High graduate attrition rates

A new study into teacher resilience highlights the attrition rate in the profession, with renewed calls for graduates to take jobs in rural areas.

The study of 160 primary and secondary school teachers, published in the Australian Journal of Education, found that teachers with "lower levels of resilience" were more likely to want to leave teaching.

Up to half of all newly graduated Australian teachers leave the profession within five years.

Judy Crowe, president of the Victorian Association of State Secondary School Principals (VASSP), said that in the past young graduates would commence their careers in a country school but these days were "seeking the ideal job in the ideal location from day one".

"Young teachers are often not prepared to go where the jobs are," she told 774 ABC Melbourne's Jon Faine.

"Often there are vacancies in rural areas but the young people don't tend to want to go to those to commence their careers."

She said teaching in a country school could help provide new teachers with the skills and confidence to deal with a broader range of circumstances as they progressed their careers.

"Schools do differ and sometimes there are opportunities in country schools that you can't get in city schools," she said.

Oversupply leading to lack of job security

Ms Crowe said there was currently an oversupply of teaching graduates.

"We are training many more teachers than schools are able to absorb at the moment," she said.

"Teachers might get one contract but the opportunity for them to get ongoing work is more limited."

She said often these short-term contracts were the result of teachers going on maternity leave.

"I think that's true, in lots of different occupations, that people don't necessarily have the job security that existed in the past."

Teachers split on cause of attrition

Teachers contacting 774 ABC Melbourne were split on what caused young graduates to leave the profession.

One teacher messaged to say she worked nine-and-a-half hours a day before doing more work at home.

"[I] deal with very rude behaviour on a daily basis from a majority of students which sometimes turns violent (at primary school!). It is indeed a very thankless job."

Talkback caller Rupert, however, said blaming students for teacher attrition was "rubbish".

He supported calls for graduates to spend time teaching in rural areas, having moved from Melbourne to teach in Victoria's Wimmera region.

"Going out into the country and teaching there for three years was an unbelievably formative experience."

He said it was important that graduates "get out of their bubble and go and experience schools and communities outside of where they grew up".