After widespread criticism

Teacher training: start of reform postponed

The modified training for teachers will be postponed by one year.

(Bild: dragonstock - stock.adobe.com)

The start of the reform of teacher training has been postponed by a year following widespread criticism during the review process. Universities and teacher training colleges (PH) had feared a loss of quality due to the tight schedule.

The draft law passed by the Council of Ministers on Wednesday now stipulates that the new structure for primary school teachers with a three-year Bachelor's and two-year Master's degree program will not start until 2025/26, while secondary school teachers will start in 2026/27.

Training "streamlined"
Teacher training for primary level (mainly elementary school) currently takes four years for a Bachelor's degree plus one year for a Master's degree. At secondary level (middle school, AHS, BMHS), it is four years Bachelor's plus two years Master's, so in future it will be one year less for this group. The training should also be more practical and the Master's degree should be easier to study alongside work and "streamlined".

The revised training for teachers will be postponed by one year.

(Bild: dragonstock - stock.adobe.com)

For example, duplication in educational sciences in Bachelor's and Master's degrees will be eliminated, emphasized Education Minister Martin Polaschek (ÖVP) after the Council of Ministers. New options such as studying subject bundles such as STEM (mathematics, IT, natural sciences, technology) instead of a single subject are also planned at secondary level.

We are creating a modern course of study that meets the demands of schools in the 21st century.

Bildungsminister Martin Polaschek

Bild: APA/ROLAND SCHLAGER

According to Polaschek, the reform will shorten one of the longest teacher training courses in the world. "We are thus creating a modern course of study that meets the demands and requirements of schools in the 21st century, while of course maintaining the high quality."

Postponement due to complexity
Polaschek justified the postponement of the start date with the complexity of the project: after all, at secondary level, where training is organized in alliances between universities and universities of applied sciences in several federal states, all institutions would have to develop identical curricula. At elementary school level, however, where each PH develops the curricula individually, it should be possible to start as early as 2025/26.

Also new in the draft law is the possibility of dedicated study places in veterinary medicine: as with human medicine studies, five percent of veterinary medicine study places are to be dedicated for a limited period of time to students who commit to working in public healthcare for some time after graduation.