Australian Educator Autumn 25

Making a difference // Teachers discuss positive changes

Election 2025 Defending what we’ve won Australian

Community focus // What the community sector needs

Early years boost // Encouraging moves in early childhood

International agendas // The far-right is decimating public education

FULLY FUNDED PUBLIC SCHOOLS WORTH VOTING FOR 1

LABOR

COALITION THE GREENS

Supports fully funding public schools Supports fully funding public schools Has never supported fully funding public schools

Vote for a better education for every child in public schools.

Authorised

• Temporary learning spaces in Vanuatu help students return to school

• Digital check-in tool My Mind Check

• Pandemic students score highly in international assessment.

What to consider for public education and worker's rights when making your choice.

Australian Council of Trade Unions secretary identifies 40 new workplace rights now at risk.

Recent developments in the early childhood education sector have transformed a previously neglected workforce.

The introduction of Free TAFE by the Albanese government has been transformative for priority groups.

The past two years have seen aged care reform, wage increases and support for nursing students. But what could the future hold under a Coalition government?

Teachers across the country comment on recent changes.

A change in government could have catastrophic repercussions for the rights of First Nations

Leaders from the community sector offer insights on the benefit of a fully funded public education system.

Experts from New Zealand and the USA weigh in on the effects of a conservative government on public education.

The start of the year brings four new teachers who we will follow on their teaching journeys throughout 2025.

Education International is leading the charge with the Go Public! Fund Education Campaign.

A light at the end

The work of our union is vital in ensuring the integrity and accessibility of public education.

For more than a decade, AEU members have fought to get public schools funded to 100 per cent of the Schooling Resource Standard (SRS).

We have fought this battle from the day the Gonski Review was released. Finally now that goal is in sight – with no tricks, no rorts.

Prime minister Anthony Albanese announced in January that the federal government would increase its SRS contribution from 20 per cent to 25 per cent and remove the accounting tricks that let states artificially inflate their SRS contributions by 4 per cent.

A genuine partnership – the Commonwealth will be putting in 25 per cent of the SRS everywhere (except the Northern Territory which will receive 40 per cent) and the states putting in a genuine 75 per cent share.

Education is now firmly on the election agenda because of our campaigning. It is an outcome that will be felt for generations.

This announcement of full funding will have ongoing positive benefits for public education and will be a legacy for the Albanese government.

We know there is work to be done to finalise the funding agreements across the nation and we cannot rest until we see every public school fully funded.

Across politics, we have had the Australian Greens and many members of the crossbench champion the cause of public schools funding.

Senators Jacquie Lambie, Fatima Payman, David Pocock, Lidia Thorpe and Tammy Tyrell, and the Greens, have been vocal in their support for public education in the Senate. In the House of Representatives Andrew Wilkie, Sophie Scamps, Kate Chaney, and the Greens, have been vocal about full and fair funding for schools.

So far Peter Dutton has been silent on the prime minister’s commitment to 100 per cent of the SRS with a minimum Commonwealth share of 25 per cent.

The election choice is clear: a Labor government that

Australian Educator (ISSN: 0728-8387) is published for the Australian Education Union by Hardie Grant Media. The magazine is circulated to members of the AEU nationally.

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will invest in public schools, a Coalition government that will cut. Public schools on the road to full funding or public schools on the road to nowhere.

The history of Australia’s public school funding is long and complex but to truly understand where we are today, and to understand the risks of a Dutton government to public education in Australia, we must first examine the actions of past Coalition governments.

In 2012, the Gonski Review highlighted the disparities in school funding across Australia and called for a new funding model and a new level of cooperation between the Commonwealth and state and territory governments.

The review recommended an SRS – a standard that sets the minimum funding per student required so that schools can have at least 80 per cent of their students achieving learning outcomes above the national minimum standard in NAPLAN for reading and numeracy. This was never an aspirational goal.

The Gillard government then moved towards the implementation of the SRS with agreements designed to lift all schools to at least 95 per cent of the SRS by 2019.

But Labor lost the 2013 election, and an Abbott government was elected.

Tony Abbott famously said there would be “no cuts to education” and the Coalition would honour the agreements and match “dollar for dollar” the commitments made by Labor. But his first budget put an end to that with a $30 billion cut to school funding.

In 2017, the Turnbull government ripped up signed Gonski agreements with five governments and changed the law to ensure the Commonwealth was funding 80 per cent of the SRS for private schools and just 20 per cent for public schools.

Scott Morrison went further with new bilateral agreements with the states and territories that entrenched inequality and saw 98 per cent of private schools funded at the SRS or above it.

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In contrast, only 1.3 per cent of public schools reached the SRS by 2023 – those in the ACT.

To make matters worse, Scomo allowed states and the NT to artificially inflate their public school SRS shares by 4 per cent through the inclusion of non-school costs such as capital depreciation.

The Coalition has long believed that the federal government should only fund private schools not public schools and their policies have directly contributed to the growing divide between private and public education.

While private schools have reaped the rewards of additional funding, public schools have been denied critical education resources.

We have made significant advances in public school funding under the Albanese government. We cannot allow a Dutton government to take us backwards.

Dutton has spent three years attacking and undermining teachers, making clear he will address what he sees as “woke agendas” and “indoctrination”.

He has taken a leaf out of Donald Trump’s playbook and wants to tell teachers what to teach and how to teach it. That includes mandating explicit direct instruction in every classroom.

The politicisation of education – such as attacking a “woke agenda”, as Dutton puts it – sends a dangerous message about the role of knowledge in society.

In a democratic society, such trends are deeply concerning, as they undermine the principles of free thought and expression. We are seeing this in the US under Donald Trump and the far-right agenda. We can’t let that happen here.

The decisions we make as a country on election day will shape the opportunities and outcomes for future generations. We must ensure that every parent, principal, teacher and support staff knows what is at stake.

That means intensive engagement with public education communities, with the ACTU and our allies in the union movement, community organisations, and parent and principal organisations.

It means a national and local advertising campaign that reflects the magnitude of the choice facing voters.

Together we are entrusted with the responsibility to lead this election effort. We know what is at stake. Now, we need to deliver.

Correna Haythorpe AEU federal president

Advertising manager

Kerri Spillane

Tel: (03) 8520 6444

Email: kerrispillane@ hardiegrant.com

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Copyright rests with the writers, the AEU and Hardie Grant Media. No part of this publication may be reproduced without the prior permission of the copyright holders. The opinions expressed in the magazine are not necessarily the official policy of the AEU.

Know your union

With a federal office and branches or associated bodies in every state and territory, the AEU represents more than 195,000 members industrially and professionally.

AEU FEDERAL

120 Clarendon St, Southbank, VIC, 3006

Phone: +61 3 9693 1800

Email: aeu@aeufederal.org.au

Web: aeufederal.org.au

AEU ACT BRANCH

Branch president

Angela Burroughs

Branch secretary

Patrick Judge

1/71 Leichhardt Street

Kingston ACT 2604

Phone: 02 6272 7900

Email: aeuact@aeuact.org.au

Web: aeuact.org.au

AEU SA BRANCH

Branch president

Jennie-Marie Gorman

Branch secretary

Matthew Cherry

163 Greenhill Road

Parkside 5063

Phone: 08 8172 6300

Email: aeusa@aeusa.asn.au

Web: aeusa.asn.au

AEU VIC BRANCH

Branch president

Justin Mullaly

Branch secretary

Erin Aulich

126 Trenerry Crescent

Abbotsford 3067

Phone: 03 9417 2822

Email: melbourne@aeuvic.asn.au

Web: aeuvic.asn.au

NEW

SOUTH WALES TEACHERS FEDERATION

President

Henry Rajendra

General secretary

Maxine Sharkey

23-33 Mary Street

Surry Hills 2010

Phone: 02 9217 2100

Email: mail@nswtf.org.au

Web: nswtf.org.au

Federal president

Correna Haythorpe

Federal secretary

Kevin Bates

AEU NT BRANCH

Branch president

Michelle Ayres

Branch secretary

Rachael Metcalfe

3/8 Totem Road

Coconut Grove 0811

Phone: 08 8948 5399

Email: admin@aeunt.org.au

Web: aeunt.org.au

AEU TAS BRANCH

Branch president

David Genford

Branch state manager

Brian Wightman

1/32 Patrick Street

Hobart 7000

Phone: 03 6234 9500

Email: support@aeutas.org.au

Web: aeutas.org.au

QUEENSLAND

TEACHERS’ UNION

President

Cresta Richardson

General secretary

Kate Ruttiman

21 Graham Street

Milton 4064

Phone: 07 3512 9000

Email: qtu@qtu.asn.au

Web: qtu.asn.au

STATE SCHOOL

TEACHERS UNION OF WESTERN AUSTRALIA

President

Matthew Jarman

General secretary

Mary Franklyn

1 West Street West Perth 6005

Phone: 08 9210 6000

Email: contact@sstuwa.org.au

Web: sstuwa.org.au

News in brief

Engaging

teens

Vanuatu students back at school

Vanuatu’s education ministry, with support from international aid organisations, is working to set up temporary learning spaces for the new school year after the destruction of an earthquake late last year.

At least 14 people were killed when a magnitude 7.3 earthquake struck just off the capital Port Vila on 17 December, causing widespread destruction of vital infrastructure and triggering landslides. It was followed by powerful aftershocks.

Hundreds of people were injured, 570 houses were damaged and 110 classrooms at 45 schools were partly or completely destroyed.

UNICEF Australia says at least 80,000 people were affected by the disaster and more than 40,000 children need humanitarian support. School equipment was damaged or lost, and schools face many logistical challenges as they prepare for the return of students.

The Council of Pacific Education (COPE), of which the AEU is an affiliate, made an immediate contribution of $10,000 from its disaster relief fund to the Vanuatu Teachers Union to assist with the emergency response.

A psychosocial support campaign has been launched by the education ministry for children traumatised by the earthquake.

Most students start kindergarten loving school, but by Year 3 only 75 per cent enjoy school and by Year 10 it falls to 25 per cent, according to a new book, The Disengaged Teen: Helping Kids Learn Better, Feel Better and Live Better.

The authors, journalist Jenny Anderson and the Brookings Institution’s global education expert Rebecca Winthrop, spent five years researching why children lose their love of learning in adolescence and studied teens who had successfully transformed their relationship with learning.

“Our research found that students disengage from school slowly over time and the signs can often be hard to see. Sometimes students look like they are engaged – following directions, not disrupting the class – but are actually beginning to disconnect from their learning,” they write.

Based on their research, Anderson and Winthrop identify four modes of student engagement and recommend several small shifts teachers can make to maintain and improve engagement. These include:

• Providing short explanations for the reasons behind rules, requests, and procedures to help students understand their purpose.

• Giving directions using “invitational language” rather than in a commandand-control style.

• Offering choice where possible. The authors also recommend seeking students’ perspectives on their learning.

“One approach is to give students at the end of class an index card, a sticky note, or an electronic exit ticket and ask them ‘What is one remaining question about the lesson they would like to clarify or learn more about?’.”

