This document was added or updated on 17/03/2011.

STAFF

Over the last 10 years non-government teaching staff numbers increased by 32% from 77,490 to 102,410 while government teaching staff numbers increased by 10% from 166,507 to 183,725. Similar increases were recorded in the full-time-equivalent (FTE) value of teaching staff employed over this time (30% and 9% respectively).

Between 2000 and 2010, across Australia, male teaching staff (FTE) increased by 5% while female teaching staff (FTE) increased by 20%. However, the proportion of teaching staff (FTE) that is male has decreased 9% in this time, with males now less than one third of all teaching staff (FTE). While there was an overall increase in the number of male teachers in 2010, there was a decrease in male teaching staff (FTE) working within the government sector.

In 2010 the majority of male teaching staff were employed in secondary schools, 68% compared to the 32% in primary schools.

The proportions of male and female teaching staff was much closer in secondary schools than primary schools. Males accounted for 42% of secondary teaching staff (FTE) in 2010. This was a reduction of 8% based on figures from 2000. Males comprised 19% of primary school teaching staff (FTE), a decrease of 11% since 2000.

Similar patterns were observed in a number of states and territories, with the exceptions of the Australian Capital Territory and the Northern Territory. In the Australian Capital Territory the growth in male teaching staff (FTE) (14%) was slightly higher than the female FTE teaching staff growth rate (12%) over the last ten years, while in the Northern Territory, male FTE teaching staff increased by 13% and female FTE teaching staff increased by 18%.

The full-time equivalent student to teaching staff ratio in Australia has decreased between 2000 to 2010, from 17.3 to 15.7 for primary and 12.6 to 12.0 for secondary level schooling.

In 2010, student to teaching staff ratios for government primary and secondary schools were 15.4 and 12.3, compared with 16.5 and 11.7 for non-government schools. Generally student to teaching staff ratios have decreased across all affiliations, states and school levels in the last ten years.