Regional teacher shortage education department's 'number one priority'

Data from the NSW Department of Education shows that in Term 4 last year the region had 132 full-time teaching vacancies.

The Leader sat down with Secretary of the NSW Department of Education, Murat Dizdar when he visited Peel High School on Tuesday, June 4, as part of a Rural and Regional Roadshow.

The roadshow also called into schools in Gunnedah and Coonabarabran.

Mr Dizdar told the Leader addressing the teacher shortage is his department's "number one priority".

"It is a national challenge," he said.

"What we face here in NSW is not unique; it is a national and international challenge."

An historic payrise last year saw the starting salary for a first year teacher go from $75,791 to $85,000 - an increase of more than 12 per cent.

Mr Dizdar said it's a start, but there is "no silver bullet".

"Pay is an important function of respect, status, and standing in the profession," Mr Dizdar said.

"But I know pay alone will not address the problem."

To drive teachers to regional and remote communities, the department has prioritised a number of initiatives and programs, such as 'Grow Your Own Local Talent', which aims to help future teachers complete their studies, while remaining in their communities.

"Rather than send them off to Sydney, how do we sponsor and support their training?" Mr Dizdar said.

The education department has seen "great success" in this program, particularly with teacher aides who go on to become teachers themselves.

Another program which the department has only recently reintroduced is 'Beyond the Line', which brings future teachers to regional areas to "broaden their horizons".

"We take second and third year teaching students in Sydney and put them on a bus or a plane and take them to locations like Tamworth," Mr Dizdar said.

While these initiatives may provide long-term benefits, they do not address the struggles being faced by regional schools right now.

Currently, there are a number of schools in the region on the department's priority recruitment list.

The NSW government also recently expanded an intensive recruitment program to 26 regional, rural, and remote schools, which places educators in classrooms of chronically understaffed schools.

Mr Dizdar said they have seen some good results from that program, but he acknowledged it won't solve all the issues.

"There is something to say about giving attention to a site, which is experiencing a lot of difficulty," he said.