Monitoring students’ mental health

Schools can now support students with a free digital check-in tool to help their mental health and wellbeing.

My Mind Check was designed by youth mental health experts at Macquarie University and is based on clinical research and consultation with education, health and community organisations.

The tool, funded by the federal government, is expected to act as a pathway to early intervention, and to help students experiencing difficulties from falling behind.

With caregiver or student permission,

the platform allows schools to carry out a 10–15 minute check in with students throughout the school year, to assess whether they may benefit from further information or attention. mymindcheck.org.au

Pandemic students score highly

Year 4 students who started school during the COVID-19 pandemic have defied concerns about their disrupted learning by achieving Australia’s best result in an international maths and science assessment.

The Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS) report analyses the performance of students in Years 4 and 8. It shows that Australian Year 4 students performed in the top 10 of 58 countries that took part in science and placed 14th in maths, a significantly higher result than the previous TIMSS assessment in 2019.

Lead report author Nicole Wernert says that young students are engaged with their learning, even in challenging circumstances, which reflects well on teachers and parents.

Year 8 students have maintained the achievement levels set in previous years, with similar results to those recorded in 2019. In 2023, they were outperformed by eight countries in maths and seven countries in science, out of 44. Singapore was the top performing country in both domains and age groups.

However, there was a “disappointing” gender gap in favour of boys’ achievement across year levels and domains, says Wernert. Internationally, Australia and France recorded the widest gender gap in Year 4 maths achievement.

Australia has participated in all eight cycles of TIMSS since 1995, with the Australian Council for Educational Research (ACER) managing the implementation and reporting in Australia.

ACER research has found that Australia’s 15-year-old students are the secondhighest achieving creative thinkers in a study of 64 countries.

The research is based on data from more than 13,000 Australian students, principals and teachers who took part in the latest OECD Program for International Student Assessment (PISA).

The PISA creative thinking assessment, introduced for the first time in 2022, measured students’ abilities to generate original and diverse ideas, evaluate ideas and improve ideas.

2 April

World Autism Awareness Day

16 May

Education Support Personnel Day

17 May

International Day Against Homophobia, Biphobia and Transphobia (IDAHOBIT)

22 May

National Public Education Day

5 June

World Environment Day

12 June

World Day Against Child Labour

This vote will change everything for public schools

The result of the upcoming federal election will decide the path of Australia’s education system and the future of the teaching profession.

There’s a stark choice facing voters this year thanks to the major parties’ radically different views on teaching and learning and, critically, how schools should be funded.

AEU federal president Correna Haythorpe says the choice is between Labor’s vision for fully funded public schools where teachers and students have the support they need or a Dutton government that plans to tell teachers what to teach and how to teach it and deny them the support and resources they need. Peter Dutton claims “ideologically driven advocates” have too much influence over what is taught.

“Kids are being indoctrinated from preschool where all sorts of woke agendas are part of the curriculum … it then progresses … all the way through to high school. And there are a lot of teachers there who are masquerading as teachers, but who are really either climate zealots or other social issues that they’re obsessed with,” he says.

By contrast, Minister for Education Jason Clare celebrates the work of teachers, telling Parliament:

“Everything they do helps our kids to aim higher, to work harder, to be braver and to believe in themselves.”

Prime minister Anthony Albanese too has praised teachers and educators, saying: “Hardworking, dedicated educators who have slogged hard through the terms, through the years, all of them working to make sure that holding open the doors of opportunity is not a lofty ideal, but a lived reality – and an Australian tradition.”

He describes public schools as an essential part of the fabric of Australia and recognises that “education is the single most powerful weapon we have against disadvantage. And it’s the single best investment we can make in our nation’s future”.

LABOR’S GROUNDBREAKING PLEDGE

In January, the prime minister made a landmark commitment to deliver full funding of public schools.

In agreements struck with Victoria and South Australia, he guaranteed to lift the federal share of public school funding from 20 per cent of the Schooling Resource Standard (SRS) to 25 per cent.

The SRS is the minimum level of funding schools require to meet the needs of all students.

State and territory governments are required to fund the remaining 75 per cent of the SRS and remove clauses in previous agreements that allow them to count nonschool costs of $2 billion a year as part of their share of funding.

With NSW signing on in March, the federal government is aiming to finalise agreements with every state and territory to deliver full funding to the minimum standard of 100 per cent of the SRS by 2034.

Haythorpe says full funding will mean guaranteed funding increases for schools over the next decade, allowing for the employment of additional teachers, more small group and individual support for struggling students and more support for teachers inside the classroom via additional education support workers.

It will also mean more specialist support in schools such as counsellors and speech pathologists.

“We’ve been campaigning for more than a decade for schools to be funded to 100 per cent of the SRS, which was the original

recommendation of the Gonski review in 2011,” says Haythorpe. “The Albanese government’s commitment is testament to the efforts of teachers, principals, support staff and community members who have worked tirelessly to deliver it.”

The government has also made serious inroads in addressing the teacher shortage crisis, announcing teaching scholarships of up to $40,000 to new undergraduates and payments to teaching students during their practicums, in addition to tuition-free teaching degrees and HELP debt reduction.

COALITION CONSERVATIVE AGENDA TROUBLING

The Coalition has never expressed support for the full funding of public schools. It has not responded to requests for clarification on its position before this edition of Australian Educator was finalised.

“You can’t trust the Coalition on school funding,” says Haythorpe.

“The last time they were in government, they promised to honour school funding agreements but then ripped them up and cut $14 billion from public schools in 2017,” she says.

“Scott Morrison struck agreements with state and territory governments in 2018 that saw only 1.3 per cent of public schools fully funded by 2023. By contrast 98 per cent of private schools were funded at or above the SRS.”

New official data from the Australian Curriculum, Assessment and Reporting Authority highlights the disparity between public and private school funding.

Private schools are receiving 27 per cent more recurrent income from all sources per student than public schools.

The capital expenditure gap is also increasing. In 2023, it was 2.1 times more than public schools, up from 1.5 times more in 2021.

STARK DIFFERENCES IN TEACHING AND LEARNING

The major parties’ ideas about teaching and learning are also diametrically opposed.

Dutton has consistently attacked teachers, questioning their professionalism and claiming children are being indoctrinated in schools.

The Coalition’s plan for schools includes overhauling the national curriculum,

WHAT PETER DUTTON SAYS ABOUT TEACHING

AND LEARNING

“We send our children to school for an education, not an indoctrination.”

“I think parents have had a gutful of kids coming home preached to and indoctrinated on all sorts of agendas except maths and English.”

“Our kids shouldn’t be going to schools to be turned out as disciples of a woke ideology and agenda. They are there to learn and understand our history.”

“We need to hear more teachers tell their students that the roads, the bridges and railways we travel on have been constructed thanks to the contributions of the mining sector.”

mandating explicit/direct instruction in every classroom and introducing a behaviour curriculum for students.

The Albanese government’s schools funding plans are tied to reforms including a Year 1 phonics and numeracy check to identify students who need extra help, wellbeing programs including access to mental health professionals in schools, high-quality and evidence-based professional learning and new initiatives to improve the attraction and retention of teachers.

ANTHONY ALBANESE ON TEACHING AND LEARNING

“All Australians can proudly point to public education as one of our great strengths as a nation. A quality education system that is available to everyone regardless of their postcode, their wealth, faith or ethnicity.”

“Hardworking, dedicated educators who have slogged hard through the terms, through the years, all of them working to make sure that holding open the doors of opportunity is not a lofty ideal, but a lived reality –and an Australian tradition.”

“Education is the single most powerful weapon we have against disadvantage. And it’s the single best investment we can make in our nation’s future.”

GREENS CALL FOR MORE PUBLIC SCHOOL FUNDING

The Greens have called for full funding to 100 per cent of the SRS for public schools by July this year. Their election commitments also include a capital fund for public schools and additional funding of $2.4 billion for public schools so fees can be abolished. Leader of the Australian Greens Adam Bandt says governments are underfunding public schools and shifting the costs onto parents.

Defending what we’ve won: 40 new rights at risk

It’s important to protect and improve the rights we have and to pass them on to the next generation.

Sally McManus Australian Council of Trade Unions secretary

Winning better workplace rights at a national level for Australian workers is not an easy thing to do. For many (but not all) people working in public education, your workplace rights are set by state governments. But for 85 per cent of Australia’s workforce, and those in Victoria, the Australian Capital Territory and the Northern Territory, it is the federal government that makes these laws.

This was not always the case. When John Howard’s government brought in an Orwellian law called WorkChoices, it pushed nearly all workers under federal workplace laws. So, what federal governments do with workers’ rights matters, big time.

We have not seen significant improvements for more than 30 years. Why is it so hard to get change? The first reason is that Australia’s economy is dominated by a few industries and a relatively small number of big companies. Think mining, banking and supermarkets. Add Qantas to the mix, and the CEOs of

companies such as BHP, Woodside, CBA, ANZ, Woolworths and Coles, which can exert a lot of pressure on any government. The economies of most similar countries are way more diverse.

And there is one thing that unites these CEOs – they do not want workers to have more rights because they want to keep their wages bill as low as possible. And they band together when they need to, just like we do.

The second reason is that any new law must pass both houses of parliament and it is rare for one party to have the numbers in both houses. This means convincing senate crossbenchers to vote in favour of new rights for workers.

Australian unions have been campaigning for change for more than a decade – for better rights to stop wage theft, equality for working women, better bargaining rights to get pay rises and better job security for everyone. We did this because we could see the problems –wage theft had become a business model; real wages stopped growing for 10 years; the gender pay gap wasn’t closing; and permanent jobs were being casualised.

When the Albanese government was elected, we knew there was a lot of work to do and we knew that the CEOs and

There can be no change without a government that is committed to supporting workers...

big business lobby groups would throw everything at pressuring the government to do nothing or the absolute minimum.

While it has been unions that campaigned for these improvements, credit must be given to the Labor government, along with the Greens and crossbenchers such as senator David Pocock, who withstood the demands and pressure from Australia’s biggest companies. Those CEOs worked overtime knocking on doors and spent $126 million campaigning to stop workers winning better rights.

There can be no change without a government that is committed to supporting workers and prepared to withstand the big-business campaign, which is always backed by much of the mainstream media.

The Labor government promised to fix workers’ rights to get wages moving and improve job security and this is what they delivered: 40 new rights and gamechanging improvements.

And what’s the result? Wage rises are at 15-year highs, real wages are growing again, we have a record number of permanent jobs, and the gender pay gap is at its lowest in recorded history.

Peter Dutton has already promised to take away these rights if he is elected. I’m sure you didn’t miss it, but the Liberals also said they do not support Fee-Free TAFE because, in their view, people do not value something if it is free. As a unionist, the most important job I think we have is to protect and improve our existing rights and pass them on to the next generation.

This generation has fulfilled its promise, but it is now our job to defend what we have won and not let Peter Dutton take any of it away from us.

Positive change

A small change in rules or regulations can make a huge impact on the working and professional lives of teachers and their students. We asked teachers across the country about recent changes that have had an impact.

