Mrs SALLY QUINNELL (Camden) (15:08): I am very proud to stand in this place as a former teacher to support the motion moved by the member for Gosford. I got up feeling positive this morning, ready to talk about teachers. Unfortunately, the member for Albury took me straight back to what it was like under the former Liberal Government when I had the job mansplained to me. I found it quite negative, and it brought back some trauma that I might need to see someone about. This is a problem in our education system. When I first became a teacher 23 years ago, New South Wales was the place to be a teacher. People travelled from all over the world to be a teacher in this State. I am stunned to hear that the member for Albury would not recognise that people used to travel over the border to Albury to be teachers in New South Wales because this was the place to be. New South Wales used to send its teachers out to the UK and to New Zealand because they were sought after, and now their answer is to call out to those countries and ask for them back. This is a problem we have.

As the member for Gosford mentioned, with our teacher shortage we have problems that go beyond just the classroom. Teachers are coming into school while sick. They are coming back before they should. When I came back from COVID-19, I was testing negative, but I walked back into the classroom possibly a week too early because I knew that, while I was recovering at home, my classes were not being covered, and recurring problems come from that. Teachers do that sort of thing for their schools, their students and the parents every day to make up for the shortfall. Some teachers take on two or three playground duties a day because they know that no-one else will and the damage that happens, especially to young students and special needs students, if they do not have the opportunity to go outside and run around. The damage done when teachers do not have permanent positions and have to reapply and reapply; and the fighting that goes on in term 4 when all the temporary teachers in the region apply for jobs that they are already doing and seek interviews with principals are extremely disheartening and attack the very core of what a school community should be.

The member for Ballina spoke about prac teachers during the COVID-19 pandemic. As a teacher of one of those practical subjects—I was a music teacher during the pandemic—I can tell you it was tough, especially when you add to that that I have three children of my own, one of whom was going through the HSC and doing a practical subject. Teachers were giving up their time in that period. COVID-19 shone a light on those problems. It made us aware, and the former Government chose to ignore it and tell us there was no problem. I commend the motion because I agree that putting Murat Dizdar in charge of the Department of Education has been a godsend for this State's teachers. It has given them hope and positivity. They know that we have a former teacher in charge of the teachers. We need to make sure that our teachers are treated as the absolute professionals they are and that we recognise that they are taking care of where our State goes next. The most precious commodity in our State is our children, and the people looking after them are our teachers. I commend the motion.