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The VIT office will be closed Thursday 25 April for the Anzac Day public holiday.

The VIT has compiled definitions for our most frequently used terms, government departments and regulatory bodies. If you are unable to find a specific term in this list, please contact us.

T

Teacher

All teachers practising in Victorian schools are required to be registered.

A teacher

  • holds an approved qualification
  • the ability to maintain professional practice
  • suitability to teach.

Teacher Education

Teacher Education means approved initial professional education studies, curriculum and teaching methodology studies appropriate to teaching in primary and/or secondary schools, and supervised practice teaching in primary and/or secondary school settings.

Teacher Education Ministerial Advisory Group (TEMAG)

The Australian Government established TEMAG in February 2014 to undertake a review of initial teacher education programs. Recommendations were made by TEMAG as part of the ITE reform with the aim of stronger quality assurance of teacher education programs, rigorous selection for entry into programs, improved and structured professional experience for teacher education students, robust assessments of graduates to ensure classroom readiness and national research and workforce planning capabilities.

Teaching Academies of Professional Practice

A Victorian Department of Education initiative of partnerships of a cluster of schools with one or more universities to deliver innovative and effective initial teacher education professional experience placements.

Teaching performance assessment

A teaching performance assessment (TPA) is a tool used to assess the practical skills and knowledge of pre-service teachers. Pre-service teachers collect evidence of practice to complete a TPA in the final year of their initial teacher education program. It is assessed by ITE providers and is a requirement for graduation.

Teaching performance assessment (TPA)

A teaching performance assessment (TPA) is a tool used to assess the practical skills and knowledge of pre-service teachers. Pre-service teachers collect evidence of practice to complete a TPA in the final year of their initial teacher education program. It is assessed by ITE providers and is a requirement for graduation.

Tertiary Education Quality Standard Agency (TEQSA)

Australia’s independent national regulator of the higher education sector. Tertiary Education Quality Standard Agency (TEQSA) regulates and assures the quality of Australia’s higher education sector by registering higher education providers and evaluating their performance.

The Department of Education (DE)

The Department of Education (DE) formally known as The Department of Education Training (DET) leads the delivery of education and development services to children, young people and adults both

  • directly through government schools
  • indirectly through the regulation and funding of early childhood services, non-government schools and training programs.

DET implements Victorian government policy on early childhood services, school education and training and higher education services. DET also manages Victorian government schools and drive improvement in primary and secondary government education.

The register

By legislation, VIT must maintain a public register of teachers. An extract of the register of teachers is displayed on the website.

A person listed on the register is registered and permitted to teach, unless their name is displayed in red (these teachers are non-practising and are unable to undertake the duties of a teacher). A teacher who shows on the register with an expiry date in the past is registered and permitted to teach.

All registered teachers, including non-practising teachers, are exempt from the Working with Children Check. Please refer to the Working with Children Check website for more information. This is because teachers are already subject to extensive criminal record checks.

Tutor learning initiative

In 2021, Victorian schools recruited more than 4,100 teaching professionals as tutors to support students in catching up with any learning they may have missed due to the coronavirus (COVID 19) pandemic.

A pre-service teacher, a teacher on leave, a teacher working part-time who is looking for more hours, a recently retired teacher or a casual relief teacher were eligible to apply for a tutoring position.