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Occupations / Primary School Teachers

Primary School Teachers

Primary School Teachers teach a range of subjects within a prescribed curriculum to primary school students and promote students' social, emotional, intellectual and physical development.

Education & trainingANZSCO 2412
$2,226/wkMedian full-time pay
166kPeople employed
+12% ▲Growth to 2035
63%Work full time
41Median age
Source: ABS · JSA, 2025-26ABS (Australian Bureau of Statistics) Labour Force via Jobs and Skills Australia (JSA), February 2026; ABS Employee Earnings and Hours May 2025; JSA Employment Projections, May 2025 base. ANZSCO 2412.More about our sources: How we check our facts

What they do

The main tasks of this occupation, from the national occupation standard.

teaching literacy, numeracy, social science, creative expression and physical education skills to primary school studentspresenting prescribed curriculum using a range of teaching techniques and materialsdeveloping students' interests, abilities and coordination by way of creative activitiesguiding discussions and supervising work in classpreparing, administering and marking tests, projects and assignments to evaluate students' progress and recording the resultsdiscussing individual progress and problems with students and parents, and seeking advice from student counsellors and senior teachers
Source: JSA occupation profileTask list from the Jobs and Skills Australia occupation profile for ANZSCO 2412 (ANZSCO task statements).More about our sources: How we check our facts

The outlook

Room for 19,800 more people in primary school teachers by 2035 ▲

The field grew 1% in the year to February 2026, adding about 1,600 workers. Most of the jobs are in NSW and VIC, with QLD third.

Source: JSA · ABS, 2025-26ABS (Australian Bureau of Statistics) Labour Force via Jobs and Skills Australia (JSA), February 2026; ABS Employee Earnings and Hours May 2025; JSA Employment Projections, May 2025 base. ANZSCO 2412.More about our sources: How we check our facts
168.6k2025
177.8k2030 PROJ.
188.4k2035 PROJ.

Getting in

9 in ten people here have a degree. You can still get in without one.

5% came through a VET qualification. These are the nationally recognised courses mapped to this occupation, with the number of registered training providers that offer each one.

Source: JSA · training.gov.auEducation split: JSA (Jobs and Skills Australia) occupation profile, using ABS (Australian Bureau of Statistics) Census data, ANZSCO 2412. Qualification mapping and provider counts: training.gov.au, the national register of vocational education, October 2026. Listed providers are current registered training providers (private providers and TAFE institutes).More about our sources: How we check our facts

Nationally recognised training · most offered first

11298NATAdvanced Diploma

Advanced Diploma of Rudolf Steiner Education

See 1 provider

Providers are shown in A-Z order on each course page. A listing is not a recommendation.

Jobs open right now

166k Australians do this work. See who is hiring this month.

Search job ads by state

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Source: ABS · JSA, 2025-26State chart shows people employed, not current job ads. ABS (Australian Bureau of Statistics) Labour Force via Jobs and Skills Australia (JSA), February 2026; ABS Employee Earnings and Hours May 2025; JSA Employment Projections, May 2025 base. ANZSCO 2412.More about our sources: How we check our facts

People employed by state, 2025-26

NSW51.5k
VIC39.4k
QLD33.6k
WA19.9k
SA10.5k
TAS2.9k
ACT2.7k
NT2k

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