What is the Australian Teacher Workforce Data Initiative?
How did the ATWD come about?
In 2012, the Productivity Commission found that there were imbalances in supply and demand of the teacher workforce. The Teacher Education Ministerial Advisory Group (TEMAG) was established, and its report ‘Action Now: Classroom Ready Teachers’ (2014) found there was a lack of consistent and timely national teacher data.
In 2015, the Australian Education Senior Officials Committee (AESOC) requested that AITSL provide advice to Education Council on initial teacher education (ITE) and teacher workforce data collection.
The ATWD was approved by Education Council in December 2016 and was formally established in 2017. The first teacher survey opened in 2018.
Where does the data come from?
The ATWD unites and links data annually from the following sources:
- Registration data from state and territory teacher regulatory authorities
- Initial teacher education data from the Australian Government Department of Education
- Australian Teacher Workforce Survey.
What happens with the data?
The Australian Institute of Health and Welfare (AIHW) receives the data from each of the sources, links it using common identifiers and removes all personal information. The linked and de-identified data is then transferred into the ATWD. Individual teacher data is not identifiable in the ATWD. Personal information is not included under any circumstances. Aggregate data from the ATWD is analysed to determine trends in teacher education, the teacher workforce and teacher supply; to inform national policy on how to better support the profession. Use of data in the ATWD is governed by the ATWD Oversight Board and the AIHW Ethics Committee in compliance with strict ATWD Data Access and Reporting Protocols.
About the Australian Teacher Workforce Data initiative
Every teacher’s pathway into the profession, and their experience thereafter, is unique. The Australian Teacher Workforce Data (ATWD) initiative is a national evidence base capturing teachers’ career trajectories from initial teacher education (ITE) through to retirement, across all states and territories. It provides an up-to-date and comprehensive picture of teacher supply and the teacher workforce in Australia, by uniting and connecting sources of ITE data and teacher workforce data across all systems and sectors.
The ATWD provides detailed longitudinal and nationally comparable data on the number and characteristics of ITE students progressing through the ITE pipeline, as well as the characteristics and experiences of the teacher workforce. Linked together, the data provides access to timely information on workforce supply and workforce experiences, enabling key decision makers to better understand the teaching lifecycle, support the profession, and grow a sustainable teacher workforce.
The ATWD regularly reports through the National Trends series. These are written to support workforce planning and inform decision making by increasing awareness and understanding of notable national trends in ITE and the teacher workforce. The ATWD will also periodically produce publications on specific topics of interest to the profession as part of the In Focus and In Brief series, in addition to publishing detailed data through the Data Portal.
About initial teacher education data
The ITE data in the Australian Teacher Workforce Data (ATWD) initiative is derived primarily from annual data collected as part of the Higher Education Student Data Collection. Through the ATWD’s data linkage model, this data is improved through connection to teacher regulatory authority records. To date, the ATWD has released ITE data up to 2023 through the Data Portal. For further information on jurisdictional differences, stakeholders are encouraged to explore the data available on the Data Portal.
What is included in the data?
Registration data
Teacher regulatory authorities (TRAs) are the state and territory bodies responsible for teacher registration in Australia. They are key partners in the ATWD, providing important workforce registration information that covers all teachers across all sectors, states and territories. The data they provide delivers valuable insights into the national teacher workforce.
All teacher registration data is de-identified by the AIHW before being incorporated into the ATWD.
Initial teacher education data
Students enrolled in initial teacher education contribute data to the Australian Government’s Higher Education Student Data Collection (HESDC). They also receive an invitation from the Australian Government to complete the Quality Indicators for Learning and Teaching (QILT) survey. Both of these collections are included in the ATWD to provide insight into the outcomes and experience of initial teacher education.
All HESDC and QILT data is de-identified by the AIHW before being incorporated into the ATWD.
Australian Teacher Workforce Survey
The Australian Teacher Workforce Survey is the teacher voice in the ATWD. It gives greater depth to our understanding of some of the more practical elements of teaching and provide greater insight on the challenges they present.
All data is de-identified by the AIHW before being incorporated into the ATWD.
Further information
The ATWD is a joint initiative between, and is funded by, all state, territory and Commonwealth governments. It is being implemented by AITSL in partnership with the Australian Government Department of Education, state and territory governments, teacher regulatory authorities and the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare (AIHW); under the auspice of the ATWD Oversight Board.
For further information, please email atwd [at] aitsl.edu.au or Contact us.