President of the NSW Teachers Federation Henry Rajendra says it’s past time for an update to the amount of prep time teachers are allocated each week. Photo: Zoe Cartwright.
Teachers have rallied outside Keira High School to call for more more prep time for their lessons.
The NSW Teachers Federation presented a survey of more than 1000 teachers from Heathcote to the South Coast in which more than 90 per cent reported emotional and physical fatigue due to the lack of time they needed to meet the needs of students.
NSW Teachers Federation president Henry Rajendra said the results were similar across the state.
“Fewer than one in 20 teachers statewide say they have enough time to do the work required for their students,” he said.
“They are determined to provide the best education possible, but they are being crushed by the sheer complexity and lack of time to plan quality lessons and collaborate with colleagues.”
Mr Rajendra said teacher preparation time had remained stagnant for primary teachers since the 1980s and for secondary teachers since the 1950s, despite a significant increase in the number of students with a disability.
He said 86 per cent of students with a disability were in mainstream classrooms and teachers needed extra time to make sure they were able to support the needs of all their students.
“Today’s classroom is vastly different from what it was decades ago,” he said.
“It is far more complex, with massive increases in student need, and more time dedicated to student wellbeing matters, with less time available for lesson preparations.
“This impacts on everyone, from our experienced teachers and to our newest teachers.
“Under the Perrottet government resignation rates outstripped retirement rates among teachers for the first time. Teachers are stretched beyond capacity.”
Mr Rajendra said the NSW Teachers Federation wanted the NSW Government to implement the 2021 Gallop Inquiry recommendation of an additional two hours of preparation time per week.
He said the survey results showed Illawarra teachers believed this change would be transformative.
“The Gallop Inquiry has triggered so many positive improvements of our system, like the historic wage increases in 2023,” he said.
“The government has recently reported we have brought down teacher vacancies to their lowest level in years, and there has been a significant increase in the number of young people enrolling in teaching courses.
“Now we’re pursuing the two additional hours per week for prep time recommended in the Gallop Inquiry.
“To make this happen requires the employment of additional permanent teachers to every school.
“It does not change the hours of the school day; it allows the reorganisation of timetables to provide that time away from the classroom.
“We know the government understands this is a significant issue; we just need them to sit down with us and work through solutions.”
