewing teacher education in NSW for Education Minister John Aquilina.

On May 4, the day teachers went on a 24-hour strike as part of their salaries and status campaign, Dr Gregor Ramsay, who is currently conducting a review into teacher education in NSW for the Education Minister, went public on the connection between teachers salaries and teacher supply.

He put on the record his concern about the reductions in numbers of teacher education graduates in the fields of science, mathematics and technology.

Dr Ramsay is certainly in a good position to know. His review has looked at each of the teacher education universities across Australia and in particular NSW. He is in no doubt that a problem exists and that a significant factor is teacher salaries and the broader matter of the status of teaching as a profession.

NSW National Party leader George Souris clearly knows where teacher shortages already exist across his constituency of county NSW. His National Party colleagues should understand the value placed by country communities on having a well-qualified and stable teaching service in country schools.

Education Minister John Aquilina’s response has been predictable. His senior bureaucrats are desperate to downplay the teacher shortage because it provides significant ammunition in support of substantial salary increases for teachers. He refers to the number of teachers with approval to teach, waiting on the Department of Education and Training’s (DET’s) employment lists for a permanent appointment. His bureaucrats are not telling him about country centres like Walgett, Balranald, Condobolin and Nyngan that suffer from frequent turnover of staff and inability to get appropriately qualified casual teachers.

The DET’s website includes a page headed "Teaching — a Popular Profession" which assures the reader of the thousands of young people striving to get into teaching. It points to the increased UAI scores for entry into teaching but forgets to mention that the number of teacher education places offered by universities in NSW has fallen dramatically.

Federation prefers to rely on less politicised sources of information for its evidence. Firstly, what members in country schools tell the union. Secondly, in Federation evidence before the Industrial Relations Commission, the union has relied upon the research of Barbara Preston, for the Australian Council of Deans of Education. She points to a shortfall across Australia with governments by 2004 only able to meet 81 per cent of demand for primary school teachers and only 66 per cent of demand for high school teachers.

DET continues its denial of the problem. They won’t even reply to Federation’s letters seeking urgent discussions on strategies to address the problem. Country schools are encouraged to communicate directly with the Minister on the shortages as they affect each school. His fax number is (02) 9561 8185 and his e-mail [email protected].

Jennifer Leete is the Deputy President.