The Australian Institute for Teaching and School Leadership (AITSL) is surveying teachers on whether the Australian Professional Standards for Teachers (APST) should be modified or improved.
As you would be aware, currently the same set of standards applies to both school and ECEC teachers. Some of the questions in the survey focus on whether the APST are fit for purpose for ECEC teachers, whether they should be modified for ECEC teachers and whether there should be separate standards for ECEC teachers as compared to teachers in schools.
The survey opened on 20 July 2026 and closes on 7 August 2026.
We encourage you to consider the following prior to completing the survey.
The IEU is of the strong view that Teachers are Teachers and there should be one set of Professional Standards that apply to all teachers. It is imperative to protect the professional status of early childhood teachers by maintaining a single set of standards.
The language in the current APST should be amended to more accurately reflect the work of teachers in ECEC instead of developing a separate set of standards for ECEC.
The introduction of a separate set of ECEC Standards for early childhood teachers could mean:
- Graduates with 0-8 or 0-12 degrees will need to demonstrate they meet two different sets of standards to achieve Proficient Teacher in both early childhood settings and schools.
- The IEU’s demand for pay parity with primary school teachers could be undermined.
- The argument that early childhood teachers and teachers in schools perform comparable work could be placed in doubt.