Permanent employment

Job security provides confidence that you will be able to support yourself and your family, says Adult Migrant English Program teacher Shahnaz Tafreshi, who teaches at TAFE Queensland’s South Bank campus.

Tafreshi had been a teacher in Iran for 25 years before arriving in Australia. She began teaching at TAFE about five years ago, first as a casual teacher, then on contract.

But she didn’t feel truly secure until she was made permanent in 2024 after representations by the Queensland Teachers Union.

“Permanency allows me to focus on teaching better instead of worrying about the future,” she says, adding that she’s concerned for colleagues who have yet to be made permanent.

Tafreshi wants to see government policies that continue to work towards smaller class sizes and appropriate resources to support students, plus professional development for teachers.

Permanency allows me to focus on teaching better instead of worrying about the future.

Shahnaz Tafreshi

SHAHNAZ TAFRESHI

RHYS KABLE

Right to disconnect

Rhys Kable says the new national right to disconnect rule, which allows workers to refuse to monitor, read or respond to contacts outside of working hours has positively changed workplace culture.

“It used to be that I’d start the day with a half a dozen or so emails from people who’d clearly been working late at night on the administrative tasks that we’re required to do,” says Kable, a HSIE (Human Society and its Environment) teacher at Mudgee High School in New South Wales.

“But that’s really reduced now because people tend to be sending emails before they head home.”

Transformative changes for teachers

“The Teacher Workforce Action Plan has brought hope for addressing the teacher shortage across Western Australia. WA’s targeted recruitment strategies and support for regional schools reflect a strong commitment to ensuring every student has access

The right to disconnect changes to the Fair Work Act came into effect in August 2024.

Despite not directly impacting state employees, the change has helped remove some of the burden from teachers struggling under an increasing weight of extra administrative requirements.

“It’s fantastic that effectively there’s an acknowledgment that you don’t need to get a response to an email at 10pm,” says Kable.

He says that since the rule change people no longer expect an early morning response to an email sent the night before.

“It’s begun a shift of the culture, which for something that might seem so minor is really powerful.”

Kable would like to see other, widesweeping changes to policy that help to reduce the inequity experienced by public school students and those living in rural and regional communities.

“There’s an entrenchment of social isolation and exclusion for people from less fortunate backgrounds. I’m really concerned the gap is just going to continue to widen,” he says.

“We talk about building societies and inclusive communities of active citizens who are positive and vibrant members in those communities, but funding disparities between private and public schools in city and country areas have a massively detrimental effect on that goal.”

It’s begun a shift of the culture, which for something that might seem so minor is really powerful.

Rhys Kable

to quality education. Initiatives such as international recruitment and attraction and retention incentives have provided immediate relief in some schools while addressing longterm workforce challenges.

Free teacher education and the forthcoming paid teaching practicums are transformative. By removing financial barriers, these measures make the profession more accessible to diverse individuals and career changers. Paid practicums, in particular, allow aspiring teachers to focus on classroom experience without financial stress, resulting in better-prepared graduates.

Recent government legislation, such as expanded affordable childcare, has greatly benefited staff.

For working parents, this has eased the pressure of balancing professional and personal commitments, although we still have an issue accessing childcare as access to childcare is extremely difficult in regional and remote areas.

The teacher shortage has posed challenges at our school, such as increased workloads for staff and difficulties maintaining consistent subject offerings and relief pressure on the school.

However, government actions, including targeted regional recruitment and incentives for earlycareer teachers, look like they may make a positive difference.”

Principal Broome Senior High School, WA

Mathew Burt

Upgraded allowance

A long-awaited change to a remote area classification has made a big difference for English and history secondary school teacher Tom Hermes at Laynhapuy Homelands School in the Northern Territory.

The upgrade from a category one allowance to category three provides an extra financial incentive. But, for Hermes, the most useful benefits are an extra airfare each year and more study leave points. Teachers who stay in a category three location for four years accrue enough points to take six months paid study leave, compared with 10 years for a category one location.

It’s a win for the school and community as it supports teacher attraction and retention. The school’s teachers live in Yirrkala, a category one remote area, but fly each week to their very remote school – staying there for around four days and three nights. The school is in a category three remote area.

It’ll be too late for Hermes to take advantage of the study leave bonus – he’s already put in four years at the school and the allowance upgrade isn’t retrospective – but he’s happy that the school, and ultimately the students, will benefit.

“It's going to be a big boost for the school's ability to attract teachers and to retain the staff we’ve got. We’ve certainly had teaching staff leave in the past because they decided that if they’re going to work in a very remote area they might as well go to one that’s recognised as category three so they can accrue the extra points,” he says.

The federal government’s injection of extra funding for NT public schools also helps provide the minimum standard of funding required, says Hermes.

The extra funds double the federal government contribution to 40 per cent

of the benchmark Schooling Resource Standard (SRS). The NT government will fund the remaining 60 per cent under the National Schools Reform Agreement. “It’s a big positive,” says Hermes.

HELP debt cuts

Maths and science teacher Adoni Fiotakis is happy and relieved with the Albanese government’s cuts to student loan debt.

Close to $20 billion in student debt will be wiped out, according to government estimates, with a cap on the HELP indexation rate, an increase in the minimum repayment threshold and a drop in repayment rates.

Fiotakis began teaching at Taroona High School in Hobart in 2024 after graduating in 2023 “with a significant debt hanging over my head”.

“The debt is very intimidating, and it’s stopped people I know from beginning a degree of any type, let alone education,” Fiotakis says.

“Just having a reduced debt helps in a lot of ways for me, including looking for a loan and improving my quality of life, although not as much as having the full debt waived, which would have been life changing,” he says.

“It's still higher than anyone would like it to be, and the fact that the debt rises at all is incredibly frustrating. But the drop has been very welcome and a nice change. It’s made prospects brighter in the future for a lot of things,” says Fiotakis.

Action on workforce shortages

Andrew Beattie, principal at Queensland’s Mt Gravatt State High School, who struggles daily during term to deal with teacher shortages, is buoyed by the priorities outlined in the Teacher Workforce Action Plan.

“We’re a preferred school in Brisbane, but we have large numbers of teachers teaching outside their trained teaching areas and we have difficulty finding suitably qualified teachers to replace staff on leave. This has had a significant impact on our other teachers’ workloads and student learning outcomes,” says Beattie.

But the Workforce Action Plan and the introduction of free teacher education and paid teacher practicums are practical government interventions that will bolster the profession, he says.

“Free teacher education and paid practicums provide a tangible financial benefit for those considering studying at university and make the teaching profession a more attractive career than other professions.” Beattie says teachers will be watching closely to make sure the Action Plan is implemented with “fidelity and rigour” to ensure, for example, that its mention of “alternative pathways” into teaching don’t undermine the quality of the profession.

Meanwhile, the federal government’s recent expansion of access to quality early childhood education and care has been a big benefit for teachers and schools, says Beattie.

“The cost of childcare has been a financial barrier to staff returning from maternity or paternity leave.”

“Often the fraction they return to work is based on childcare costs rather than their preference for how they wish to return to their profession. But expanded affordable childcare means they can now choose what’s best for their family rather than be driven by the costs,” Beattie says.

TOM HERMES

ANDREW BEATTIE

ADONI FIOTAKIS

Positive moves strengthen profession

“As an early childhood teacher in a long day care setting in Victoria, set to benefit from the 15 per cent pay increase, I’ve experienced firsthand the positive impact of the Early Childhood Education and Care Multi-Employer Agreement 2024–2026 on our profession. This agreement has brought much-needed equity and consistency to the sector, addressing long-standing wage disparities. The Worker Retention Payment (EWRP) has been

particularly valuable, providing essential financial recognition for our hard work.

For me, it has created a more secure and sustainable career, where my skills and dedication to nurturing the youngest learners are better recognised and valued.

With the EWRP, we hope to see reduced workforce turnover and burnout, as teachers and educators no longer need to work multiple jobs, which means stronger relationships with children and families.

However, the fact that the EWRP is funded for only two years is a significant issue. Temporary measures like this create uncertainty and could undermine the progress we’ve made. For longterm success, this funding needs to become permanent and ongoing.

Multi-employer bargaining has also fostered a sense of unity across services. Through collaborative negotiations, we’ve been able to advocate for better

This agreement has brought muchneeded equity and consistency to the sector, addressing long-standing wage disparities.

conditions that not only benefit the sector but also children and families as we are able to have greater focus on delivering quality education and care.

As we approach the next federal election, I can’t help but feel a mix of hope and concern.

My hope is that these positive changes will continue to strengthen our profession and elevate the early childhood sector’s status. However, I worry about the uncertainty that comes with potential policy shifts or changes in government priorities.

It’s crucial that progress in supporting educators doesn’t stagnate or, worse, regress.

Investing in the early years benefits everyone – educators, children, families, and society as a whole. I hope the next government, whatever its composition, will build on these gains to ensure that early childhood education continues to be a valued and sustainable profession.”

Lorraine Cotter Teacher, Starfish Early Learning Blackburn South, Victoria

Teacher, Starfish Early Learning Blackburn South, Victoria

Lorraine Cotter

Recognising Australia’s First Peoples

A change of government risks a massive backwards step for the rights and self-determination of Aboriginal Peoples and Torres Strait Islander Peoples.

The Albanese government has shown a commitment to Aboriginal Peoples and Torres Strait Islander Peoples through strengthening political representation, investment in education and new frameworks to support children; however, all the gains of past and present governments may be overturned as agendas shift.

This includes Albanese’s establishment of the National Commission for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Children and Young People, and the First Nations Teachers Strategy and Implementation Plan, which aims to attract and retain more Aboriginal Teachers and Torres Strait Islander Teachers and funding for the First Nations Languages Education Program, run in partnership with First Languages Australia to promote Aboriginal Languages and Torres Strait Islander Languages and cultural education in schools.

Opposition leader Peter Dutton historically has not supported Aboriginal Peoples’ and Torres Strait Islander Peoples’ right to Voice, Treaty or Truth, and boycotted the apology to the Stolen Generations.

During a campaign speech in January, Dutton outlined the first of his plans if elected – including rolling back renewable energy and prioritising new mines, gas projects, live sheep exports and salmon farming.

Specifically for First Nations communities, he said “the coalition government’s priority to focus on practical action for Indigenous Australians” and plans to increase government oversight and control, including:

• A full audit into spending on Indigenous programs

• Reintroduce the Cashless Debit Card

Governments must recognise us, respect us, fund us and work with us to build education systems that respond to the needs of all children.

Already in Queensland and the Northern Territory as conservative governments have taken power, policy shifts have shown intent to overturn hard-won gains in Aboriginal Peoples’ and Torres Strait Islander Peoples’ rights and wellbeing.

Blake Cansdale, National Director, Change the Record

for working-aged welfare recipients in Indigenous communities where drugs and alcohol are prevalent

• Bolster law and order in crimeheavy communities

• Hold a Royal Commission into Sexual Abuse in Indigenous Communities.

