‘Earn while they learn’: Student teachers in classrooms from day one under Labor promise
Teaching students will be working in SA classrooms well before finishing their studies if the Labor government is re-elected.
Education Minister Blair Boyer has announced plans for a new teaching pathway where university students start working in government schools from the start of their four-year degrees.
The plan would see teaching students in their first two years taking up the job of a part-time student support officer while studying – to support individual students and learn from qualified teachers.
Then in their third year of study, students start working as a teacher, supported by a teacher mentor.
Boyer said successful graduates would then be prioritised for full-time employment in government schools at the end of their degree.
He anticipated 40 per cent of teaching graduates in South Australia would follow the pathway in the next decade that would be designed with universities, the Teachers Registration Board, and other stakeholders including associations and the union.
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“We want the very best trained, highly skilled teachers in our public schools. A new teaching pathway that gets them straight into the classroom to gain hands-on experience – and earn while they learn – will result in better prepared teachers who stay in the profession,” Boyer said.
“Our government has proudly backed our teachers from day one – with higher pay, tough laws to ban abusive parents, significant investments to reduce workload, and record numbers of teachers converted to permanent.
“And now a re-elected Malinauskas Labor Government will introduce a nation-leading new teaching pathway to give every child the best education from the best teachers in the country.”
Tobias O’Connor, who is South Australian Primary Principals Association president, said the proposal is “a bold reform that responds directly to long-standing concerns from the profession about graduate readiness”.
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“If implemented carefully – with strong mentoring, appropriate safeguards, and realistic expectations for schools – it has the potential to strengthen the teacher pipeline while better preparing graduates for the realities of classroom teaching,” he said.
“From a principal’s perspective, this pathway creates real opportunity for both schools and future teachers. But its success will depend on the right conditions — time for mentoring, clear safeguards, and resourcing that recognises the additional responsibility placed on schools to support and develop these emerging professionals.”
Last week, the Opposition announced that a Liberal government would commit $120 million for maintenance works and new facilities at SA schools.
The policy was announced at Linden Park Primary School, where $1.6 million was earmarked under the plan for urgent maintenance works and a new playground.
“At Linden Park Primary School, there are buildings that are literally falling apart, with cracked internal walls, threadbare carpets, and leaky roofs,” Opposition Leader Ashton Hurn said.
“This investment will allow the school to address urgent infrastructure needs and deliver a new playground at its Mariner Oval site, improving both safety and learning outcomes for students.
“With the average school building around 44 years old, our plan focuses on refreshing and maintaining existing sites so they’re safe, comfortable and fit for the future.”
Meanwhile, the SA Greens announced their own education plan to scrap public school fees and introduce free school breakfasts and lunches in all public schools.
Yesterday, Labor also made a commitment of $500 million in preschool and school infrastructure, as well as upgrading and replacing facilities across South Australia.
