Wednesday, 25 May 2022

Ministers statements: early childhood workforce

Ms STITT (Western Metropolitan—Minister for Workplace Safety, Minister for Early Childhood) (12:37): Today I want to update the house on the ways that the Andrews Labor government is supporting people to become early childhood teachers. Yesterday I was proud to announce the Upskill program, in partnership with the Front Project. This program will support up to 100 early childhood educators to move confidently through university and into their first few years as a teacher. Our government are investing in this initiative because we know that when teachers are well supported they are more likely to stay in the profession and make a big difference to the lives of young children. We will make it a priority to focus this support on students who face barriers to tertiary education, like those who are living and working in rural and remote areas, those who are the first in their families to attend university, those employed by smaller service providers or those for whom English is not their first language.

We are also supporting hundreds of diploma educators to become teachers through our innovative initial teacher education program. We have partnered with Deakin, VU and the Australian Catholic University, and that means that educators who are already working in the sector can earn while they learn.

I recently met with an educator, Kerrie, from Colchester Park Preschool—together with my colleague Jackson Taylor—who is two weeks away from finishing her degree at Deakin. Kerrie said the financial support we provided means that she can fulfil her dream of becoming a teacher. It means that Kerrie can take up one of the 4000 new teaching jobs that we are creating as we deliver three-year-old kindergarten. It is all part of our $209.9 million investment in the early childhood workforce and the overall commitment of $5 billion to deliver the three-year-old landmark reform.