Within months of taking office, the Queensland Liberal government abolished the state's Truth-telling and Healing Inquiry and repealed its Path to Treaty Act, denying Aboriginal Peoples and Torres Strait Islander Peoples the chance to accurately convey the state’s history and overturning the advancement of their human rights. It also has said it will not raise the age of criminal responsibility from 10 years of age. Premier David Crisafulli announced mandatory minimum sentences for minors for murder, an increase of “base threshold” sentences for certain offences and an amending of the Youth Justice Act to remove "detention as a last resort".

In the Northern Territory, one of the first acts of the Country Liberal Party (CLP) government was to lower the age of criminal responsibility from 12 to 10 years of age, going against global human rights norms. This punitive approach typically costs communities and society much more than investing in public education, which can change children’s lives and offer future pathways and hope, rather than imprisoning them. The CLP also scrapped the government’s Local Decision-Making portfolio, which supported Aboriginal selfdetermination, and has abandoned and dismantled the Treaty process that has been running for seven years.

In education, the previous territory government shifted school funding from attendance to enrolment and under the Better and Fairer Schools Agreement (BFSA) partnered with the federal government to get Northern Territory public schools fully funded by 2029. This in turn will see schools receive not only full funding, but also see increased Schooling Resource Standard (SRS) loadings for Aboriginal Students and Torres Strait Islander Students.

So far the CLP has endorsed the $1 billion BFSA funding deal, but has come out strongly against bilingual schools, removing targeted bilingual funding programs and has taken a hard-line position on school attendance. The CLP is bringing back school truancy officers and supporting school-based policing, choosing to spend money criminalising students and fining their parents rather than working with communities to support re-engagement programs and it has given police new powers to use metal-detecting wands in schools.

Aboriginal Communities and Torres Strait Islander Communities say these policies are punitive and threaten cultural preservation and the wellbeing of Aboriginal Children and Torres Strait Islander Children. For communities, the CLP’s antagonistic reform agenda has so far been somewhat metered by the Albanese government but, if the federal government changes, even more farreaching effects on communities are expected.

Unfortunately, it all adds up to evidence for what Liberal governments do about First Nations matters when they come into power.

Rights-based approach

The education of First Nations Children – rooted in our past, shaped by our present, and guided by our hopes for the future – is a critical and far-reaching issue.

In the Northern Territory, the new Country Liberal Party government's policies take a punitive turn, ignoring the complex barriers faced by First Nations Communities. These conservative measures risk setting a dangerous precedent for governments in other states and territories, further increasing the risk of institutional harm to our children and having disastrous results across our communities nationwide.

The Northern Territory government’s renewed focus on school attendance has sparked significant controversy among First Nations Leaders, Teachers and Educators, and the wider community. Central to this debate is the reintroduction of truancy officers, who are tasked with enforcing school attendance through punitive measures such as $370 fines for parents of children who fail to attend school. Proponents claim that this measure will address declining attendance rates, critics argue that it will exacerbate existing student and community tensions.

NT Opposition Leader Selena Uibo has highlighted the distress that is already being caused by this policy, reporting feedback from educators that it strains relationships between parents and schools, ultimately driving families further away from education. In the words of the Education Minister Jo Hersey, “parents have nothing to worry about if they send their child to school”. This ignores

the complex barriers faced by many First Nations Families, such as poverty, inter-generational trauma, and lack of culturally responsive schooling.

To improve school attendance and education outcomes for First Nations Children, we must ensure that all First Nations Children have access to high quality and culturally responsive schooling that recognises and respects their often unique familial, socio-economic and/or cultural circumstances.

All governments should be adopting a rights-based approach to education of First Nations Children. This can be achieved by embedding the principles of the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (UNDRIP) into relevant institutional frameworks, curriculum design and teaching practices.

In particular, governments should be looking for every opportunity to promote the rights of First Nations Children to self-determination in their schooling (Articles 3 and 4), the right of First Nations Peoples to free, prior and informed consent in respect of being an active participant in the shaping of mainstream education systems (Article 19), and further, the right of First Nations Peoples to establish and control our own education systems (Article 14).

The active involvement of First Nations Peoples in the design, development and delivery of education systems, will ensure that First Nations Children receive culturally and linguistically responsive schooling, fostering a sense of belonging and pride in First Nations Culture and Heritage and addressing systemic barriers to learning.

Australia can draw valuable lessons from Canada, where selfdetermination in education has delivered remarkable outcomes for First Nations Communities. In 1998, the Mi'kmaq people of north-eastern Canada took control of their education system, wherein at the time they were seeing a dismal secondary school graduation rate of 30 per cent. By prioritising culturally relevant curricula and local governance, the Mi'kmaq

Blake Cansdale

Proud Anaiwan man National Director, Change the Record

people have since achieved an 83 per cent graduation rate. This approach demonstrates that when communities have the autonomy to design education systems that reflect their values and needs, their children thrive.

Closer to home, a recent report by the Joint Standing Committee on Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Affairs, presented a renewed focus on implementation of UNDRIP in Australia. By emphasising self-determination, the report presents a vital opportunity to reimagine education for First Nations Children, shifting the focus away from punitive policies and practices, towards community-led and strengths-based models of schooling.

It is important that governments are investing in First Nations-led education systems to unlock a future where children are empowered to succeed on their own community’s terms. Realising this vision requires governments to fund and support First Nations-controlled schools and programs, as well as ensuring First Nations leadership in the shaping of mainstream education systems. This includes tackling barriers such as poor infrastructure, resource gaps, and systemic racism that drive disengagement.

The Northern Territory government’s approach serves as a cautionary tale of what happens when policy is imposed without genuine community engagement. If we are to achieve sustainable change, education policies must be co-designed with First Nations Leaders and grounded in the rights and principles enshrined in UNDRIP. The alternative is a continuation of the cycle of disengagement and oppression that not only fails to address the root causes of educational disparity, but arguably worsens the inequality experienced by First Nations Children.

The path forward is clear: governments must recognise us, respect us, fund us and work with us to build education systems that respond to the needs of all children. By investing in First Nations-led education, we can ensure that every child – regardless of background – has the opportunity to thrive in school environments that respect their unique identity, and ensure each child reaches their full potential in life. The time to act is now.

Catherine Liddle CEO, National voice for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children (SNAICC)

Significant moments but more to be done

The Prime Minister’s commitment to a National Agreement for Aboriginal Children and Torres Strait Islander Children and young people was a significant moment.

We look forward to the appointment of the commissioner and their taking office. We are working towards ensuring there will be stringent legislation supporting this position, so the commissioner has real powers to change outcomes for our children and reverse their over-representation in out-of-home care and youth justice systems.

We look forward to this government committing to reforms for our sector outlined in the Productivity Commission report into early education. This includes scrapping the activity test, a significant barrier for Aboriginal Children and Torres Strait Islander Children.

In 2022 we welcomed Education Minister Jason Clare’s boost to subsidised hours for our children.

Removing the activity test and committing to a universally accessible and affordable childcare system will make an enormous difference and set our children up to thrive.

Incorporating Language into early childhood settings has been shown to improve education and wellbeing outcomes. Language is important in strengthening cultural identity and connection and Aboriginal community-controlled Early Childhood Education and Care places language development and learning at the centre.

The slow pace of reform under the National Agreement on Closing the Gap should be a concern for all governments. We know closing the gap starts with our children, and the fact that so many of the targets involving young people are off track, with some sliding backwards, should be sending alarm bells.

While we have seen achievements this term, there is still much work to be done, and we look forward to all governments meeting their commitments under Closing the Gap.

We look forward to all parties reiterating their support for the National Agreement and outlining how they will work to realise its ambitions.

Removing the activity test and committing to a universally accessible and affordable childcare system will make an enormous difference and set our children up to thrive.

Catherine Liddle CEO, National voice for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children (SNAICC)

Dyonne Anderson

President, National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Principals Association (NATSIPA)

Life changing funding

The promise of a 40 per cent Schooling Resource Standard (SRS) is significant for Northern Territory schools because it directly addresses critical funding gaps that severely affect educational outcomes across the region. To get to full funding by 2029, compared to 2050, is life changing and will improve the fairness and effectiveness of how educational funding is distributed to our most vulnerable.

I had the opportunity to visit numerous NT schools as a member of the National School Reform Agreement (NSRA) review panel in 2023. It was disturbing to see the condition of schools in remote communities that lack adequate qualified teachers and infrastructure. The promise of 40 per cent SRS represents more than just numbers – it symbolises a commitment to addressing years of systemic neglect in one of Australia’s most vulnerable educational sectors.

Increasing the number of Aboriginal Teachers and Torres Strait Islander Teachers is critical for addressing the educational inequities faced by Aboriginal Students and Torres Strait Islander Students and fostering a culturally safe and inclusive learning environment across Australia –highlighted in the NSRA report released in December 2023.

As of the recent census, Aboriginal Peoples and Torres Strait Islander Peoples make up 3.7 per cent of Australia’s population. Aboriginal

Students and Torres Strait Islander Students make up more than 6 per cent of Australia’s total student population. Therefore, focusing only on general population statistics can underrepresent the growing need to diversify the teaching profession.

Unfortunately, it is extremely difficult to entice Aboriginal Teachers and Torres Strait Islander Teachers to the profession when they are exiting the system in droves due to the lack of cultural safety and racial discrimination. Major systemic change must occur before we can increase the number of Aboriginal Teachers and Torres Strait Islander Teachers. There must be transparency and accountability and acknowledgement that Aboriginal Teachers and Torres Strait Islander Teachers and our students are not being treated fairly and with respect.

Aligning the percentage of Aboriginal Teachers and Torres Strait Islander Teachers with the 6 per cent student

population over the next 10–15 years is a meaningful and reasonable goal. While this goal will require sustained investment and effort, it is necessary to ensure Australia’s education system becomes more inclusive, equitable and reflective of its rich cultural diversity. Nothing is more important than Language, Culture and identity and this cannot be compromised if we are to embrace an inclusive and respectful education experience for all students. Research has shown that bilingual education has positive impacts on academic achievement, cognitive development, critical thinking skills and a deeper understanding of complex concepts.

It makes sense to keep traditional languages alive and healthy as it strengthens the cultural identity of Aboriginal Students and Torres Strait Islander Students giving them a sense of pride while building self-esteem.

Early childhood firmly on the national agenda

Significant developments in the early childhood education and care sector over the past two years have been transformative.

Early childhood education and care (ECEC) wages have substantially improved under the Albanese government. Governments in three states are rolling out three- and four-year-old preschool programs and the introduction of multi-employer bargaining has revolutionised industrial relations.

These advances represent essential first steps to support children, teachers, educators and the sector as a whole. The AEU is addressing unsustainable workloads, further enhancing remuneration and conditions, and securing ongoing federal funding.

Historic victory

There have been many positive changes in the ECEC sector. The 15 per cent wage increase for early childhood teachers and educators in one of Australia’s lowest paid sectors is a historic victory after many years of seeking wage justice for this feminised and undervalued workforce.

The pay rise goes some way towards achieving wage justice, but we’ll continue campaigning for the full 25 per cent we believe these underpaid workers need and deserve.

