❓ The Minister for Education and Training reports a smooth start to the 2004 school year, highlighting successful teacher placement and addressing previous teacher shortages through targeted policies and scholarships.
AnsweredQoN 7Legislative Assembly
QuestionView source ↗
Will the minister advise the House on the start of the 2004 school year? Mr A.J. CARPENTER
AnswerView source ↗
I thank the member for Wanneroo for the question and for her continual advocacy on behalf of the education system in her area. It would be fair to say that this was the smoothest beginning of a school year for a very long time in Western Australia, particularly for the placement of teachers. This year the department had to fill 5 200 vacancies resulting from people moving in and out of the education system and transferring within it, which is a very large number. On day one of the school year only two positions were unfilled. Members might contrast that with the situation in Western Australia a few years ago when at the beginning of the 1999 school year there were 80 to 90 unfilled positions with no teachers in classrooms. The department produced a report at the time on teacher supply and demand in Western Australia for 1999 to 2004 that predicted massive shortages of schoolteachers. In three short years we have turned the situation around to the extent that many graduate teachers are now unable to be placed as a result of the excess of supply over demand. It is a good thing; it is good for the system and more of a guarantee of better quality. I believe it is a testament to the policies that we have put in place to make teaching more attractive generally and also to target specific areas of shortages. In the maths and science disciplines the department is now producing higher education contribution scheme scholarships. I think there are 30 scholarships for Aboriginal students. In addition, there are more than 200 other scholarships. I believe that we can claim credit for a very significant success in attracting people to the teaching profession, running against the tide of the rest of the country. We are having no problem with attracting people to the profession and filling positions. It has been a very good start to the school year.
Mr A.J. CARPENTER replied: I thank the member for Wanneroo for the question and for her continual advocacy on behalf of the education system in her area. It would be fair to say that this was the smoothest beginning of a school year for a very long time in Western Australia, particularly for the placement of teachers. This year the department had to fill 5 200 vacancies resulting from people moving in and out of the education system and transferring within it, which is a very large number. On day one of the school year only two positions were unfilled. Members might contrast that with the situation in Western Australia a few years ago when at the beginning of the 1999 school year there were 80 to 90 unfilled positions with no teachers in classrooms. The department produced a report at the time on teacher supply and demand in Western Australia for 1999 to 2004 that predicted massive shortages of schoolteachers. In three short years we have turned the situation around to the extent that many graduate teachers are now unable to be placed as a result of the excess of supply over demand. It is a good thing; it is good for the system and more of a guarantee of better quality. I believe it is a testament to the policies that we have put in place to make teaching more attractive generally and also to target specific areas of shortages. In the maths and science disciplines the department is now producing higher education contribution scheme scholarships. I think there are 30 scholarships for Aboriginal students. In addition, there are more than 200 other scholarships. I believe that we can claim credit for a very significant success in attracting people to the teaching profession, running against the tide of the rest of the country. We are having no problem with attracting people to the profession and filling positions. It has been a very good start to the school year.
I thank the member for Wanneroo for the question and for her continual advocacy on behalf of the education system in her area. It would be fair to say that this was the smoothest beginning of a school year for a very long time in Western Australia, particularly for the placement of teachers. This year the department had to fill 5 200 vacancies resulting from people moving in and out of the education system and transferring within it, which is a very large number. On day one of the school year only two positions were unfilled. Members might contrast that with the situation in Western Australia a few years ago when at the beginning of the 1999 school year there were 80 to 90 unfilled positions with no teachers in classrooms. The department produced a report at the time on teacher supply and demand in Western Australia for 1999 to 2004 that predicted massive shortages of schoolteachers. In three short years we have turned the situation around to the extent that many graduate teachers are now unable to be placed as a result of the excess of supply over demand. It is a good thing; it is good for the system and more of a guarantee of better quality. I believe it is a testament to the policies that we have put in place to make teaching more attractive generally and also to target specific areas of shortages. In the maths and science disciplines the department is now producing higher education contribution scheme scholarships. I think there are 30 scholarships for Aboriginal students. In addition, there are more than 200 other scholarships. I believe that we can claim credit for a very significant success in attracting people to the teaching profession, running against the tide of the rest of the country. We are having no problem with attracting people to the profession and filling positions. It has been a very good start to the school year.
