Contesting Tertiary Teaching Qualifications: An Australian Perspective

This paper utilizes the findings of a small research project into academics' perceptions of the value of formal qualifications in university teaching and learning to reflect upon the current status of teaching and tertiary teaching qualifications in Australia. The findings are based upon a survey of and interviews with participants and non-participants in one Australian university's Graduate Certificate in University Teaching. The study reveals varied attitudes and perspectives in relation to teaching and to formal teaching qualifications, in particular. While the study provides evidence that a formal teaching qualification was considered beneficial by some respondents, the paper also reveals cynicism about the validity of such qualifications. The paper argues that the complex, more management and market-oriented context in which academics currently undertake their work has had a significant influence upon such perceptions.