Industrial changes have also had a big impact on the sector. The Albanese government’s Secure Jobs, Better Pay reforms include multi-employer bargaining, which has enabled us, for the first time, to bring employers to the table to bargain on behalf of members. It’s a very important win for members.

There is more to be done, however, on convincing the government to extend its

Cara Nightingale Chair, AEU federal early childhood committee

promise to fund the wage increases for two years. An ongoing funding commitment is crucial to support sustainable wage levels into the future.

For example, we need to see this pay increase rolled out to the entire early childhood workforce. It currently applies to just the employers who have signed on to a MultiEmployer Agreement (MEA), covering some 30,000 teachers and educators. Employers who haven’t signed the MEA instead use Individual Flexibility Arrangements (IFAs) that don’t offer protection for members.

An MEA, a union bargaining agreement, provides protections and accountability measures that an IFA simply doesn’t. We’re finding high levels of non-compliance in IFAs. Plus, an employer can give 13 weeks’ notice to end the IFA, leaving workers at risk of returning to basic award rates.

Professional pay is a non-negotiable issue to recognise the importance of the work. However, members are telling us it’s just one piece of the puzzle. The second piece is addressing the crippling workload that’s associated with the job. Plus, we need funding to support new teachers and educators to thrive with professional development and mentors to help improve retention at a time of severe workforce shortage.

An overhaul of the funding system for early childhood and care is overdue to ensure appropriate levels of support and resources for vulnerable children and those with a disability or additional needs. Extra funding to build new centres in rural, regional and remote areas is also required to alleviate early childhood and care deserts.

The federal government must also prioritise universal access to quality preschool delivered by qualified teachers and educators for threeand four-year-olds across the country, a move already made by state governments in South Australia, Victoria and New South Wales.

The government’s Commonwealth Prac Payment for students undertaking mandatory placements, which will begin in July this year, will provide valuable financial assistance for students as they do their practicum placements.

The government is also providing scholarships for teaching students and FeeFree TAFE courses.

Overall, the early childhood and care sector has seen substantial progress during the term of the Albanese government but there’s more to be done to build on those gains.

Georgie Dent CEO, The Parenthood

Welcome changes

Over the past few years, early childhood education and care has been elevated as key to educational, social and economic policy.

One of the reasons for that shift is that we elected a federal government in May 2022, which said this policy mattered to it.

We have seen increased understanding of the importance of ECEC in the development and wellbeing of children, in addition to the economic reform it provides by enabling parents, particularly mums, to participate in the workforce. Growing support for women’s rights and gender equity have also helped propel the issue.

There is a gender component to this because we know that when families can't access or afford early childhood education and care, it tends to be women’s employment, their financial security and their safety that can be undermined.

The 15 per cent wage rise for teachers and educators also represents a win for

women, who dominate the early childhood education and care workforce. They have been significantly underpaid compared to similar jobs with similar levels of qualification. Having that identified and rectified has had a substantial effect on teachers and educators and on their ability to achieve financial security. Having better paid teachers and educators is crucial to the quality of early education and care and to luring back some of the many who have left the sector in recent years.

We would like to see a commitment of access to at least three days a week of high quality, inclusive, early education and care – free for lower income families and a low-set fee for others – to every child in Australia.

Part of that means recognising the parts of the country where there is no provision of services. We need an investment and policy response to ensure that families who live in childcare deserts can access the early learning and care that their children need.

We want to see proper funding to ensure inclusion. Around one in 20 children using early education and care are accessing the inclusion support program, whereas in primary schools, around one in five children have an identified need for additional support. There are too many children and families being turned away from services because they’re not adequately funded.

Rebuild with TAFE

A well-resourced and funded TAFE system plays an essential role in supporting Australia’s skills needs, mentoring and supporting students and strengthening communities.

The Albanese government’s introduction of Free TAFE places has been transformative. It aims to train, upskill or reskill hundreds of thousands of students to obtain well-paid and secure jobs.

Importantly, Free TAFE supports priority groups including Aboriginal peoples, Torres Strait Islander peoples, women, young peoples, peoples with disability and those who are out of work.

But there’s more to be done. The next phase of the AEU’s Rebuild with TAFE campaign is calling on the federal, state and territory governments to commit to fully funding TAFE.

The campaign also calls for a workforce attraction and retention strategy, ongoing funded support for students with additional needs, and investment in capital works.

Add your voice to an open letter to the government at rebuildwithtafe.org.au

INVEST IN A POSITIVE FUTURE

Jenny

Dodd CEO, TAFE Directors Australia

Free TAFE

is good for students, employers and Australia

From construction to aged care, vital Australian industries have high skill shortages. Through Free TAFE, students have been able to gain skills that will begin to meet the needs of these and many other industries.

Free TAFE has been lifechanging for many students.

Opening the doors of Australia’s public providers to those for whom fees may have been a barrier has been fundamental to improving opportunities for all.

Enabling more students to gain TAFE skills and qualifications leads to those people having higher levels of earning capacity. Giving more students the opportunity to gain skills and qualifications in high-demand courses through Free TAFE is likely to lead to significantly improved outcomes for them as individuals and for the country.

Cohorts of students from equity groups who are underrepresented in tertiary education have been able to access Free TAFE.

Many people who might not have grasped the opportunities that

vocational education and training provides in the past, have been able to gain skills and knowledge at TAFE that will lead to better life chances for themselves and their families.

For example, we know that women have been one of the largest groups taking up the Free TAFE initiative. This is important for them, and their future earning capacity, and as role models for their families.

Enabling women to gain the skills that employers want is a first step towards a fairer Australia.

We also know that offering free courses in areas such as construction is important for employers. Creating the pipeline of skilled workers for these industries is essential and will in the long run help address some of Australia’s key issues, such as the housing shortage.

These pre-apprenticeship programs can broaden the type of students who may choose to take up an apprenticeship.

Free TAFE has been good for individuals, employers, and is addressing some of Australia’s critical skills needs.

Cohorts of students from equity groups who are underrepresented in tertiary education have been able to access Free TAFE.

Fully funded TAFE provides opportunities

I started my working life as an apprentice fitter and turner in the steel industry. It was a highly skilled trade that provided many opportunities and career paths to apprentices I worked alongside. An important part of learning my trade was the mentoring I received through skilled tradespeople, whom I worked with on the tools. But equally valuable was attending my local

TAFE in Maitland, one day each week, to pick up the broader skills and knowledge I needed to be a smart and high-quality tradesperson.

TAFE has always been a place where the working class have passed on our skills and knowledge to the next generation. It’s a welcoming place to learn new skills, build confidence, and gain a lived experience of working together to solve problems.

It is also a place we go to for a recognised qualification, to deepen our understanding of something we feel passionate about, or to retrain to get a better or more rewarding job.

Our national industrial skills base was built on decades of a properly and fully funded TAFE system. Inadequate TAFE funding has been a direct contributor to the national skills shortage that we face right now in many of our critical industries.

The AMWU has long been a

supporter of TAFE, particularly in the regions where we need it. We know the opportunities it creates for our people.

We acknowledge the commitment of those dedicated teachers and mentors and stand in solidarity with the AEU in demanding funding from state and federal governments that demonstrates they value our TAFE as much as we do.

TAFE has always been a place where the working class have passed on our skills and knowledge to the next generation.

Steve Murphy AMWU National Secretary

Vast and significant health sector improvements

Aged care reform, wage increases and more support for nursing students have been hallmarks for workers in the health and wellbeing sector in the past two years.

Our members have benefited from some very positive measures introduced by the Albanese government, principally in aged care.

We achieved a 15 per cent wage increase for nurses, registered nurses, enrolled nurses and personal care workers in aged care. Subsequently, the government committed to fund a further (and long overdue) wage increase of up to 28.5 per cent for care workers in aged care.

Other welcome changes include the significant amendments to the Fair Work Act and the introduction of the Secure Jobs, Better Pay workplace reforms. These reforms have meant workers are covered by collective bargaining agreements, and this has empowered women to secure significant pay rises.

In another progressive change, our members working in big public hospitals have gained delegates’ rights.

We have also seen encouraging developments in aged care reform. The new requirement for a registered nurse for 24-hours a day in every nursing home across the country is an enormous win for our members, and something we have spent 20 years campaigning for.

Fee-Free TAFE introduced for enrolled nurses across the country has resulted in increased enrolments, just as we are about to need more nurses.

The Commonwealth Prac Payment initiative, which will provide nursing, teaching and social work students with a weekly payment during their mandatory placements, is critical to the completion of their courses. It provides essential financial support to the students who work while they are studying, because they can’t work during a clinical placement.

There is work to do, but it’s a great achievement that so many of the things we've campaigned for have been delivered.

CHANGE OF GOVERNMENT TERRIFIES

The thought of a Dutton government genuinely terrifies me.

The Aged Care Act 1997 is a really clear example of how a Coalition government would operate.

Annie Butler Federal secretary of the Australian Nursing and Midwifery Federation

The new Aged Care Act 2025 passed both houses of Parliament in November. It came after much negotiation between the major parties, all minor parties, the crossbenchers, and with a lot of input from stakeholders, including the Australian Nursing and Midwifery Federation.

While it's not perfect, it is a really important success. We haven’t had an Aged Care Act reform since 1997, but we know that if the opposition parties had its way, it would like to “increase flexibility”.

The new requirement for a registered nurse for 24-hours a day in every nursing home across the country is an enormous win for our members, and something we have spent 20 years campaigning for.

So, despite our fight for a decade or two to get proper staffing in nursing homes, for example, “flexibility” would erode those measures. An employer could apply for an exemption by claiming they could not find a registered nurse, even though they might not have provided a good job and are not offering enough pay.

This is the direct opposite of what the Royal Commission into Aged Care wanted to do to improve care. A Dutton government would be looking for ways to

So

assist aged care providers and employers to once again game the system.

An example of a Dutton government’s plan is that nursing training should go back into hospitals to solve the shortage of nurses. It’s unbelievable, especially after everything we've done to achieve university level education in a sector that is one of the most rapidly advancing.

The Dutton policies signal their intent to recreate a subservient model of women’s work.

Guy and Allana, Teachers Health and union members

Supporting public education supports community

Community sector leaders offer insights on the critical role a fully funded public education system can play in fostering inclusive environments and what they want to see from the federal government.

A matter of human rights

The role of the public education system is fundamental to delivering better outcomes for people and families, particularly those from disadvantaged backgrounds.

We know that more than 80 per cent of children and young people from lower socio-economic backgrounds are being educated in public schools. So, the rewards for proper investment there are profound for the children themselves, and their families. Of course, properly supported public education provides a vital springboard for those children to help forge their futures and tackle disadvantage.

ACOSS has been a very strong supporter of the AEU campaign to secure proper funding for public schools. What could be more important for a federal government to do than to ensure that children from disadvantaged backgrounds have an excellent education?

We also need to ensure children and young people are valued and supported, and not subjected to hate or discrimination. That's why we are urging cross-party political support for the establishment of a national taskforce to

tackle racism, antisemitism, Islamophobia, homophobia, transphobia and other forms of hate crimes and vilification in our communities. We caution political leaders against any actions that fuel hate and social division.

