in the classroom
Tradies to
teachers
Bridging the gap between
training and teaching.
Deborah Corrigan interviewed
by Kirstie Chlopicki
N
ew plans to review teacher
registration across the country
may lead to more former tradies
in the classroom. However, experts say it
may not be that easy to implement.
Education Minister Simon Birmingham’s
recent announcement was aimed
18 | educationreview.com.au
at increasing practical learning and
filling job shortages by encouraging
experienced professionals to become
teachers.
He singled out tradies, citing the
physical toll of a life in construction as
potential motivation for a career change.
However, Monash University’s Deborah
Corrigan says it will also give rise to new
challenges.
Corrigan, deputy dean of the Faculty
of Education at Monash University, is
primarily concerned with “incompatible”
expectations in vocational education
and schooling.
She also believes quantifying the skills
of a tradesperson would be troublesome.
“If you're trying to work out what
their educational equivalent is, it's quite
difficult," she says. “What we're more or
less saying to tradespeople is that you
have to go back to the start and do three
or four years to get your undergraduate
degree.”
While she believes the review has
strong motives, Corrigan is advocating
for new strategies to be put in place to
bridge the gap between teaching and
vocational qualifications.
Education Review quizzed Corrigan
about her thoughts on the plan and
some of the problems associated with
upholding teaching standards while
recognising practical experience.
ER: What are some of the challenges
you anticipate will arise as a result of
the decision?
DC: One of the problems associated
with this is the fact that the federal
government, and the teacher education
and national registration in particular,
has raised the entry level and also
the standards around the teaching