ANZSCO 2414-11Tasmania
Secondary School TeacherMarch 2017
Labour Economics Office Tasmania
Department of Employment
Current labour market ratingRegional recruitment difficulty
Previous labour market rating (April 2016)No shortage
Comments
Employerslocated in some regional areas of Tasmania are experiencing difficulties recruiting for secondary school teachers inthe subject areas of maths and science. Employers in metropolitan and large regional centres recruit without difficulty.
Survey results[1]
- A Department of Employment survey of employers who had recently advertised for secondary school teachers found 73 per cent of vacancies in public and private sector schools were filled. In comparison, all vacancies were filled in the 2016 and 2015 surveys.
- The advertised vacancies included secondary and senior secondary teaching positions in the subject areas of maths, science, English, humanities, drama, music, business studies, physiology, physical education and health.
- The majority of vacancies located in metropolitan and larger regional centres of the state were filled without difficulty.
- There was an average of 4.7 qualified applicants per vacancy of whom an average of 1.6 per vacancy were considered suitable by employers.
- Employers located in some regional areas of Tasmania reported difficulties recruiting for secondary school teachers in the subject areas of maths and science.
- The main reason cited by regional employers for their recruitment difficulty was theirlocation.
- In some cases employers responded to the difficulty in recruiting experienced maths and science teachers by increasing class sizes or recruiting near-qualified teachers.
Unsuitable applicants
- The majority of unsuitable applicants lacked qualifications or did not have the proficiency in teaching the required subject areas.
- Other reasons employers considered applicants as unsuitable were they lackedthe necessary post-university experience in areas such as staff supervision and curriculum planning or could not demonstrate strong knowledge of the school's philosophy or culture.
Demand and supply trends
- Demand for secondary school teachers is generally related to the number of young people attending school in Tasmania in the 13 to 17 years age group, along with Year 11 and 12 retention rates and school policies in relation to class sizes.
- The number of students in secondary and senior secondary public schools has been declining over the last few years and decreased by almost 2.5 per cent over the year to August 2015.[2]
- The number of children in the 13 to 17 year age group has decreased by 4.8 per cent in Tasmania over the five years between June 2011 and June 2016.[3]
- Overall, the number of FTE teaching staff in Tasmanian secondary schools decreased by 7.0 per cent from 2011 to 2016. The decrease is mainly attributed to government secondary school teaching staff, with Catholic and Independent secondary school FTE teaching staff both increasing marginally over this period[4]
- Teachers interested in fixed-term full-time, part-time or relief teaching positions within the Tasmanian Department of Education can record their details on the Department’s teachers’ register. The Department has the capacity to employ from the register for up to 12 months.As at May 2017, there were 2,249 people registered for the role of teacher.[5]
- Anyone seeking a career as a teacher in Tasmania must secure registration, provisional registration or a Limited Authority to Teach (LAT) from the Teachers Registration Board of Tasmania (TRB).
- In November 2015, there were 11,529 individuals registered in Tasmania overall, which represents a 4.9 per cent increase on the number registered in November 2011.
- There were 393 individuals granted LATs in the 2015 calendar year which is a decrease of almost 27.0 per cent when compared to the number granted in 2011.[6]
- The main source of new supply of secondary school teachers in Tasmania is through the University of Tasmania. Students choosing to undertake the Master of Teaching course can choose two specialist streams, either secondary or primary school teaching.
- In 2015 there were 154 new domestic graduates for the Master of Teaching course. This represents a 37.5 per cent increase on the number of domestic graduates in 2013.[7]
Other indicators and issues
- The Tasmanian State Government’s Years 11 and 12 Extension Program is aimed at encouraging more young Tasmanians to complete Year 12. Total funding of $45.5 million has been provided to extend secondary schools to Years 11 and 12 in rural, regional and urban communities by 2018. In 2015, the first six schools started providing Years 11 and 12 programs with another six in 2016 and a further 18 expected for 2017.[8]
Labour Economics Office Tasmania
Department of Employment
[1] The methodology underpinning this research is outlined at Skill Shortage Research Methodology | Department of Employment - Document library, Australian Government and can also be accessed by the QR code.
[2]Tasmanian Department of Education, Annual Report 2014/15 and Annual Report 2015/16
[3]ABS, Australian Demographic Statistics, Tasmania (Cat No. 3101), Jun 2016
[4]Australian Bureau of Statistics, Schools Australia, catalogue 4221.0, 2001-2016
[5]Tasmanian Department of Education, unpublished data, May 2017
[6]Teachers Registration Board, Annual Report 2011 and Annual Report 2015
[7]University of Tasmania, unpublished data, 2013 and 2015
[8]Tasmanian Department of Education, Annual Report 2015/16