Hon Nikki Kaye
Minister of Education
cid:image001.jpg@01D0476E.7ACAF380

1 July 2017

Media Statement

Teachers’ professional development to transfer to Education Council

The Government has decided to transfer responsibility for teachers’ professional learning and development (PLD) from the Ministry of Education to the Education Council, Education Minister Nikki Kaye announced today.

This means the total amount overseen by the Education Council over a three year period for PLD will be worth more than $200 million from the start of 2018.
“The Education Council is the independent body which promotes excellence and whose role is to share best practice in the education sector,” says Ms Kaye.”

“It makes complete sense for the Council to take over responsibility for upskilling our teachers, especially as it has a broader statutory remit than the previous Teachers’ Council.

“We know the quality of teaching and leadership has a significant impact on student achievement, so it’s only right that we do as much as we can to support teachers, principals and other education staff to grow and develop, and for them to learn new skills and improve their teaching and learning practices.”

The transfer is part of a wider redesign of support for teachers’ PLD, which has been underway for some time.

“The redesign aims to make PLD more responsive to the needs of teachers, education leaders and students, and build greater equity and excellence in priority areas of the curriculum,” says Ms Kaye.

“The transfer has been planned since the start of the PLD redesign programme, and the Education Council has worked closely alongside the Ministry of Education through all the steps of this process.

“I’m confident that the Education Council is well placed to take up this important responsibility.”

The Education Council was formed in 2015, replacing the previous Teachers’ Council. It’s responsible for establishing and maintaining the criteria for teacher registration, approving teacher education programmes and setting the criteria for qualifications that lead to teacher registration.

“Annually around $65 million is invested in teachers’ PLD, and earlier this week I announced that the Government would provide an additional $24 million over three years for professional learning and development opportunities linked to the new digital technologies curriculum content,” says Ms Kaye.

“This new investment comes on top of around $21 million of already expected spending on digital-related PLD.

“With the advent of changes to the curriculum, it’s crucial that teachers are well prepared to deliver the new content.

“The Education Council will play a key role in developing the skills and understanding of teachers in the digital space, so we can truly become a digitally fluent nation.”

© Scoop Media