Degree details

The program is designed for graduates from a non-education background wishing to teach in primary school (prep to Year 6) settings. It provides professional preparation for teaching in this context.

In this program you’ll learn the theory and practice of teaching, concentrating on the characteristics of learners; the social and educational contexts of education; curriculum studies and professional experience in relevant settings. This postgraduate pre-service teacher education program is offered in intensive mode to enable you to complete it in one and a half years.

Note: The Australian Federal Government has mandated that all students of initial teacher education programs demonstrate they have been assessed as being in the top 30% of the adult population for personal literacy and numeracy. The Literacy and Numeracy Test for Initial Teacher Education (LANTITE) is administered and managed by the Australian Council for Educational Research (ACER). While this is not a requirement for admission, all students will need to organise and demonstrate a pass result in the LANTITE prior to graduation.

Graduates of the Master of Primary Teaching will be qualified to teach students in public and private primary schools anywhere in Australia as well as at equivalent levels overseas.

Professional recognition

The Master of Primary Teaching is accredited by the Queensland College of Teachers (QCT).

To obtain registration with the Queensland College of Teachers, graduating teachers must have evidence to demonstrate that their English language proficiency meets the minimum requirements for registration.

Higher education

Applicants will need a completed Bachelor degree (or equivalent) that does not lead to teacher registration (with a minimum Grade Point Average (GPA) of 4.0 on a 7-point scale) with significant breadth of study to address the range of teaching areas expected by employers.

Applicants must also complete non-academic entry requirements to be eligible for this program.

The key learning areas include: The Arts; English; Health and Physical Education; Mathematics; Science; Humanities and Social Sciences and Technology. You can explore these key learning areas further on the Queensland Curriculum and Assessment Authority website.

While prior work or relevant professional experience is a not a requirement for eligibility for admission, applicants will be encouraged (for the purposes of selection) to include in their application a statement and/or evidence relating to the nature of any previous experience which they feel would be relevant to their suitability for teaching - for example, additional certification such as in community learning settings.

Note: Applicants are not permitted to defer an offer. Should you be unable to accept an offer, you must re-apply for entry in the following year.

English Proficiency Requirements

English language requirements apply to International applicants and other applicants whose previous Bachelor-level study was completed in a country other than Australia, Canada, New Zealand, Republic of Ireland, United Kingdom or the United States of America or undertaken in a language other than English. The minimum English language requirements for such applicants for entry to this program are as follows:

  • A minimum overall band score of 7.5 in IELTS (Academic) with a score of at least 8.0 for Listening and Speaking and a score of at least 7.0 for Reading and Writing.
  • OR a score of at least 4 in each of the areas of Speaking, Listening, Reading and Writing in the ISLPR.
  • OR successful completion of at least three years full-time Bachelor-level study (within the last five years) where the language of instruction is English in Australia, Canada, New Zealand, Republic of Ireland, United Kingdom or the United States of America.

The ISLPR test will only be accepted if it has been administered by ISLPR Language Services, Mt Gravatt, Queensland.

English test results must be no more than two years old.

The Direct Entry Program (DEP) pathway is not accepted for this program.

This program is accredited and language requirements have been set to ensure applicants meet both Griffith University language requirement and requirements for registration within Queensland. Applicants are advised that the Queensland College of Teachers requires graduating teachers to have evidence of English language requirements as stated above to demonstrate their English language proficiency prior to registration. Further information is available on the Queensland College of Teachers website.

Griffith University grants credit and recognition of prior learning which may relate to prior formal learning or prior informal and non-formal learning. For more information, please visit the following website:

Award Requirements

To be eligible for the award of Master of Primary Teaching (MPrimaryTeach), a student must acquire 160 credit points as prescribed below:

  • gain 40 credit points for Education Discipline Studies (EDS) courses;
  • gain 80 credit points for Curriculum, Assessment and Pedagogy (CAP) courses;
  • gain 40 credit points for Professional Experience and Learning (PEL) courses;

AND

  • meet the requirements of the Literacy and Numeracy Benchmark in the test administered by ACER on behalf of AITSL.

The Australian Institute of Teaching and School Leadership (AITSL) requires a minimum of 60 days of supervised school experience.