Global, national and state-based pressures for teachers in Australian schools: The toll on teacher wellbeing, the capacity to innovate and opportunities for democratic and socially just education

As in many nations in both the developed and developing world, Australia has moved increasingly towards standardisation and so-called ‘accountability’ measures of benchmark testing and reporting, nation-wide curriculum, comparisons of schools and ways in which teachers work.  Teacher wellbeing and autonomy is affected by these measures, as teachers attempt to comply with policy, programs and directives from state and national authorities, administered at the school level. The constraints experienced by teachers working within these boundaries limit- but, arguably, don’t obliterate- opportunities for democratic workplaces for teachers, and for engaging in democratic classroom-practice with student input into learning choices and styles. This paper reports on the  changing nature and composition of learners in Australian schools, the range of standardising and benchmarking measures that Australian teachers must currently engage with, how these affect teachers’ capacity to innovate or work in context and learning community-specific ways, and on a survey of teacher wellbeing conducted by the author in collaboration with the teachers' union.  Some brief examples of innovative teaching practice that works both with and within these boundaries are offered as suggestions of ways forward in improving both increasing democratic processes and providing context-specific engaging and meaningful learning opportunities for students.