WA education minister vows to 'champion' burnt-out teachers
Western Australia Education Minister Sabine Winton has expressed support for the state's teachers after a new report found that excessive workload and burnout are making them consider quitting.
The State School Teachers' Union of WA (SSTUWA) released last week the findings of its State of Our Schools survey, which attracted 1,644 responses from the industry.
It found that 83.46% of the respondents have considered quitting teaching in the past four years. A separate section for principals found that 76% also considered leaving their role in the same period.
According to the report, the top reason why teachers want to leave is workload, as cited by 86.6% of the respondents. This is followed by burnout, with 83%.
For principals, nearly 80% cited their workload as a reason to leave their role, with 75% saying their workload was very high.
Winton spoke at the union's State Council Conference over the weekend, where she addressed the challenges faced by teachers in the industry.
"I will continue to work hard to champion teachers — because I know by supporting teachers, we're supporting students to succeed," she said in a statement on LinkedIn.
The WA government last year partnered with the Australian government to co-fund a $4.7-million AI pilot programme that can help draft lesson plans and suggest learning activities to reduce admin workloads on teachers.
At the conference, Winton also named Emeritus Professor Colleen Hayward AM as the chair of the Workload Intensification Taskforce.
The taskforce, convened as part of the recent Teachers and Administrators General Agreement, aims to find ways to provide more support for teachers.
"This Taskforce will play a key role in progressing initiatives to address workload pressures being experienced by our teachers and school leaders, reporting directly to me and providing regular updates to the workforce," Winton said.
"I look forward to working closely with Professor Hayward and the Taskforce membership to create more support for school leaders and teachers, which will ultimately lead to a greater focus on classroom teaching and better learning outcomes for students."
Meanwhile, Hayward said she also looks forward to working with the taskforce.
"Quality student learning is a direct result of quality teaching, so it's incumbent on us all to ensure the salaries and conditions of teachers and school leaders attracts and retains the best," she said in a statement.
The taskforce comprises representatives from the Department of Education, the SSTUWA, and the Principals' Federation of Western Australia.
Its other key initiatives include:
