The teacher degree apprenticeship will offer a high-quality, alternative route for people to become qualified teachers, and will include people who may not be able to take time out to study full-time for a degree, such as teaching assistants or staff already working in schools.

Prospective British educators participating in the new teacher degree apprenticeship will spend around 40 per cent of their time studying for their degree with an accredited teacher training provider and gain qualified teacher status. All tuition fees are paid for, meaning trainees won’t be saddled with student debt.

The UK Government says the program’s first apprentices, up to 150 to teach secondary school maths, will be recruited later this year to start the four-year pilot course in 2025.

With the Productivity Commission draft report here in Australia calling for greater accelerated pathways and flexibility for educators to complete teaching qualifications while working, ACU national head of the School of Education, Professor Donna King, tells EducationHQ innovative solutions to chronic teacher shortages globally are always welcome.

“It’s wonderful to see a growing number of pathways nationally and internationally to help boost the pipeline of quality teachers in our schools,” King says.

“Apprenticeship-style programs can provide greater flexibility for students to fulfil their aim of becoming teachers.

“The UK apprenticeship scheme has parallels with ACU’s partnership with Teach for Australia (TFA), in which students complete an intensive program of learning before being placed in low-socioeconomic, regional or remote communities for two years and paid 80 per cent of a full-time load while completing their masters qualifications.”

British Education Secretary Gillian Keegan says applying the apprenticeship style of career preparation in an education context offers a range of unique opportunities.

“The teacher degree apprenticeship will open up the profession to more people, from those who want a career change to those who are looking for an earn and learn route without student debt.

“It will be a game-changing opportunity for schools to nurture and retain talent from the ground up, helping apprentices to gain the knowledge and skills they need to teach future generations.”

ACU’s Professor Donna King says apprenticeship-style programs can provide greater flexibility for students to fulfil their aim of becoming teachers, with the new UK apprenticeship scheme having parallels with ACU’s partnership with Teach for Australia.

Unpaid placements have long been a cause of serious financial concern here in Australia, and can pose a significant barrier to the completion of many prospective teachers’ studies.

They place an undue burden on students and are also a major barrier preventing prospective students from enrolling in teaching programs.

They also deter preservice teachers from undertaking placements in rural and regional areas, where current teacher shortages are the most dire.

Commonwealth Teaching Scholarships announced late last year support new undergraduate and postgraduate teaching students to meet the costs of their study in exchange for teaching in government schools or government-run early learning settings for a period of time after graduating from their degree.

Scholarships of up to $40,000 per student are available for full-time undergraduate initial teacher education (ITE) students ($10,000 per year for a four-year qualification) and up to $20,000 for full-time postgraduate ITE students ($10,000 per year for a two‑year- qualification).

In Victoria, the TTTT (Teach Today and Teach Tomorrow) programs provide teaching students with paid employment in Victorian government schools as education support staff or teaching paraprofessionals while they complete an undergraduate or postgraduate teaching degree.

Teach Today students receive a $2400 department scholarship for the initial intensive study period prior to working in a classroom as a preservice teacher for 18 to 24 months.

Teach Tomorrow students receive a $15,000 department scholarship while they study for the first six to 12 months prior to being employed as education support staff, or preservice teachers for the remainder of their studies.

In NSW, a range of scholarships include its Teacher Education Scholarship, which provides financial support of up to $7500 per year whilst studying full-time, a $6000 appointment allowance and a permanent teaching position with the NSW Department of Education following successful completion of studies.

Along with other Initial Teacher Education (ITE) providers here in Australia, King says her university is mindful that while the sector is in desperate need of more educators in virtually every primary and secondary area, excellence remains a non-negotiable on candidate provision.

“ACU is committed to researching, creating, and implementing the most flexible pathways possible to get teachers into classrooms faster without compromising on quality,” she says.

King acknowledges the teacher shortage has provided an opportunity for ITE providers to look at innovative ways to attract and retain teaching students and help them secure roles across all sectors.

“In addition to our partnership with TFA, and our industry-leading compressed courses, ACU has worked closely with state and federal partners, Catholic stakeholders, and teaching regulators to provide opportunities for qualified students to teach in schools while finishing their degrees under permission to teach style programs, while also providing high schoolers with access to our Step Up Into Teaching program, which allows them to complete units before they even enrol in their ACU teaching degree.”

Macquarie University School of Education researcher Dr Janet Dutton recently shared some of the reasons behind the teacher shortage in Australia and steps she thinks could return teaching to a profession our brightest students want to enter.