The Business Council of Australia today expressed strong support for the federal government’s commitment to introduce a national system of bonus payments to reward high-performing school teachers.

Chairman of the BCA’s Education, Skills and Innovation Task Force, Michael Andrew, said that recognising and rewarding the quality of teaching in our schools would make an important contribution to improving learning outcomes.

Mr Andrew said effective teaching and learning outcomes from school education were vital in providing students with pathways to further education and training, and in supporting increased workforce participation and productivity levels.

“School education provides the foundation for all education and training qualifications. Therefore the quality of teaching and learning in our schools must be high among our education priorities.

“The BCA’s 2008 policy paper, Teaching Talent, showed that improving the quality of teaching within schools produces significant benefits for students with regard to the progress they make with gaining knowledge and skills.

“The introduction of substantial financial and other rewards will make an important contribution to attracting, retaining and recognising Australia’s high-performing classroom teachers”, Mr Andrew said.

“It will be important that the bonus payments are implemented so that two objectives are achieved. Firstly, the very best classroom teachers should be recognised through rigorous arrangements for determining excellent performance.

“Also, the arrangements will need to take into consideration the circumstances of schools with students from disadvantaged backgrounds, consistent with the federal government’s commitment in this area.

“The federal government is to be congratulated for the leadership it is providing on school education reform,” Mr Andrew said.