Every day, individuals, families, and communities from diverse backgrounds are targeted and exposed to hate crimes and slurs. We call on all our political leaders to embrace the National AntiRacism Framework’s recommendations and strongly stand by basic human rights. It’s so important that we support our children and young people to have a sense of self, dignity and pride in who they are as individuals and in the groups with which they identify.

ACOSS is determined to do all it can to play its part in bringing communities together, building bridges and crossing divides. We call on all political leaders to do the same. It is our collective responsibility to ensure our communities are safe and that basic human rights are protected.

JACKIE TURNER Director, Trans Justice Project

The right to be yourself

It’s so important that there’s a public education system that’s fully funded so

that there’s equal access for everyone. We know that students who feel safe and supported at school and at home do much better because they're able to have the freedom to be themselves and thrive.

We all deserve to feel safe and supported but, unfortunately, cynical politicians are fuelling lies and hate about the trans community to try and win and hold onto power. That's why it's so important that people stand and fight together, that all of our communities are protected – especially at work, home, and school – where we know that young people are particularly vulnerable to bullying, intimidation, or hate.

We know that whatever is happening in the public discourse is going to be reflected in the school yard. That’s why attacks on anyone’s gender, race, or class, or where they were born, are really damaging for all of us.

We are asking for three important measures of support from the federal government:

• We want trans healthcare to be accessible and affordable to everyone who needs it;

• We want a real commitment to protect our communities from discrimination; and

• We want a real plan to address homelessness, poverty, and unemployment in our community.

Trans people experience high rates of homelessness – two-in-five trans youth have experienced homelessness – and our unemployment rate is three times the national average.

CASSANDRA GOLDIE CEO, Australian Council of Social Service

VIOLET ROUMELIOTIS CEO, SSI

Commitment to access and equity

As Australian children starting school become increasingly culturally diverse — nearly 26 per cent in 2021 — I'm looking to the major political parties to make clear policy commitments that improve access to early childhood education, which is key to reducing developmental vulnerabilities and addressing equity issues

Providing access to quality early childhood education and care (ECEC) in the preschool years is one of the best ways to help children thrive and is even more important for children from disadvantaged backgrounds. These children are often from culturally and linguistically diverse (CALD) communities who are overrepresented in socio - economically disadvantaged areas across Australia.

SSI’s Stronger Starts, Brighter Futures II research, conducted in partnership with Education Futures at the University of South Australia found that, in 2021, 82 per cent of children from CALD backgrounds attended ECEC, compared to 90 per cent of children from non-CALD backgrounds, and that culturally diverse children were more likely to be developmentally vulnerable when they started school.

To address these equity issues, I want to see policymakers ensure that planning and funding for early childhood education account for the significant number of CALD families needing access to child and family support in the early years. This should be reflected in action plans created under the National Early Years Strategy.

Specifically, we want commitments to clear actions that improve access to early childhood education for children from CALD backgrounds and tackle both financial and non-financial barriers

to their participation. It also means collaborating with ECEC providers to co-design service models with ‘soft- entry’ points – approaches that are nonstigmatising and integrated, such as the National Community Hubs program, and as recently recommended by the Productivity Commission in its inquiry into ECEC.

These actions are powerful investments, benefiting not just children and their families, but also creating a ripple effect of lasting advantage for Australia’s economy and society.

REBECCA HERFT Partnerships Team Lead Minus18

Inclusive education helps students thrive

A fully funded public education system is essential to supporting all students, including LGBTQIA+ youth, who make up approximately 21 per cent of Australian high-school-aged young people. It ensures that schools are equipped with the right resources to create safe, inclusive environments where all students can thrive and be their authentic selves.

In Minus 18 workshops held in 2023/24, 96 per cent of participants reported an increased understanding of LGBTQIA+ inclusion, and 95 per cent felt better prepared to stand up against LGBTQIA+ discrimination and bullying.

As one teacher participant shared: "The presenter was so brave sharing their experience. It gave me a strong sense of empathy. I feel I have a better understanding of the LGBTQIA+ community, and I feel empowered to make a positive difference in my classroom."

This is exactly what a fully funded education system can offer – empowered educators and inclusive spaces for all children in schools.

For tens of thousands of LGBTQIA+ youth, having access to such educational resources can significantly improve their sense of safety and belonging. These programs not only support students to stay in school and be able to achieve, they also equip teachers to address the unique challenges faced by LGBTQIA+ youth.

Minus18 looks to a future that ensures LGBTQIA+ education is accessible, inclusive, and free for all schools, benefiting both students and teachers.

Conservative policies, that undermine LGBTQIA+ rights or foster hostile environments for LGBTQIA+ youth, such as the transphobic rhetoric seen in international political campaigns, have harmful impacts on vulnerable young people.

These policies increase the risk of bullying, discrimination, and social exclusion, particularly for LGBTQIA+ students who already face higher rates of mental health challenges. In fact, two-inthree LGBTQIA+ youth in Australia still experience bullying or discrimination.

Furthermore, waiting times of more than six months for youth mental health services across Australia exacerbate the mental health crisis faced by LGBTQIA+ youth.

At Minus18, we’re working to address these issues through harm prevention and health promotion initiatives aimed at reducing the causes of mental illness and social exclusion among LGBTQIA+ youth. Our approach provides vital support to young people at a time when they need it.

Inclusive education programs, such as those delivered by Minus18, have been shown to increase understanding and support among students and teachers.

In our 2024 annual report, 88 per cent of youth participants reported feeling better prepared to support LGBTQIA+ peers, and 85 per cent felt better prepared to stand up against LGBTQIA+ bullying. Inclusive education and early intervention can counter the damaging effects of conservative policies and create spaces where LGBTQIA+ youth can thrive.

Dismantling quality public education

How far-right governments are damaging public education.

New Zealand’s conservative coalition government spent the first year of its term dismantling important support for public education and teachers. It diverted millions of dollars in public funding to convert some public schools into private charter schools and build new ones.

Meanwhile, in the United States, public schools and their teachers are under serious threat. They expect a return to what they saw during the first Trump presidency when funding was slashed, the education department was undermined, school choice was expanded and culture war fires were ignited.

Mark Potter

Te Manukura (President)

NZEI Te Riu Roa, New Zealand

NZ conservative government wreaks havoc on public education

We’ve seen an enormous number of changes in a short time frame that run contrary to creating a quality public education system in Aotearoa.

In just over 15 months, the National

School

support staff were made a zero per

cent pay offer and we have grave concerns about how the government values educators as we head into major teacher and principal collective bargaining this year.

Mark Potter

Te Manukura (President) NZEI Te Riu Roa, New Zealand

Party-led coalition government has reduced funding to our free school lunches program, cut funding to a program that upskilled many teachers in Te Reo Māori and downscaled the commitment to Te Tiriti o Waitangi (the Treaty of Waitangi) in our curricula.

The government has diverted $153 million from the public purse to fund the forced conversion of public schools into charter schools, and established new charter schools.

They’ve also introduced two new curricula in “structured” mathematics and literacy, which teachers are expected to begin teaching from this year.

The consultation period for these curricula was rushed and the sector did not consider itself properly consulted. This has left teachers and school leaders feeling stressed and unsupported.

The early childhood sector has also been attacked. Employers are no longer

obliged to pay parity to early childhood education teachers working on fixed terms or as relievers and can now pay the minimum wage. It is also reviewing regulations that are good for child safety and belonging but make it more expensive for businesses to turn a profit.

You can see a picture emerging here – we’re seeing a movement towards privatisation of education, and a running down of what we’ve already got.

School support staff were made a zero per cent pay offer and we have grave concerns about how the government values educators as we head into major teacher and principal collective bargaining this year.

We can't see any changes that are addressing the need for more support for children with learning difficulties or changes to reduce classroom sizes and teacher ratios – issues that would make major positive changes for many children and teachers.

President, National

Education Association, USA

Our nation and our students deserve so much better

Every student – no matter where they live, how much their family earns, or the colour of their skin – deserves the opportunity, resources, and support they need to grow into their full brilliance. In every community across

the USA, parents and educators are partners in this effort.

By selecting Linda McMahon as secretary of education, Donald Trump is showing that he could not care less about our students’ futures. Rather than working to strengthen public schools, expand learning opportunities for students and support educators, McMahon’s only mission is to eliminate the Department of Education and take away taxpayer dollars from public schools, where 90 per cent of students – and 95 per cent of students with disabilities – learn, and give them to unaccountable and discriminatory private schools.

During his first term, Donald Trump appointed Betsy DeVos to undermine and ultimately privatise public schools through vouchers.

Now, he and McMahon are back at it with their extreme Project 2025

The department of education plays such a critical role in the success of each and every student in this country.

Becky Pringle President, National Education Association, USA

proposal to eliminate the Department of Education, steal resources for our most vulnerable students, increase class sizes, cut job training programs, make higher education more expensive and out of reach for middle-class families, take away special education services for disabled students, and put students' civil rights protections at risk.

Parents and educators will stand together to support students and reject the harmful, outlandish, and insulting policies being pushed by the Trump administration. They will make their voices heard, just as they did by resoundingly defeating vouchers in states such as Colorado, Kentucky, and Nebraska.

The department of education plays a critical role in the success of each student in this country. Our students and our nation deserve so much better than Betsy DeVos 2.0.

Becky Pringle

Classroom creativity inspires

Challenging classrooms are producing fresh ideas as the new school year gets underway for the four teachers we will follow throughout 2025.

BY MARGARET PATON

Having more support would mean not only helping those who are struggling but also extending students who are ready to be challenged.

Lilly Maynard

Year 5–6 teacher

Ulverstone Primary School, Tasmania

For Lilly Maynard, now in her second year as a graduate teacher at Ulverstone Primary School on Tasmania’s northwest coast, additional funding would be transformative.

Teaching a Year 5 to 6 class, Maynard says the school’s resources, particularly in technology, fall short of meeting student needs.

“We have one device for every two to three students,” she says. “I’d love to see one-to-one devices because, by the time they reach Year 5 or 6, many students still don’t know basic technology skills like saving a document or changing fonts.”

To bridge this gap, Maynard and other Year 5 and 6 teachers are rolling out a new technology unit in 2025 to cover foundational skills for Microsoft Word, Teams and Canva.

Funding impacts more than technology. She reflects on the benefits of having extra teacher aides in the classroom.

“Last year, I had a Year 6 student who struggled academically. With the limited aide time we had, we focused on intensive small-group work, going back to sentence structure and the elements of narrative writing,” she says.

“Having more support would mean not only helping those who are struggling but also extending students who are ready to be challenged.”

A LEGACY OF SAFETY

Maynard was inspired to teach by her

Lilly Maynard

If you're a new educator and interested in sharing your story in Australian Educator 2025 , send an email to educator@ hardiegrant.com.au

kindergarten teacher, whom she describes as creating a caring and safe presence for students: “I’ve always wanted to be that person for others.”

