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What do I need to know?

Records of a teacher's service in government schools are scattered throughout our collection, however teacher record books contain the most consolidated summary of a teacher's service in public schools. The search below will allow you to find a teacher record in these books.

Often a surname (maiden name where applicable) is all that is needed for a successful search, however the following may also be useful: 

  • teacher record number 
  • names of schools taught at
  • approximate year service commenced.

As these records are arranged chronologically by year and by teacher number, you could also browse the teacher records books by year or teacher number to find records of interest.

How do I search?

Use the "advanced search" option at top right hand corner of this page.

Enter a family and/or a given name in the search bar.

Next to "search within", select the "series" radio button.

Enter the number "13579" in the "Record Series No. (VPRS#)" field.

Hit search.

 

About these records

These records were created to provide a summary of the working history of each teacher in government service in Victoria. In 1862, the Board of Education was founded after the Denominational School Board and National School Board were abolished. This series was commenced by the Board of Education in 1863 and continued by the Education Department from 1873 until the Department began its transition to a card system from 1959.

 

Who created these records?

Education Department 1873-1985 (VA 714)

Next Steps

View the digitised teacher records online.

To access records of your own employment from approximately 1960 onwards, contact the Department of Education and Early Childhood Development.

What are in these records?

The records generally include the following information about each teacher:

  • name
  • date of birth
  • schools taught at (identified by school number)
  • classification (this is that of the teacher, based on assessment, promotions etc.)
  • authority (the date the teacher commenced at a particular school, and a reference to correspondence supporting the commencement)
  • remarks (of inspectors of teachers). 

Also sometimes included are:

  • place of birth
  • qualifications 
  • assessments

Material in the Public Record Office Victoria archival collection contains words and descriptions that reflect attitudes and government policies at different times which may be insensitive and upsetting

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples should be aware the collection and website may contain images, voices and names of deceased persons.

PROV provides advice to researchers wishing to access, publish or re-use records about Aboriginal Peoples