It’s a walk out: Alarm bells sound over classroom exodus
Queensland classrooms have lost almost 2000 newly-graduated teachers in eight years, but the Palaszczuk Government insists retention rates are stable.
The Opposition says new teachers are quitting the profession in droves, while the State Government says workforce retention is stable. Photo: resilenteducator.com)
More than a quarter of the 2000 freshly qualified teachers have left the profession since the beginning of last year.
Numbers provided to the Parliament by Education Minister Grace Grace, show a steady increase in the numbers of teachers exiting within their first three years of being in the workforce since 2015, the year the Palaszczuk government took the reins of power.
The biggest spike was last year, when 362 teachers quit, with a further 252 as of October 19 this year.
Shadow Education Minister Christian Rowan said new teachers across Queensland were leaving the profession in droves and the State Government had done nothing to stop the trend since they took office in 2015.
“Our teachers need to be supported, respected and valued and our children deserve a world class education system,” he said.
Grace’s response indicated the numbers quoted may not accurately reflect the extent of the exodus, with some of the figures including teachers who may have been appointed and resigned multiple times over the 2015-2022 period.
She said the number of permanent teachers who resigned with less than three years’ service represented less than one per cent each year of the overall permanent teaching workforce.
Retention rates for Queensland state school teachers had remained stable since 2015, at about 96 per cent, she said.
But Rowan was adamant the Palaszczuk Government was falling short on its pre-election teacher recruitment promise.
“At the last election the Palaszczuk Government pledged to deliver 6190 additional teachers by 2024, but so far only 388 new teachers have been recruited,” he said.
Grace’s office has disputed Rowan’s calculations, asserting they have recruited more than 3500 teachers at the halfway point of the government’s current term.
Queensland Teachers Union president Cresta Richardson said there was no quick-fix.
“Right now, professional educators face greater scrutiny, expectation, and focused pressure than previous generations, this comes on top of increasing workload due to the staffing shortfalls,” she said.
“The QTU believes increasing teacher numbers in schools will require a scope of action involving collaboration with colleges, universities, and both State and Federal governments, it will take time.
“Recent announcements from the Federal government to increase resources and respect for the profession are positive but now require practical application.”