This aspiration now shapes her classroom priorities, in which building resilience and fostering a safe learning environment are central. “We do a lot of social and emotional learning activities, teaching students how to handle conflicts or deal with challenges,” she says. “It’s amazing to watch them start resolving small issues on their own.”

A one-year part-time paid teaching internship, which she completed in the last year of her university studies, helped her segue into teaching.

LEARNING ON SEA COUNTRY

Maynard’s school’s connection to its local environment is a highlight. Late last year, about one third of Ulverstone’s 380 students participated in the education department’s Sea Country program, which integrates Palawa perspectives into learning.

“We did pre-teaching activities about what Sea Country means and, on the excursion, it was incredible to see students reflecting on the land’s historical and cultural significance.”

This year, Maynard aims to continue refining her skills and exploring innovative assessment techniques. “I want to build on my trials of formative assessments like exit tickets I had success with last year.”

“My goal as a teacher is to nurture curiosity, foster creativity, and instil a lifelong love of learning.”

With additional funding, Maynard says these aspirations could become a reality for every student in her class.

Bry Knife

English teacher

Mabel Park State High School Logan, QLD

HOMESCHOOL TO HIGH SCHOOL

Bry Knife’s teaching career reflects education’s evolving landscape, where personal experience and advocacy play vital roles in meeting the diverse needs of today’s classrooms.

Knife’s school days were outside of the mainstream experience. The child of a missionary and pastor, Knife was homeschooled in Ethiopia from Years 3 to 10.

“Because I didn’t have a traditional education, I feel I can relate to the diversity of students at my school,” says Knife.

Studying at his own speed through homeschooling taught them that “everyone works at their own pace”. For Knife, that means embracing organisational strategies such as using a bullet journal and medication to manage ADHD.

Knife identifies as a non-binary, transmasculine teacher. He prefers to use a combination of pronouns – he/him and they/them – to reflect his identity and experience of gender.

At university, Knife found themself “figuring out that I was queer in a very conservative space”. He completed an accelerated liberal arts bachelor’s and teaching master’s degrees in four-anda-half years. After graduating, Knife was guaranteed permanency through the Teacher Education Centre of Excellence Program.

EMBRACING DIVERSITY

This year marks Knife’s fifth as a teacher. He joined Mabel Park High just over two years ago. The school has almost 1800 students and can be “complex”, says Knife, particularly with behaviour management issues. In 2025, Knife expects to continue teaching English to students in Years 7 to 12.

“My identity wasn’t as supported early in my teaching career,” Knife says. “Now, I’m much more myself. I’m supported and even celebrated, such as on Wear It Purple Day. I can project a steadiness to my students, who won’t feel safe or comfortable if the adult in the room is anxious and jittery.”

Knife credits the Queensland Teachers’ Union with the support provided to facilitate their transfer. Knife now holds multiple union roles, including QTU activist and Pride Committee member, and has helped advocate for solutions to address the teacher shortage.

“Offering permanency is no longer an incentive because the shortage makes that easy to get,” Knife says.

BRIDGING GAPS

Proper funding for resources remains a major challenge, particularly as Mabel Park High works to “close the digital divide”.

“There are Year 7 students at my school who don’t know how to use computers, research on the internet, or type up an assessment. As we roll out a bring-yourown device program, we’re finding that many parents can’t afford computers and don’t have one at home. More funding would bridge that gap,” he says.

(previous pages) Lily Maynard and Bry Knife, (below) Lottie Smith, (opposite page) Amelia Evans.

Lottie Smith

Year 7–10 teacher

Centre of Deaf Education

Adelaide, SA

Lottie Smith still feels pride over a student’s achievement in her first year of teaching.

The Year 8 student, who is deaf and has an intellectual disability, won the speech contest on the theme “black, loud and proud” during Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Reconciliation Week.

Smith, who teaches a Year 7 to 10 class at Avenues College in Adelaide, thought of the student as soon as she heard about the contest.

“I sat with him and broke down the question, and we worked out a speech in sign language and practised it,” she says.

“On the day, I stood in front of him holding big cue cards. He used sign language, and an interpreter voiced his words.”

Smith grows emotional recalling the moment: “He did this in front of the Aboriginal Youth Commissioner, a panel of Elders, and young people. His competitors, the other contestants, used a microphone.”

SUPPORT THAT’S NEEDED

The achievement highlights Smith’s dedication and one-on-one coaching. She teaches four other students who are deaf or hard of hearing and have complex additional needs such as autism or intellectual disabilities. Smith works with the support of one Student Learning Support Officer (SLSO).

“Extra funding would mean more support staff,” she says. “One-on-one support is critical for meeting the needs of our complex student cohort.”

Smith also believes in upskilling SLSOs, who often work closely with the students with the highest needs. “SLSOs have

limited access to professional training, and that needs to change,” she says.

OUT-OF-POCKET COSTS

Smith is grateful for a partial subsidy she received to pursue Certificates II and III in Auslan, a prerequisite for her master’s degree in teaching hearing-impaired students. However, the financial burden of further qualifications has been significant.

“The government offers a scholarship for one unit per semester of the Auslan course, which means doing it part-time,” she says. “But I studied my master’s full-time alongside Auslan, so I was automatically out-of-pocket by a few thousand dollars, but only just found out I could have applied for a scholarship.”

The lack of funding support is unfair and unethical, says Smith.

“I went out of my way to gain these qualifications, adding to my HECS debt for a hard-to-fill role,” she says.

Last year Smith was awarded SA Early Career Educator of the Year 2024 on World Teachers Day in recognition of her work with Australian Association of Teachers of the Deaf (SA).

Smith says developing her students’ Auslan and English language skills drives her.

“I look forward to continuing celebrating my students’ small wins that contribute to their confidence, skills and independence.”

In each class, I have 30 young people with diverse abilities and needs, but we’re all working towards the same goal: ensuring everyone can succeed.

Amelia Evans

Amelia Evans

Physical education and science teacher University of Canberra High School Kaleen, ACT

The opportunity to take on leadership roles and make a positive community impact drew ACT teacher Amelia Evans into teaching.

Recalling her school days, the sixthgeneration teacher says: “I didn’t always love school, but I enjoyed the positive relationships I had with my PE teachers, making school a bit more fun every day.”

After Year 12, Evans completed a year in the Royal Australian Navy, “squirrelling away my pay” before starting her teaching degree.

Despite juggling multiple jobs, she finished her degree in three years instead of four, without a scholarship.

INCLUSIVE PE

Now in her third year of high-school physical education teaching at the University of Canberra High School Kaleen, Evans faces ongoing challenges.

“In each class, I have 30 young people with diverse abilities and needs, but we’re all working towards the same goal: ensuring everyone can succeed,” she says.

For example, last year, she adapted PE lessons so a blind student who loves to run could participate.

“We’d go out onto the oval and play ‘tips’. I got a whole class set of little bells for the other students to wear, so she knows they’re about to try to tag her.”

FUNDING WISH LIST

Evans says more funding would improve equipment, facilities, and accessibility for schools like hers.

“Some of the gear only lasts a term. Things get thrown on the roof, then you put a fragile badminton racket in the hands of a 13-year-old who’s never used one before – one will break every couple of lessons.”

Boosting funding would also mean “extra hands to create tasks to help students who need differentiated learning”.

Limited facilities remain a problem, too.

“Our school ovals aren’t good enough for PE, so we use the public ovals 500 metres away, which takes more of our teaching time,” she says.

Wet weather brings further challenges, with up to six PE classes crammed into a gym designed for two.

Despite these hurdles, Evans’ dedication hasn’t gone unnoticed. She was nominated for an ACT teaching award last year for co-founding a Year 8 and

9 girls’ empowerment group. About 20 students attend twice-weekly sessions, which include lunch, music, and resiliencebuilding activities.

“A parent has twice run workshops on saying ‘no’ – what to do if you’re approached in the street – and how to walk and look tougher than you feel,” Evans says.

Last year, she co-ordinated the transition of Year 6 students into high school. Additionally, she is studying a Certificate IV in mental health at her own expense to upskill in wellbeing support.

“It will help me have an input in decision-making for the benefit of all students and staff. I want to help lead my school in a positive direction,” Evans says.

Margaret Paton is a casual high-school teacher and freelance writer. She is also a PhD student researching out-of-field teaching.

A better future for teachers, students and our planet

Teachers, the backbone of our public education systems, are under immense pressure and the right to education is at risk.

The cause of the teacher shortage is well documented – it has been driven and fuelled by an under investment in teachers.

Mugwena Maluleke Mugwena Maluleke is president of Education International, the global union federation representing more than 32 million teachers and education support personnel.

Among the many crises facing the world – climate breakdown, deepening inequality, escalating conflict, and the erosion of democracy – we are facing a global teacher shortage that is greater than any in our living memories.

As governments worldwide fail to build well-resourced equitable public education systems, Education International (EI) is leading the charge with the Go Public! Fund Education campaign, a movement to secure the investment and support that public education and the teaching profession urgently need and deserve.

A CRISIS ROOTED IN NEGLECT

The chronic under-funding of public education has had devastating consequences, particularly in underserved communities across the globe.

According to UNESCO, there is an urgent need for 44 million additional teachers to achieve universal primary and

secondary education. The cause of the teacher shortage is well documented – it has been driven and fuelled by an under investment in teachers. The results are an overworked, underpaid, and undervalued teaching profession.

EI’s Go Public! Fund Education campaign addresses these issues head on. The campaign is an urgent, and much needed, call for governments, along with intergovernmental organisations and international financing institutions, to fully fund public education systems and invest in the teaching profession. It calls

What’s ahead for Education International?

EI’s mission has never been more urgent and the organisation is fighting for the future with a bold strategic plan for 2025–2029.

Guided by four pillars –profession, public education, people and planet – this plan reflects EI’s commitment to defending the status of educators, advancing quality public education, and advocating for human rights, equity, and climate justice.

The campaign is an urgent, and much needed, call for governments, along with intergovernmental organisations and international financing institutions, to fully fund public education systems and invest in the teaching profession.

for investments that not only ensure fair salaries and dignified working conditions for teachers, but also reaffirm education as a public good, rejecting privatisation trends that exacerbate inequality.

A ROADMAP FOR CHANGE

This year, the United Nations’ High-Level Panel on the Teaching Profession issued bold recommendations to combat the teacher shortage and restore dignity to the profession. These include increasing teacher autonomy, ensuring decent pay and working conditions, and

1 FIGHTING FOR THE PROFESSION

EI is dedicated to reversing the global teacher shortage by campaigning for policies that elevate the profession. This includes advocating for manageable workloads, competitive salaries, and robust mental health support. Teacher wellbeing is not only a workforce issue – it is fundamental to the survival of public education.

2 STRENGTHENING PUBLIC EDUCATION

Advocacy for fully funded public education systems remains at the forefront. EI will push for debt

integrating teacher voices into policy making processes. Such measures are essential to attract and retain high-quality educators and to create resilient, equitable education systems.

At the heart of these recommendations is the understanding that teachers are not merely facilitators of knowledge, but agents of societal transformation –wisdom workers.

