INCA Education around the world
Australia : Initial Teacher Training
7.1 First phase, pre-compulsory education, ages 0-5/6, [see 3.2.1]
7.1.1 Control
7.1.2 Types of training courses and institutions
7.1.2.1 Admissions
7.1.3 Trainers
7.1.4 Curriculum for initial teacher training
7.1.5 Qualifications and standards
7.1.5.1 Qualifications and entitlement to teach
7.1.5.2 Probationary periods
7.1.6 Post-qualification induction periods
Please note that the initial teacher training sections of the website were originally funded by the Training and Development Agency for Schools (TDA). They have not been updated since March 2009 and the information provided in them may have been superseded.
7.1 First phase, pre-compulsory education, ages 0-5/6 [see 3.2.1]
Pre-primary education is not compulsory in Australia. In most States and Territories there is one year of pre-primary education, often known as 'Preparatory'. 186 See section 3.2.1 for further information.
7.1.1 Control
General/national
In Australia, the staffing of early childhood education centres varies according to the regulatory requirements of each State and Territory. A range of personnel, qualified and unqualified, may be employed according to service type. The number of qualified staff required and the nature of qualification varies according to regulation and jurisdiction.199
Preschools
A teaching qualification is required to teach in preschools. Preschool programmes may be staffed by early childhood teachers but a specific early childhood qualification is not always a requirement.199
Long day care centres
Specifically trained early childhood personnel are required in long day care centres, which usually employ a combination of contact staff, including those with varying levels of early childhood training and some untrained staff. In some jurisdictions, early childhood teachers are a requirement and there may also be a requirement for the supervisor of the daily programme to have an early childhood qualification.199
Family day care
Staff working in the coordination units of family day care schemes are required to have relevant qualifications in jurisdictions where regulations apply. "National Family Day Care Standards" also specify qualifications for staff of coordination units. Family day care carers themselves are not required by regulations to have any qualifications, apart from a first aid certificate. Individual schemes may, however, require carers to undertake orientation programmes before being registered as care providers. In addition, all schemes offer in-service training programmes to carers.199
Outside school hours care
Under national standards, outside schools hours care must employ one qualified staff member for every 30 children including the coordinator of the service who must be qualified. The qualification may be in teaching (primary or early childhood), child care or recreation. Although most outside school hours care is currently unregulated, those services in receipt of Commonwealth (national) funding are encouraged to meet national standards. In-service training is available to the staff and management of these services through Resource and Training Agencies.199
Requirement for police checks on prospective personnel
All jurisdictions either currently require police checks for Early Childhood Education and Care (ECEC) personnel, or are in the process of introducing mechanisms to do so.199
Queensland
Statutory obligations for the engagement of staff in Queensland child care services are governed by the Child Care Act 2002182 and the Child Care Regulation 2003.181 Currently there are many training opportunities offered by registered training providers in Queensland.202
Victoria
The Children's Services Regulations 1998184 specify that a qualified staff member in children's services must have successfully completed a two-year, post-secondary early childhood qualification, or equivalent.218 Centres that provide care or education for five or more children under the age of 6 years in the absence of their parents are required to be licensed in Victoria. This includes long day care centres, occasional care centres and preschool services.218
7.1.2 Types of training courses and institutions
General/national
There are two main avenues for gaining relevant qualifications and training:
- higher education (mainly the university sector), which comes under the ambit of the Commonwealth Government; and
- the State / Territory based vocational education sector which comprises TAFE (Technical and Further Education) and private training providers (Registered Training Organisations). 199
There are a number of early childhood qualifications offered and a number of pathways to gaining qualifications.199 The main types of qualifications currently recognised by children's services regulations are:
- early childhood teaching degrees;
- the Diploma of Community Services (Children's Services); and
- the Advanced Diploma of Community Services (Children's Services). 199
- Certificate II in Community Services (Children's Services)
- Certificate III in Community Services (Children's Services)
- Certificate IV in Community Services (Children's Services)
- Diploma of Community Services (Children's Services)
- Advanced Diploma of Community Services (Children's Services).199
These qualifications allow for specialisations in either centre-based care, outside school hours care or family day care. The Advanced Diploma focuses on specialist skills such as management.199 Training is offered via nationally-endorsed training packages which set out the relevant competencies to be attained. Training packages can be delivered and competencies demonstrated in a number of different ways, including on the job training and assessment, and long distance education.199
Higher education
Early childhood teaching degrees are offered through the university sector. These may be three- or four-year degrees, depending upon the institution in which they are offered. An early childhood teaching degree enables a teacher to work in ECEC settings for children under the age of 5 and, in some cases, in the early years of compulsory school.199 There is a capacity for articulation between certificates, diplomas and degrees. A student with a certificate is given advanced standing towards the diploma. Those with a diploma, enrolled in a teaching degree, are given recognition for previous study by being credited with a specified number of units towards the degree.199
Many areas of Australia are experiencing a shortage of qualified early childhood staff, including teachers. Changes are occurring in relation to staff preparation and training. Several universities have introduced four-year teaching degrees for early childhood teachers, whilst vocational training and qualifications have moved to a two-year competency based model. The qualifications required to work in early childhood settings are not consistent throughout the country.199
Queensland
There are a number of VET (vocational education and training) and higher education programmes available to individuals wishing to obtain qualifications to prepare them for employment in the child care and early childhood education sectors. These comprise certificate level qualifications, diploma and advanced diploma level qualifications and degree level qualifications.198
VET programmes
The bulk of training in child care programmes is offered in vocational education and training institutions, particularly by Technical and Further Education (TAFE) institutes. Over recent years private community providers have also become active in the provision of VET training.198 Enrolments in VET child care programmes are, in the main, distributed across the four Australian Qualifications Framework (AQF) levels at certificate II, certificate III, certificate IV and diploma (http://www.aqf.edu.au). 198
