Shaping the future of teaching

The Sydney School of Education and Social Work and the Creativity in Research, Engaging the Arts and Transforming Education, Health and Wellbeing (CREATE) Centre at the University of Sydney are addressing the future challenges faced by the teaching community by designing education-focused programs to attract new teachers to the industry and to retain early career primary and high school teachers in regional and remote Australia.

The Sydney School of Education and Social Work, the NSW Department of Education and 100 public high school students from Western Sydney, Armidale, Broken Hill, Muswellbrook and Dubbo came together at the Future Teachers’ Club conference on Wednesday 20 November to explore diverse pathways into education and teaching.

The Future Teachers' Club is a schools-based program that gives students in years 8 to 11 practical experience and insights into the profession before pursuing a teaching degree. 

Held at the Chau Chak Wing Museum, participants on the day engaged in a range of hands-on workshops facilitated by expert educators to experience different aspects of teaching, from classroom management to curriculum development and how to support student learning. 

In the opening address of the conference, Vice-Chancellor and President of the University of Sydney, Professor Mark Scott stressed the importance of attracting and retaining a skilled teacher workforce.

"Teaching is a highly skilled profession. New teachers deserve the best possible support and experience as they start their professional careers,” he said.

“We know the importance of great teachers cannot be overstated and for many choosing to study education is a calling – there aren’t many other careers with the level of responsibility, or sense of intrinsic reward.

“At the University, we have designed our education degrees to develop teachers capable of meeting the demands of contemporary teaching, with a strong focus on inclusive education.”

Led by the CREATE Centre, the conference aligns with the University of Sydney and the NSW Department of Education’s commitment to equip the next generation of teachers with the breadth of skills required to teach children in our rapidly changing world, and to provide equitable access to education for all students, regardless of where they live.

“Teaching is the profession that creates all other professions and giving our students an early taste of this rewarding career is a win for our schools of today and of the future,” said Mr Murat Dizdar, Secretary of the NSW Department of Education. 

“I am delighted our students are getting the opportunity to learn directly from our talented and committed teachers. The conference provides more opportunities for our public school students and helps develop a pipeline of talent as we continue to address the teacher shortage.”

Along with giving the next generation of teachers the education and skills they need to thrive in every classroom, the Sydney School of Education and Social Work is addressing the high attrition rates of early career teachers in regional schools through the delivery of arts-rich professional training programs.

Co-designed by Thomas De Angelis, Dr Alison Grove O’Grady, Dr Catherine Smyth and Professor Emerita Robyn Ewing from the CREATE Centre, the development of the programs builds on long-established work and research into the role of creativity in education, health, and wellbeing. 

“A Department of Education report from 2023 showed that over 48 percent of teachers in far west NSW are in their first year of teaching,” said Thomas De Angelis, PhD candidate and Research Associate at CREATE. 

"The chances of these educators staying in far west NSW beyond two years was reported as extremely low. And while the teachers we have spoken to said they love the work and lifestyle a regional community offers, the lack of support and opportunities for young people and young families is driving them towards the cities.  

“We’ve collaborated with institutions like Bell Shakespeare to research and design professional training programs that refocus arts-rich practices on the teaching community, aiming to increase teacher satisfaction and retention by offering educators in regional Australia the experiences, development opportunities and support networks available in a metropolitan city.”

Creative arts strategies and skills help early career educators navigate challenges in the classroom and gain insights into the diverse needs and experiences of their students.  

“The use of drama, theatre, role-playing, visual arts, and other creative methods provide a safe and dynamic environment for teachers to practice and develop their responses to a variety of teaching and classroom management scenarios,” said Dr Grove O’Grady, Senior Lecturer in Secondary Education at the Sydney School of Education and Social Work. 

“The collaborative approach of these workshops with small groups of teachers helps to build empathy and understanding, and fosters a sense of community, which is essential for supporting early career teachers in remote regions.” 

Specific pressures on early career teachers and inequities in the education system are felt more acutely in regional Australia, so providing new ways to build support networks is critical for teacher retention, according to local teacher in Broken Hill and collaborator with CREATE Centre initiatives, Jane Vaughan. 

“Teachers in regional areas feel quite disconnected from the rest of our colleagues across the state. There are fewer in-person professional learning classes available, and there are barriers to accessing training, including cost, time away from school when we already have teacher shortages, and distance to travel," Ms Vaughan said.

“Offering arts-rich training on location in regional communities is crucial because it gives teachers the opportunity to not only enrich their classrooms and engage their students, but to connect with other teachers as well.”