They nurture critical thinking, empathy, and resilience in their students, helping to shape future generations of global citizens.

forgiveness and tax justice to increase resources for schools while challenging privatisation efforts.

3 EMPOWERING PEOPLE

Building an inclusive, representative union movement is central to EI’s strategy. By growing membership and fostering gender equity within unions, EI ensures that educators’ voices are amplified in every arena.

4 OUR PLANET

Recognising that education does not exist in a

vacuum, EI is committed to addressing global crises such as climate change and armed conflict. Through education, unions can promote peace, democracy, and a just transition to a sustainable future.

As we approach the twoyear mark of the Go Public! campaign, the movement has gained momentum, uniting educators, unions, and communities around the world.

We are united in our determination to ensure that every learner, no matter where they live, is taught by a qualified teacher, every day, every lesson.

Time to rewrite history

There are steps that teachers and schools can take to teach intercultural history in ways that challenge dominant historical narratives, but time and resources are needed.

BY LEANNE TOLRA

Reconciling the truth of Australia’s traumatic and shameful shared history will require teachers to undergo critically reflective professional learning and schools to commit to investing in resources.

The editors of Decolonising Australian History Education: Fresh Perspectives from Beyond the ‘History Wars’ – Rebecca Cairns, Aleryk Fricker and Sara Weuffen –say efforts to address historical education failures require a groundswell of “listening, reflecting, localising and evaluating” across the sector.

Weuffen says the road to truth in history education is paved with examples of “the fortitude and comradery of First Nations Peoples and their allies”.

“Ultimately, the time has gone when professionals in the Australian education system can stick their heads in the sand and refuse to acknowledge the sovereign presence of First Nations People,” she says.

The editors say the campaign and the result of the Voice to Parliament referendum indicate that Australia remains mired in the “history wars” – conflicting stories of how Australia was colonised, whether it was peaceful, or an invasion, and the value and legitimacy of written records and the oral tradition.

“One of the challenges we face on this continent, is the purposeful silencing of First Nations voices and perspectives, or worse, the co-opting of them into Western ways of thinking/talking about history,” says Weuffen.

Cairns is a non-First Nations researcher and senior lecturer at the Deakin University School of Education, Fricker is a Dja Dja Wurrung academic with a research focus on Indigenous education and decolonising

education practices in Australia, and Weuffen is a non-First Nations teacherresearcher in cross/intercultural education research between First Nations Peoples and non-First Nations Australians.

The other nine authors are First Nations and non-First Nations educators, researchers and leaders with expertise and experience in early childhood, primary and secondary education and cover topics including the history wars on unceded lands, learning, unlearning and relearning history in early childhood education, decolonising the teaching of local history, and acknowledging First Nations perspectives in primary schools. Each chapter identifies practical strategies for individual teachers and school-wide strategies.

“Our book purposively has suggested strategies which teachers can implement tomorrow,” says Weuffen.

One of the challenges we face on this continent, is the purposeful silencing of First Nations voices and perspectives, or worse, the co-opting of them into Western ways of thinking/talking about history.

HISTORICAL CONTEXT

A chapter by lecturer and researcher Kerri Garrard outlines steps teachers can take to teach intercultural history in ways that challenge dominant historical narratives. Cairns offers two sets of critical questions, one for teachers and one for students.

Teacher and researcher Kate Harvie suggests practical strategies for schools including auditing curriculum and resources and committing a yearly budget to purchase Aboriginal resources and Torres Strait Islander resources or experiences made, written, or designed by First Nations Peoples.

Cairns says many of the authors discuss the need to “sit with the discomfort” often felt by non-Aboriginal teachers and non-Torres Strait Islander teachers and the value of teachers collectively sharing narratives about their own learning about Australian history, and their anxieties about the subject.

“The authors also offer practical strategies and ideas for professional learning that enable teachers to grapple with this discomfort, including dramabased activities and memory-writing activities,” she says.

“Many of them recognise the building of respectful and reciprocal relationships between school communities and local First Nations Communities.”

VITAL STEPS TO CHANGE

Fricker says “decolonising of self” is a vital first step for teachers and an ongoing process that requires deep questioning of education fundamentals.

Sara Weuffen Editor

“The neo-colonial context has permeated every single possible aspect of teaching and learning,” he says.

“Why do we teach the things that we

teach? How do we teach things that we teach? What behaviours do we focus on? Where do we teach? Who do we engage with when we’re teaching? And what kind of policies do we implement?”

Fricker says the schooling introduced to Australia since 1788 has “never aligned with the First Nations cultural context”.

“Part of decolonising is about nonIndigenous stakeholders creating space that allows for First Nations contexts to manifest in the classroom; it’s also about First Nation stakeholders having the right to tell and control the stories and the knowledges that we want to put in the classrooms,” Fricker says.

Weuffen says teachers can’t be held accountable for what they don’t know.

“The education system widely has failed teachers in acquiring the fundamental knowledge to work with First Nations Peoples and perspectives, during their own compulsory schooling and ITE (Initial

Teacher Education) years,” says Weuffen.

“However, it is also the responsibility of teachers to develop their own professional knowledge base if there are aspects of curriculum content they don’t understand.”

But she says the challenge facing teachers is time.

In the chapter, Challenging the great Australian silence, Fricker writes that under-resourced, time-poor teachers often “fall back” to using pre-produced teaching materials.

“This has been further impacted by having the inclusion of First Nations contexts in the classroom being embedded within the professional standards for teachers and as a cross-curriculum priority in the Australian Curriculum,” says Fricker.

“The outcome has been a professional requirement to engage with First Nations content, but not enough support given to teachers to do this confidently.”

The outcome has been a professional requirement to engage with First Nations content, but not enough support being given to teachers to do this confidently.

Aleryk Fricker Editor

POLITICAL CONTEXT

In Kerri Garrard’s chapter, Doing intercultural history: A framework for history teachers, she writes: “Australian history education always sits at the most volatile point on the interface between politics and education”.

Fricker says the failed Voice to Parliament referendum offers both risk and opportunity for Aboriginal Peoples and Torres Strait Islander Peoples.

“One of the things that made me hugely anxious during the referendum journey was whether, if it failed, it would embolden conservative people. Now I worry, ‘What sort of the mandate are they going to now claim that they have?’

“But this is the status quo; every single gain we have made over the last 230 or so years, we have had to fight so hard for, though it feels very much as though there is a turning tide. What has been heartening is to know that those who did vote ‘yes’, and saw with disbelief the proportion of people voting ‘no’, became fortified in their commitment,” Fricker says.

“Now, there’s a lot of very angry white fellas out there – and they are angry at other white fellas for voting ‘no’. They are saying ‘I recognise just how unjust this is, and I’m ready to fight now’.

“But we can’t afford one moment of rest or respite, because they are still coming for us.”

Leanne Tolra is a freelance writer and Australian Educator’s subeditor.

Open to opportunities

Award-winning teacher Alice Leung is drawing on her passions to make science fun for the next generation.

BY MARGARET PATON

Alice Leung’s high school careers advisor discouraged her from a teaching career, saying there wouldn’t be jobs in primary teaching, and suggested she consider law or commerce.

But, inspired by a remarkable science teacher between Years 8 and 11, Leung held onto her passion for education.

A TeachNSW scholarship covered her tuition and textbooks while she completed double bachelor degrees in education and science.

“It meant I graduated with no debt and was guaranteed a permanent teaching position,” she says.

PRIZE FOR EXCELLENCE

Leung was awarded the 2024 Prime Minister’s Prize for Excellence in Science Teaching in Secondary Schools and describes the accolade as “surprising and humbling”.

“It was a reflection of all the amazing people I’ve worked with – principals, mentors, colleagues, and, of course, my students,” Leung says.

Leung began her teaching career 16 years ago in Western Sydney before moving to Concord High in Sydney’s Inner West, with a student population of 1300.

At Concord High, Leung oversees technology across the school, establishing procedures for its digital systems. She also teaches both junior and senior science and mathematics classes.

Leung’s teaching philosophy emphasises fostering strong relationships with and among her students.

“Creating psychological safety in the classroom is key. Students need to feel comfortable asking questions, working in groups, and sometimes even failing,” she says.

Students need to feel comfortable asking questions, working in groups, and sometimes even failing.

Alice Leung

Head

Teacher Secondary Studies

Concord

High School, Sydney

President,

NSWTF Inner West Teachers’ Association

UNDERSTANDING HOW STUDENTS LEARN

Leung keeps up with educational trends such as cognitive load theory, which has significantly shaped her teaching practice.

“I use strategies like retrieval practice to help students embed knowledge in their long-term memory. It’s not just about the content; it’s about understanding how students learn,” she says.

Each of her classes starts with a quick

Why do you teach?

We want to hear your tips for engaging young minds. Email educator@hardiegrant.com.au if you have something to share. You can provide a written piece or we’d love to interview you.

quiz to recap the content from last week or a couple of terms ago to keep students engaged.

“It began as a classroom management tactic, having three fill-in-the-blank sentences on the board. It gets students to take out their equipment and sit down so I can mark the roll in peace,” Leung says.

Despite the challenges of teaching, including a heavy workload and complex student needs, she still loves the job.

“I feel lucky to have a job that doesn’t feel like work. But it’s sometimes hard to balance pursuing your passion with avoiding burnout,” she says.

To stave off stress, Leung avoids scheduling back-to-back practical lessons and blocks out time in her diary for specific tasks. She also refrains from taking students’ behaviour personally and gives credit to her supportive partner, with whom she has two primary-schoolaged children.

Leung’s role reflects her commitment to public education.

“I’ve always worked in public schools because I believe in their importance for a fair and equitable society. Every child deserves a high-quality education, regardless of their background,” she says.

For those considering where teaching can take you, her advice is simple: “Don’t be afraid to put your hand up for opportunities. Even if you don’t feel 100 per cent ready, showing interest can open doors.”

“Teaching is so creative; your job is to learn and to make learning really engaging, authentic, relevant and fun.”

Margaret Paton is a casual high-school teacher and freelance writer. She is also a PhD student researching out-of-field teaching.

Joining the First Nations Workers Alliance is a powerful way to show you believe in a better future for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander workers.

Membership is open to all Australian union members, and by joining you’ll not just be showing solidarity – you’ll also get access to our exclusive member portal with resources and education about indigenous and union history.

POWERED BY THE ACTU

Helping educators find their rhythm of retirement

Whether retirement’s just around the corner, or still a while away, let’s talk.

As Chant West’s Super and Pension Fund of the Year 2024,* we’ll help you find your tempo, so you don’t miss a beat.

Personalised super help, at no extra cost

Members can chat to one of our qualified financial advisers with a Super Helpful Check‑in at no extra cost.† They’ll provide help with everything from how best to access your super, to trickier things like tax. Visit aware.com.au/appointment to book.

If retirement is just around the corner...

You can also check out our digital Retirement Guide which offers plenty of tips, advice and real member stories, plus a helpful checklist to guide you every step of the way.

With super advice and super returns

Aware Super is super helpful.

Scan the QR code to download our Retirement Guide