The big switch
With a teacher shortage forecast, established professionals are turning to teaching as a second career with growing employment prospects. Across Australia, it is predicted that over 1500 primary school classes will need to be created each year until 2020, with the flow on effect expected to be felt in secondary schools from 2018. With an ageing teacher population and an influx of children reaching school age, there is set to be a gap that more current working professionals will be sought to fill.
The Benowa Teacher Education Centre of Excellence (TECE) in Queensland was established to help facilitate this career switch and tap into the teaching potential of the Queensland workforce. The plan is starting to pay dividends, with more people moving into the teaching sector as a second career. Second career teachers are an attractive proposition, as those who have worked in their career for 10 years or more bring a stability and reliability that younger, first career teachers have yet to develop. Experienced professionals have a real-world context and authenticity that can help students apply the skills they are learning. Their experience allows them to bring genuine examples to each lesson and effectively demonstrate how the curriculum relates to the 21st century skill demands.
Read more about a wide range of professionals who have changed their career and how they are reshaping Queensland’s teaching workforce.
Professionals switching careers to teaching to boost educator shortfall