The Australian Government is committed to an education system that pursues excellence for all Australian schools and where every child receives the highest quality education. This commitment is part of a national agenda for school reform.
As a member of the Ministerial Council for Education, Early Childhood Development and Youth Affairs (MCEECDYA), the Australian Government is committed to improving teacher workforce reforms.
The National Partnership on Teacher Quality identifies the development of national teacher standards. These Standards will inform the development of further reforms in areas that will improve national consistency.
Public consultation closed on 21 May 2010
Over 100 submissions have been received and are being collated and analysed. Submissions can be viewed on the MCEECDYA website shortly.
Consultations were conducted by the states and territories with teachers and school leaders and by the Australian Government with national organisations.
Questions and answers
1. Why do we need new standards?
The current National Framework for Professional Standards for Teaching dates from 2003, when it was endorsed by Ministers as part of defining and promoting quality teaching.
In the context of the Melbourne Declaration on Educational Goals for Young Australians, the national Productivity Agenda and the collaborative COAG arrangements and agreements, and especially the National Partnerships on Improving Teacher Quality, as well as the range of standards work done by professional associations, it is timely to update the 2003 Framework.
The draft National Professional Standards for Teachers (the Standards) describe what is required of teachers at four levels - Graduate, Proficient, Highly Accomplished and Lead - and support the collective responsibility of the profession to ensure that those who teach have essential knowledge and skills. By publicly articulating what is required of teachers at each level, the Standards support improved access to quality teaching for all Australian students.
2. How have the new Standards been developed?
There has been an extensive national process drawing on previously developed standards and external research as well as expert knowledge from educators across Australia.
In 2009 work was commissioned to conduct an analysis and review of the standards in use by teacher registration authorities, employers and professional associations, and provide options for the development of a new National Framework. This formed the basis for the development of draft material, which has been refined by an expert working group. This group was made up of employer representatives from government and non-government sectors from most states and territories.
3. What happens from here?
The draft Standards will be the subject of extensive consultation and a rigorous validation process.
Consultation and Validation Processses
The consultation process has been similar to that undertaken for the Melbourne Declaration on Educational Goals for Young Australians, with consultations being organised by states and territories, and the Australian Government consulting national bodies. The draft Standards are also publicly available on the MCEECDYA website for viewing.
All feedback, including web-based submissions, will be considered and provided into the validation process.
The draft Standards will be validated to ensure they are appropriate and reliable. The validation process will ensure the content is correct across the domains at each level and that the same outcomes are likely to be achieved with different groups of teachers across primary and secondary schools and government, Catholic and Independent sectors.
A tender will be undertaken to design and conduct a validation study and prepare a report setting out the results, including findings about the appropriateness of the Standards within each level.