Higher education programmes
Following a decline in the number of students commencing a course in the child care or early childhood fields of study between 1996 and 1998, Queensland has seen a steady rise in the number of students commencing a course in this field since 1998, although the proportion of male student enrolments remains low (at around four per cent of entrants in 1999). The majority of students enrol in Bachelor of Education (early childhood education) programmes.198 In addition, some students follow Bachelor of Education (child care) programmes, and some study early childhood education and care, already having completed a Graduate Diploma in Education.198 To teach in schools including the year before year 1 in primary schools, a person must be registered as a teacher. To be eligible for teacher registration, Queensland graduates must have completed a programme accepted by the Board of Teacher Registration. The same requirements apply for all teachers in all levels of schools - currently either a four-year undergraduate programme such as a Bachelor of Education, or a two-year graduate entry programme after an initial degree.222
Tasmania
The University of Tasmania offers the following initial teacher training courses:
- Bachelor of Education: The Bachelor of Education degree course lasts for a minimum of four years full-time and prepares students for teaching in early childhood education and in primary schools.220
- Bachelor of Teaching: The Bachelor of Teaching is a two-year postgraduate pre-service teacher training course taken after the completion of a first degree. The course is intended to provide teaching practice and skills to enable the beginning teacher to cope with the early years of teaching and to lay a foundation for further professional development in both the theory and practice of education.220
There are two routes through the degree, depending on whether students wish to become an early years/primary school teacher or a secondary school teacher.220
The early childhood and primary education course consists of the following subject areas:
- cross-curriculum studies
- curriculum and method studies
- school experience.220
Victoria
The Schedule of Early Childhood Qualifications (Victoria) Children's Services Regulations 1998 includes the name of the qualification and the name of the institution from which a qualification is recognised to work in early childhood services in Victoria.
7.1.2.1 Admissions
QueenslandThe Queensland Tertiary Admissions Centre (QTAC) guide (available at http://www.qtac.edu.au) provides details regarding course entry requirements and access information.222
7.1.3 Trainers
QueenslandThe Queensland College of Teachers (QCT) requires that all initial teacher training programmes include a minimum of 100 days of practical experience, of which 80 days must be in schools and supervised by practising teachers.222
7.1.4 Curriculum for initial teacher training
Standards are generally State-based; in Queensland, the Queensland College of Teachers (QCT) (formerly the Board of Teacher Registration) has developed "Standards and Guidelines" for initial teacher training. These provide graduate standards along with guidelines on the design and duration of programmes and on practical experience. Work has commenced at the national level on a National Framework for Standards to provide some consistency across states.222
Tasmania
Bachelor of Education
The Bachelor of Education degree course lasts for a minimum of four years full-time and prepares students for teaching in early childhood education and in primary schools.220 Students undertake a course of study that includes the following elements:
- liberal studies
- education studies
- school experience
- curriculum studies.220
Bachelor of Teaching
The Bachelor of Teaching is a two-year postgraduate pre-service teacher training course taken after the completion of a first degree. The course is intended to provide teaching practice and skills to enable the beginning teacher to cope with the early years of teaching and to lay a foundation for further professional development in both the theory and practice of education.220 There are two routes through the degree, depending on whether students wish to become an early years/primary school teacher or a secondary school teacher.220 The early childhood and primary education course consists of the following subject areas:
- cross-curriculum studies
- curriculum and method studies
- school experience.220
The Bachelor of Teaching programme prepares beginning teachers in all of the appropriate major areas of professional competence which have been identified by relevant professional organisations. These include:
- an understanding of, and ability to practice teaching as an active, interactive process;
- an understanding of the relevant subject areas;
- an understanding of how children learn and develop and of how to cater to their individual differences;
- the ability to plan and manage the teaching and learning process in an effective, inclusive and engaging manner;
- alternative teaching practices; and
- an understanding of children, their development, and the contexts that they live and learn in.220
The programme aims to enable beginning teachers to communicate, interact and work with students of diverse abilities, interests and backgrounds and to engage them actively in the learning process in an inclusive and non-discriminatory manner. Beginning teachers acquire:
- an understanding of, and ability to use, alternative assessment (monitoring, evaluating, reporting) procedures in different pedagogical contexts;
- a commitment to evaluate their own particular conceptions of children, teaching, knowledge, the school curriculum, learning and education and to alter their professional practices if necessary; and
- a positive attitude to, and competency in, the use of information technology in education.220
They are enabled to undertake research relevant to the improvement of professional practice and school effectiveness; and to gain an idea of the character of a liberal democratic education and the expectations it imposes on teachers, schools, administrators, governments and the public generally.220
7.1.5 Qualifications and standards
7.1.5.1 Qualifications and entitlement to teach
See section 7.1.2.
7.1.5.2 Probationary periods
Queensland
Different employers have different probationary periods. In addition, in the first instance, all graduates receive provisional registration with the Queensland College of Teachers (QTC). Full teacher registration is achieved following approximately one year of successful teaching and is subject to a report by the school principal in which the teacher is assessed against the QTC's standards. The principal may recommend full registration, an extension of provisional registration or cancellation of registration.222
7.1.6 Post-qualification induction periods
General/national
Although formal induction processes are few, there are examples of other forms of providing support to new graduates and new recruits. These include placing new employees with experienced workers, implementing buddy system arrangements, providing handbooks, policy documents and explanations of workplace health and safety, and general rules that operate in the service. Providing new employees with child-free days in the case of teachers in pre-schools and kindergartens, access to guidance and support from directors, and allocation to shifts which avoid early mornings or late evenings are other examples of how the sector introduces new employees to their jobs.198
