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Education
Dominic Giannini

$8m to boost uni spots for primary school teachers

A new program will encourage mid-career workers to move to primary school teaching, amid a shortage. (Dan Peled/AAP PHOTOS)

Prospective primary school teachers will get a leg up with a $7.9 million boost to get more workers into the sector. 

The pilot program will create 105 primary school teaching places, the first of the government's proposed 1500 under a national teacher workforce plan. 

The money will go to La Trobe University and target mid-career workers to move towards primary teaching.

They will then be placed into primary schools in dire need of teachers across NSW and Victoria.

Education Minister Jason Clare says while primary teachers play a huge role in children's lives, there aren't enough to fill the workforce.

“We don’t remember much about when we are little, but most of us remember our teachers’ names," he said. 

“That shows just how important our teachers are and the impact they have on us."

La Trobe professor Joanna Barbousas says the program will give teachers hands on experiences and will help make a difference in regional and rural areas where staff are hard to find. 

Recruitment will begin later in the year and the teachers will be placed into primary schools in April 2024.

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