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Australian public school teachers are spending more than $175 million of their own money each year on basic classroom supplies, exposing the personal impact of chronic underfunding of public schools, according to new data from the AEU.

Fully funded public schools means a better education for every child.

Every child has a right to access a quality education, and our public schools have a long-standing and proven commitment of inclusion for all.

Alarming new international data highlights the scale of Australia’s teacher shortage crisis and the urgent need for federal and state governments to address the root causes of workforce decline.

At the Albanese Government's Tertiary Productivity Roundtable today, the AEU will highlight the critical role of fully funded high-quality public education in driving national productivity and long-term economic growth.

The Australian Education Union has placed an immediate ban on the implementation of the Better and Fairer Schools Agreement.

Class sizes in WA public schools are among the highest in the country. What bigger classes mean for students is that they get less individual attention, which can significantly affect their learning. What it means for teachers is a higher workload, less time for teaching and a considerable impact on their ability to safely manage their classrooms.

Today’s announcement of a funding deal between the Albanese Government and the Tasmanian Government will lock in inequality for public schools, students and their families across the next decade.

The extent of inequity in Australia’s school funding has been revealed in new research, showing that almost double the number of private schools in Western Australia now receive more combined government funding (Commonwealth and state) per student than public schools of very similar size, location and with similar student needs.

The Australian Education Union says the interim report of the Senate Inquiry into increasing disruption in Australian school classrooms has failed to capture and address the complex issues that impact on teaching and learning in schools.

A review into public education in WA headed by Dr Carmen Lawrence has found the teaching profession is at breaking point, with many teachers planning to leave the sector.

A review into public education headed by Dr Carmen Lawrence has found the teaching profession is at breaking point, with regional teachers and school leaders not getting the support they need. Commissioned by the State School Teachers’ Union of WA, the review took more than 12 months, received over 100 submissions from both individuals and peak bodies, held community forums in 11 regional towns and conducted two statewide online sessions.

The Australian Education Union today welcomed the recruitment campaign launched by the Prime Minister but said a far greater investment in the teaching profession and public schools was needed to end chronic shortages and ensure teachers have the time and support to meet the needs of every child.

We are at the end of yet another year which brought far more turmoil than we could have ever expected. We thought that we’d seen the worst of COVID-19 in 2020 and 2021 and that we were pretty well prepared - vaccinations mostly done – for the beginning of the year.

The following are highlights of education funding allocated in the 2022-23 Federal Budget delivered by Treasurer Jim Chalmers on 25 October 2022.

The Australian Education Union will consult with members across the country on the recommendations of the draft National Teacher Workforce Action Plan, released today.