Switzerland

Personal qualities

Qualifications
Teacher applicants must have at least 2-3 years of previous teaching
experience in a pertinent subject area/discipline, preferably at an
international school. Teaching certification is required for all positions.
Applicants must furnish evidence of:

 Teaching licence including specialism

 Documented record of excellence in teaching
 BA / BSC or equivalent university degree
 IB Diploma/AP experience for specified Upper School
positions
Professional quality  Understanding of Middle School philosophy and best
practice for Middle School positions
Swiss teachers are very well paid and hold a generally high status in the  Experience/familiarity with an inquiry-based pedagogy for
community. Teacher training and pay depend upon the level taught, Lower School positions
with higher grades requiring longer periods of education and higher  Integration of technology into curriculum
salaries.  Learner-centered focus
 Commitment to ongoing professional growth
Training for kindergarten teachers varies among the various cantons.  Ability to differentiate for diverse learning needs
In the majority of cantons, kindergarten teachers are trained for three
or four years at teacher training institutions. In most cantons, primary  Teamwork, collaboration, and active participation in s
school teachers also receive their training in teacher-training colleges.
They are able to enroll after passing an entrance examination, as soon
as they have completed compulsory education. In some cantons it is
common for teachers to be trained at an institution attached to a
university. In non university cantons, teachers are usually educated in
separate teacher-training colleges. The diploma for primary school
teachers is a specialized one and not the same as a university diploma.
The teacher-training course normally lasts five years. Prospective
teachers are assessed on their moral, psychological, and intellectual
character as well as their knowledge and professional qualities.

There are basically two types of teachers in secondary school. Those

who teach in the sections with basic requirements are, as a rule,
primary school teachers who have had specific additional training.
They are not specialized in any subjects. Those who teach in sections
with higher requirements are specialized in one to three subjects.
These teachers often possess a university education. This is reflected in
the profile of gymnasium teachers who are specialists in one subject
and university educated.
 There are no specific career pathways for Australian teachers, and a large
number of Australian teachers actually view teaching as one step in a non-
teaching career path. However, teachers who choose to stay in the field and
Australia who excel can move into roles of authority while remaining in the classroom
as a department head, into leadership roles in the school and in the local
Personal qualities school administration, and, in some cases, into educational research careers.
Specific promotions and ladders differ between the states and territories,
1) confidentiality although the pathway described above is typical. Many teachers, however,
choose to stay in the classroom after attaining experience and job security.
2) patience Teachers may also seek professional development to move into related roles
3) organizational abilities such as school counselor or special education instructor.
4) writing abilities
Professional Development
5) phone skills. The Australian Institute for Teaching and School Leadership (AITSL) is
currently working to develop a set of National Professional Standards for
Teachers. Because teachers will need to meet these standards throughout
Professional qualities their careers, AITSL is also developing a set of professional development
Teacher recruitment in Australia is highly varied; each school system directs programs that will allow teachers to fully understand the new standards. This
its own recruitment, hiring and induction efforts. However, recruiting and new set of national standards for what teachers need to know and be able to
retaining highly qualified teachers is now a major focus of the Department of do will work hand-in-hand with the new National Assessment Programme
Education, Employment and Workplace Relations (DEEWR) in light of a 2004 (NAP) to increase school and teacher accountability as well as student
Ministerial Council of Education, Employment, Training and Youth Affairs performance. Each state has its own previously developed set of professional
(MCEETYA) report that indicated that it was likely that Australia would face development standards and programs in addition to this new initiative; the
severe teacher shortages by 2014. Australia does not provide official new standards will replace these, and ensure ri
statistics on teacher retention, but various broad estimates place the teacher
attrition rate in the first five years at between 20 and 25%. The Department
has recently launched an initiative to attract a wider range of people to the
profession and to improve retention rates for current public school teachers.
DEEWR has identified different stages of the teacher “lifecycle” (“attract,
Qualification
train, place, develop, retain”), and is currently targeting each of these stages To be registered as a teacher in South Australia you must meet the
with specific programs. Part of the “attract” campaign is recruiting the best Board’s minimum qualification requirements. You must hold higher
graduates into teaching from other pathways, including programs like Teach education (ie. university) qualifications that total at least 4 years of
for Australia and short certification programs following bachelor’s, master’s full-time (or part-time equivalent) study, including an approved
and doctorate degrees in certain subject areas. Other proposed goals include teacher education qualification.
improving the partnership between public schools and university teacher
This could include:
education programs, so that the programs closely match what teachers will
need to know in the classroom and developing National Professional
an approved undergraduate teacher education qualification of at
Standards for Teachers in order to provide consistency and excellence in least 4 years’ (full-time) duration which includes a sufficient
teacher quality. supervised teaching practice component
Between 2009-2012, an additional $45.7 million has been set aside to OR
develop career pathways for indigenous teachers and to promote the an approved postgraduate teacher education qualification at least 1
teaching profession among indigenous groups by providing easier access to year’s (full-time) duration which includes a sufficient supervised
qualifications and on-the-job support. teaching practice component AND a non-teaching undergraduate
Teachers’ salaries in Australia are based on a nine-point salary range. In qualification of at least 3 years’ (full-time) duration
2009, the most recent year for which OECD data is available, an entry-level
lower secondary teacher with the minimum education required could expect
to make $34,664. The same teacher can ultimately expect a salary of $48,233
at the top of the pay scale; for the first ten years, pay rises are essentially
automatic. The Australian GDP per capita for that year was $39,918.
Initial Education and Training
All teachers in Australia must hold a bachelor’s degree. However, there are
multiple degree paths into teaching. Teachers may earn a four-year Bachelor
of Education; enter a joint-degree program in which one degree is subject-
oriented and the other is in teacher education; or pursue an initial three- or
four-year degree in a subject area and then complete a one- or two-year
postgraduate teacher-training course. Australia has recently developed a
national framework for professional teaching standards, which will affect the
curriculum of university-level teacher training courses. Similarly, the
taskforce charged with developing this framework is also focused on the
development of new professional development opportunities for teachers,
including leadership training.
New high school graduates constitute only half of the people entering
teacher-training programs. Because teachers can now become qualified with
a master’s degree or a graduate diploma, many people who already hold
bachelor’s degrees elect to pursue the short teacher-training option.
Teachers in all states enter an induction period after completing their formal
teacher education. The length of the induction period varies from state to
state, but typically entails mentorship through team teaching and
observation as well as professional development in the form of conferences
and workshops. After satisfactorily completing the induction period, teachers
are full members of the profession.
Career Ladders