The Tasmanian Government is extending remote teacher incentives in a bid to boost regional school workforces.
Minister for Education, Jo Palmer (pictured, centre, during a recent school visit) said the extended incentives were part of the Government’s 2030 Strong Plan for Tasmania’s Future, with work now underway to identify those regional schools where the investment will make the most difference.
“We already offer financial incentives for teachers who commit to working in isolated schools, with increased incentives and new incentives offered as a part of the last Teacher Agreement,” said Minister Palmer.
“However, we want to ensure we are attracting and retaining high-quality education staff across the State, and that is why our Government committed to extending incentives to hard-to-staff schools.
“This is a targeted but flexible approach to support schools experiencing difficulty, longer term, in filling teaching positions.”
Eight schools including King Island District High School, Flinders Island District High School, Redpa Primary School, Cape Barren Island School, Rosebery District High School, Strahan Primary School, Mountain Heights School and Zeehan Primary School, already have incentives in place.
“Consultation will now begin with the Australian Education Union on this as occurred with the current Teachers Agreement,” said Ms Palmer.
“This investment will guarantee our hard-to-staff schools attract and retain the high-quality teachers they need and deserve.
“Tasmania’s regions are our heartland, and our students deserve the best,” she said.
The Minister said the commitment is in response to a national shortage of teachers, with greater impact in regional areas, and seeks to build the depth of experienced and high-quality teaching staff in hard-to-staff schools.
