November 2011     The best teachers in Australia will be recognised through a staged implementation of the reward payment scheme linked to the first National Professional Standards for Teachers, School Education Minister Peter Garrett said.

“The Teacher Standards are world’s best practice and raise the bar on teacher quality,” Mr Garrett said.  “By aligning our rewards with the standards, we’re ensuring that those teachers who go the extra yard will be recognised. We know that these teachers are not motivated by salary or kudos but that doesn’t mean they shouldn’t be celebrated and rewarded for their work.”

The Australian Teacher Performance and Development Framework will deliver a yearly appraisal of every teacher in every school. The best teachers will be encouraged to work towards and apply for accreditation as a Highly Accomplished or Lead Teacher under the new standards, Mr Garrett said.

Under improvements to the Reward Payments for Great Teachers initiative, teachers who are accredited to the highest level of the standards will be rewarded with $7500 for Highly Accomplished teachers and $10,000 for teachers who achieve the Lead Teacher level.

A new performance and development framework for teachers will also be introduced in schools across Australia from 2013 as part of the implementation of the reward payments scheme. Funding for the initiative will increase over time as more teachers are assessed, and as the standards and new performance framework are implemented in schools and school systems.

“In the first year funding is available for at least 8000 teachers to receive the bonus and this will increase in future years as the standards and performance framework is rolled out to full implementation in January 2015," Mr. Garret said.

“These will be our top teachers, the ones who have achieved outstanding results in the classroom, played a leadership role in their school communities, mentored other staff and inspired their students to reach their full potential.”

Mr Garrett said under the new performance framework all teachers will receive regular and constructive feedback on their progress, as well as opportunities for further professional development. The framework will set out the aspects of a teacher’s performance that will be assessed and will include lesson observations, student results, parental feedback, and contribution to the school community.

“The certification process will be robust and transparent, giving the public confidence that our top teachers are being properly recognised and rewarded,” Mr Garrett said.

“Teachers perform one of the most important jobs in our society and these changes will provide strong career development structure and bonuses for those teachers who are working hard every day to educate our kids.”

From information provided by the Minister for School Education, November 25, 2011.

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