Teacher

As a degree-qualified early childhood teacher, you can:

• work directly with children and their families
• lead and deliver educational programs in a long day care or kindergarten setting
• supervise, mentor and coach other educators
• manage an outside school hours care service or other service types
• ensure compliance with policies and legislation.

With an early childhood teaching degree, you will have a qualification that is nationally recognised by the Australian Children's Education and Care Quality Authority (ACECQA). As an early childhood teacher you can work in a range of services, including long day care, kindergartens, State Delivered Kindergarten programs in state schools, family day care and outside school hours care.

Progress your career

Qualified and experienced early childhood teachers often hold leadership, management and support roles in early childhood.

You can build your skills through training and further study, helping you move into different roles across the sector.

Provisionally registered early childhood teachers transitioning to full registration

A Queensland College of Teachers (QCT) Board policy enables early childhood teachers (ECTs) with provisional registration to move to full registration. This policy recognises:

• the Queensland Kindergarten Learning Guideline (QKLG) and the Early Years Learning Framework (EYLF)
• programs acceptable for other experience for moving to full registration.

This policy was effective in Queensland 1 February 2025. To find out more, visit the QCT website.

A suite of documents is available support ECTs to apply the Australian Professional Standards for Teachers (the Standards).

For more information to support the application of the Standards, visit the Australian Institute for Teaching and School Leadership (AITSL) website.

The AITSL website also features the mapping tool to support understanding of how the Standards connect with the National Quality Standard (NQS) and Belonging, Being and Becoming: The EYLF.

Teacher standards are under review. To learn more, visit the review of the teacher standards page on the AITSL website.

Mandatory registration

Learn about reforms to introduce mandatory teacher registration for early childhood teachers in some approved centre-based education and care services in Queensland from 1 July 2028.

Financial help for very remote teachers

The Australian Government supports teachers, including early childhood teachers, in very remote areas with Hig​her Education Loan Program (HELP) debts.

Learn more about financial assistance for very remote teachers.