Expensive taxpayer-funded courses training school teachers how to play MINECRAFT and weave tapestries are set to be scrapped
- Course training teachers how to play the popular video game set to be scrapped
- NSW Education Standards Authority doing review of 42,000 approved courses
- Accredited teaching courses include Tapestry Weaving and Rainbow Kids Yoga
- All courses have been put under immediate review by NSW education minister
- They will have to prove they improve the quality of teaching in the classroom
Courses training school teachers how to weave tapestries and play video games are set to be dumped as the government strips back taxpayer-funded professional development programs.
Full-time teachers in New South Wales can choose from more than 42,000 courses to fulfill their requirement of completing at least 100 hours of professional development every five years.
Courses accredited by the NSW Education Standards Authority (NESA) include Minecraft in the Classroom, Tapestry Weaving and one called 100 Breakfast Bowls.
Courses training school teachers how to play Minecraft are set to be scrapped as the NSW state government winds back its number of accredited training courses (stock image)
Tapestry Weaving, a course called 100 Breakfast Bowls, Rainbow Kids Yoga and Exploring Sexualities & Gender Diversity for the Professional Teacher are also listed among the courses currently accredited for teacher professional development (stock image)
But the state’s education minister Sarah Mitchell has announced each of the courses – offered by more than 782 different course providers – would come under immediate review, The Daily Telegraph reported.
The six-hour Minecraft course is marketed online for $269 per person.
Also included in the thousands of courses on offer to teachers are Rainbow Kids Yoga and Exploring Sexualities & Gender Diversity for the Professional Teacher.
Courses on the list will have to now prove they improve the quality of classroom teaching, Ms Mitchell said.
NSW Education Minister Sarah Mitchell said she had asked the state’s education authority to carry out an ‘immediate review’ of the professional development process
NESA’s revised list of accredited courses will come into effect next year.
‘It is crucial that this time is spent productively – with teachers engaging in activities that actually help their practice,’ Ms Mitchell said.
‘I have asked NESA to undertake an immediate review of their process for professional development provider accreditation and their courses.’
‘I want our teachers to be able to access the best professional development courses possible, providing them on-going improvement in their vital role as educators for the students of NSW.’
She said courses would focus instead on providing quality over quantity following the review – which would reduce the number of courses on offer.