In three short years we have turned the situation around to the extent that many graduate teachers are now unable to be placed as a result of the excess of supply over demand. It is a good thing; it is good for the system and more of a guarantee of better quality. I believe it is a testament to the policies that we have put in place to make teaching more attractive generally and also to target specific areas of shortages. In the maths and science disciplines the department is now producing higher education contribution scheme scholarships. I think there are 30 scholarships for Aboriginal students. In addition, there are more than 200 other scholarships. I believe that we can claim credit for a very significant success in attracting people to the teaching profession, running against the tide of the rest of the country. We are having no problem with attracting people to the profession and filling positions. It has been a very good start to the school year.
Mr A.J. CARPENTER replied: I thank the member for Wanneroo for the question and for her continual advocacy on behalf of the education system in her area. It would be fair to say that this was the smoothest beginning of a school year for a very long time in Western Australia, particularly for the placement of teachers. This year the department had to fill 5 200 vacancies resulting from people moving in and out of the education system and transferring within it, which is a very large number. On day one of the school year only two positions were unfilled. Members might contrast that with the situation in Western Australia a few years ago when at the beginning of the 1999 school year there were 80 to 90 unfilled positions with no teachers in classrooms. The department produced a report at the time on teacher supply and demand in Western Australia for 1999 to 2004 that predicted massive shortages of schoolteachers. In three short years we have turned the situation around to the extent that many graduate teachers are now unable to be placed as a result of the excess of supply over demand. It is a good thing; it is good for the system and more of a guarantee of better quality. I believe it is a testament to the policies that we have put in place to make teaching more attractive generally and also to target specific areas of shortages. In the maths and science disciplines the department is now producing higher education contribution scheme scholarships. I think there are 30 scholarships for Aboriginal students. In addition, there are more than 200 other scholarships. I believe that we can claim credit for a very significant success in attracting people to the teaching profession, running against the tide of the rest of the country. We are having no problem with attracting people to the profession and filling positions. It has been a very good start to the school year.
I thank the member for Wanneroo for the question and for her continual advocacy on behalf of the education system in her area. It would be fair to say that this was the smoothest beginning of a school year for a very long time in Western Australia, particularly for the placement of teachers. This year the department had to fill 5 200 vacancies resulting from people moving in and out of the education system and transferring within it, which is a very large number. On day one of the school year only two positions were unfilled. Members might contrast that with the situation in Western Australia a few years ago when at the beginning of the 1999 school year there were 80 to 90 unfilled positions with no teachers in classrooms. The department produced a report at the time on teacher supply and demand in Western Australia for 1999 to 2004 that predicted massive shortages of schoolteachers. In three short years we have turned the situation around to the extent that many graduate teachers are now unable to be placed as a result of the excess of supply over demand. It is a good thing; it is good for the system and more of a guarantee of better quality. I believe it is a testament to the policies that we have put in place to make teaching more attractive generally and also to target specific areas of shortages. In the maths and science disciplines the department is now producing higher education contribution scheme scholarships. I think there are 30 scholarships for Aboriginal students. In addition, there are more than 200 other scholarships. I believe that we can claim credit for a very significant success in attracting people to the teaching profession, running against the tide of the rest of the country. We are having no problem with attracting people to the profession and filling positions. It has been a very good start to the school year.
In three short years we have turned the situation around to the extent that many graduate teachers are now unable to be placed as a result of the excess of supply over demand. It is a good thing; it is good for the system and more of a guarantee of better quality. I believe it is a testament to the policies that we have put in place to make teaching more attractive generally and also to target specific areas of shortages. In the maths and science disciplines the department is now producing higher education contribution scheme scholarships. I think there are 30 scholarships for Aboriginal students. In addition, there are more than 200 other scholarships. I believe that we can claim credit for a very significant success in attracting people to the teaching profession, running against the tide of the rest of the country. We are having no problem with attracting people to the profession and filling positions. It has been a very good start to the school year.
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