EDUCATION leaders from two regional Victorian Catholic dioceses will travel to Ireland next week in a bid to recruit teachers for local schools, as the struggle to fill vacancies continues.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
or signup to continue reading
Catholic Education Sandhurst CEO Paul Desmond and Ballarat Diocese executive director Tom Sexton will spend 11 days in Ireland presenting in six towns and cities including the Dublin Jobs Expo to lure Irish teachers to Victoria.
Mr Desmond said Ireland was a logical place to start international teacher recruiting because of the similarity between Irish and Australian teacher training and its Catholic system of schooling.
He said Irish people embodied a spirit of adventure and a love of travel across the world.
"They have been a boon wherever they have gone," he said.
There are hopes at least 14 new teachers will be sourced out of the trip to fill vacancies across the Sandhurst Diocese.
"But if I find 30, I would take them," Mr Desmond said.
Urgent efforts by governments across Australia to remedy the shortfall in teachers cannot come quick enough for the two regional Victorian education leaders.
"That is going to take about for years," Mr Desmond said.
Mr Sexton said it was well known that there are Irish teachers coming out teaching in Australia every year.
"COVID impacted on that but they are starting to come back and what we are trying to do is attract those coming to Australia to specifically come to Ballarat and Sandhurst," Mr Sexton said.
Teachers will be offered salaries ranging from $74,000 for teachers with three years experience to $104,000 for those with 10 years or more experience, with allowances of up to $12,000 for leadership positions.
They will also be eligible for relocation allowances of up to $10,000 for those moving to remote or small schools, and $5000 for other schools including $3000 paid on arrival and other amounts during and at the end of their two or four year contracts.
And their visa costs - ranging from $6000 for a two-year visa for primary teachers to about $11,000 for a four-year visa for secondary teachers - will also be covered.
The recruitment tour will visit Maynooth, Waterford, Cork, Dublin, Limerick and Galway.
"We also believe that in about three or four years time there will be an oversupply of Irish teachers so we might not get many next year, but in the coming years hopefully more and more will be able to come over."
The teacher shortage is particularly acute in smaller Catholic schools.
"The more rural, the more difficult it is. Ballarat city schools certainly notice the shortage but they don't have the problems that some of our remote schools have. It is more difficult in our smaller schools further out west."
International teachers who choose to go to more remote schools will receive double the incentives of those who teach in larger more central schools.
Under existing visa requirements, primary school teachers are eligible for two year visas, and secondary school teachers for four years.
Incoming teachers must meet Australia's visa requirements, and to teach in Victoria must have Victorian Institute of Teaching registration.
Mr Sexton said job offers made to overseas teacher would be subject to new staff meeting Australia's visa requirements, and on them being able to obtain Victorian Institute of Teaching registration.
"What we hope is that for those who express interest, we will be able to tell them while we are over there what they will need for a visa and VIT registration to give them a head start."
Mr Sexton hoped some could be processed quickly enough to be able to start positions on the first day of term one next year.
"We think what's likely to be the biggest hold up is the wait for processing of visas, which seem to be taking longer than normal.
"We have been in discussion with the VIT and while they are under pressure they believe if Irish teachers can provide their applications in a timely manner they should be able to have provisional registration for next year."
Speak up now! Tell us what matters to you ahead of the Victorian election:
