Victoria faces teacher shortage as student numbers surge

Hayley Dureau never planned on becoming a teacher. Labor policy: Labor will raise the minimum ATAR requirement to 70 for school leavers to enter a teaching degree It will also regulate to prevent universities offering courses designed to get around the ATAR requirement It promised $187 million to recruit 700 expert teachers to help students pass a new literacy and numeracy test As at November 9, 2018 "We need in excess of 1,300 teachers a year to cope with that growth," Meredith Peace, who heads the Australian Education Union in Victoria, said. Coalition policy: The Coalition supports raising the ATAR requirement to 70 to enter a teaching degree It has also promised to work with universities to ensure the best possible teachers It will also instigate a population commission to determine the number and location of new schools and teachers As at November 9, 2018 Back then, the Victorian Government was running advertising campaigns to recruit police. Meg Sampson, who switched to teaching after completing a music degree, said "ATAR results aren't the be-all and end-all". Raising the status and pay of good teachers would help attract high-achieving students, said the Grattan Institute's Julie Sonnemann, who suggests creating a new class of master teacher.