Teaching in Australia is acknowledged as a profession. The public, however, generally perceives teaching as a poorly paid occupation whose practitioners exert little control over their own standards of practice. Consequently, the professional status of teachers is low, and very few of the most capable school leavers and high ability university graduates are attracted to teaching as a career. Furthermore, teachers' perceptions that the public does not appreciate their work have led to low morale, high rates of resignations, and early retirements among experienced practitioners. These factors will contribute to serious shortages of teachers in the new millennium. In the past Australian employers in both government and non-government school sectors have attempted to circumvent teacher shortages by reducing qualifications required for teaching. This anti-professional practice has contributed to the belief that teaching is something that anyone can do. It is argued in this thesis that the status of the teaching profession in Australia must be enhanced if teaching is to attract capable new recruits and retain knowledgeable, experienced practitioners. This could be achieved by giving teachers greater responsibility for their profession's standards through a system of statutory regulatory boards, comprised largely of practising teachers. The boards would be responsible for establishing and enforcing standards for registration of teachers, accreditation of teacher education, and provision of advanced certification. Furthermore, such regulation of the profession should be on a national basis to ensure that all children in all schools in Australia have access to competent, professionally qualified teachers, and to overcome the problems of interstate mobility of teachers. The thesis concludes by calling on all stakeholders to acknowledge teaching as a full profession. This could be achieved by accepting that teachers should regulate their professional standards in the same way that other professions do. A model to achieve that end is presented. / Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:ADTP/235825 |
| Date | January 1999 |
| Creators | O'Donnell, Brian Charles, University of Western Sydney, Macarthur, Faculty of Education and Languages |
| Source Sets | Australiasian Digital Theses Program |
| Language | English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Source | THESIS_FEL_XXX_O'Donnell_B.xml |
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