Teaching Qualifications

Mr PISONI (Unley) (14:40): Supplementary, sir: will students have access to HECS or FEE-HELP in order to obtain their master's degrees?

The Hon. S.E. CLOSE (Port Adelaide—Minister for Education and Child Development, Minister for the Public Sector) (14:40): Again, I suspect that falls firmly into the task of minister Gago. However, I would like to say that the idea of having teachers have higher qualifications is a good one. What we want is for our teachers who are capable of leading their kids in the 21^st century to develop those skills that are required for the future. I am absolutely delighted to be part of an effort to lift the level of the qualification for teachers, not only pre-service but also we are funding a number of scholarships for existing teachers who are already in service to gain their master's in order to further improve their qualifications for teaching.