Early childhood teacher registration in Australia

Learn how to register as an early childhood teacher in Australia. Understand the registration process and find links to your teacher registration authority.

The Teacher Standards are a public statement of what constitutes teaching quality at 4 career stages: Graduate, Proficient, Highly Accomplished and Lead. They support quality teaching for all teachers, including early childhood teachers and other teachers in different learning contexts. The Teacher Standards consist of 7 standards, which teachers will meet at differing levels depending on their career stage and level of expertise. Teachers need to evidence certain requirements of the Teacher Standards for full registration and/or voluntary certification where available.

Registration is regulated by your local teacher regulatory authority. Not all teacher regulatory authorities currently require early childhood teachers in non-school settings to register.

Teacher registration processes are governed by teacher regulatory authorities, however, most full registration processes require teachers to evidence practice against the Teacher Standards.

Full registration decisions are usually based on a recommendation at the workplace level about the teacher meeting all the Teacher Standards at the Proficient career stage.

The process for achieving full teacher registration can accommodate different contexts. The recommendation for full registration is based on multiple sources of evidence against the Teacher Standards. A single piece of evidence can address multiple descriptors across the Teacher Standards.

The maximum period for meeting the requirements for full registration is 5 years, with provision for extension on a case-by-case basis.

Registration is one of the most important mechanisms to assure the safety, competency, and quality of the teaching profession. The registration process is not just compliance driven, it is an opportunity for professional growth and a hallmark of being a professional (AITSL, 2018). Registration with your local teacher regulatory authority can also allow you to access valuable supporting resources.

The Teacher Standards help all teachers, including early childhood teachers across all learning contexts to understand and develop teaching practice and expertise and therefore maximise teaching impact on all learners.

The Teacher Standards can be used to inform the development of professional learning goals. They provide a framework by which teachers can judge the success of their learning and assist self-reflection and self-assessment. Early childhood teachers can use the Teacher Standards to recognise their current and developing capabilities, professional aspirations, and achievements.

The Teacher Standards also contribute to the professionalisation of teaching and raise the status of the profession.

AITSL’s Mapping tool can be used by early childhood service leaders, employers and early childhood teachers to understand how the Teacher Standards align with practice in ECEC settings.

Leaders and employers can also access resources developed by your local teacher regulatory authority to understand your roles and responsibilities in supporting early childhood teachers, especially with the use of the Teacher Standards in registration. You can find your local teacher regulatory authority below.

AITSL does not register teachers, so you will need to contact your local teacher regulatory authority for information on what type of registration may be available or required for early childhood teachers, and the resources available to support the registration process.

Registration of early childhood teachers is not a requirement in all jurisdictions of Australia. Currently, Queensland, Tasmania, and the Northern Territory are working towards implementing teacher registration for early childhood teachers in early childhood education and care (ECEC).

For further information on jurisdictional requirements, please contact your local teacher regulatory authority.