The figure of the teacher is becoming increasingly significant in schooling systems around the globe. In this article, we consider how the market-oriented system of schooling in the Australian state of New South Wales may be reflecting and (re)shaping understandings of who teachers are and should be. To do this, we present a corpus-assisted…

Internationally, the quality of teachers is a growing focus of educational reform, with new policies attempting to ensure that only the "best and brightest" are selected for the teaching profession. This article tests the assumption underpinning these developments that prospective teachers lack the desired academic and personal…

The international literature is clear that a professional school culture and supportive administrative arrangements are essential to the retention and development of quality teachers. In this paper the research and conceptual understandings underpinning this statement are elaborated, with discussions of the nature of quality teaching, teachers'…

The teaching workforce is in a constant state of change, susceptible to fluctuating federal and state governments, policy directions within the various bureaucracies that control the curriculum, teachers' accreditation and certification requirements and universities that regulate entry into initial teacher education programs, and eventually the…

The complexity associated with reducing inequality in Indigenous education incorporates a multitude of causal factors. Issues associated with education delivery and outcomes in remote Indigenous communities are endemic nationally, yet the communities of the Northern Territory are uniquely disadvantaged due to their geographical and cultural…

Evidence suggests that there are significant difficulties associated with the attraction and retention of appropriately qualified, high quality teachers and educational leaders (e.g., principals) for rural, regional and remote locations in Australia. Further, educational leadership in these areas carries complex demands, and educational leaders…

Contrary to what many people assume, writes Stewart, a high-quality teacher workforce is not the simple result of some traditional cultural respect for teachers that exists in some countries. Rather, it requires deliberate policy choices. In a tour of seven countries that traditionally score high on international tests of student performance…

One of the key challenges for education in Northern Australia is attracting and recruiting teachers who can respond to the challenges of the region at the start of their careers through professional experience in the region. For pre-service students in regional locations such as the Northern Territory these challenges include coping with the…

This groundbreaking work examines teacher quality, work norms, and professional learning opportunities, using data from 15 countries. The authors compare and contrast the United States with two high-achieving countries--Japan and Australia--that have implemented very different approaches to improving teacher quality. Drawing on both large…

Of the school-level factors that have an impact on student learning, one of the most powerful appears to be the effectiveness of the individual teacher. The most effective teachers are, therefore, one of the most important tools schools and systems have at their disposal to lift the achievement of socio-economically disadvantaged students and…

During 1985 and 1986, the Queensland Board of Teacher Education undertook a major review of teacher education and certification in Queensland. The report analyzes the social and educational trends emerging in Australia and formulates a view of the desirable roles and competencies of teachers in the future. Full recognition of teaching as a…

This paper analyzes the effectiveness of teacher selection practices with reference to literature sources and recommends experimentation with a structured interview approach based on life style themes. The first variable in selection involves identification of characteristics of effective teachers. Some agreement concerning particular teaching…