Julia Hainsworth has aspired to be a teacher since high school, however the more she wanted to study teaching, the more the opportunity appeared to recede.

“Obviously, life gets in the way – you have a family and need to pay the mortgage and that sort of thing – so it didn’t seem potentially like an option for me,” Hainsworth said.

“When I had my children, that really sparked my curiosity about being a teacher some more, because of their experiences at school.

“I can see how important those foundational years actually are for children, particularly in setting them up as learners.”

In July, she enrolled in a Bachelor of Early Childhood Education (B-5 years), after successfully applying for financial support through the state government.

The QualifySA in Early Childhood Financial Support Program has been “a big motivator” in returning to study for Hainsworth, who also has a diploma in work health and safety.

The financial support will be paid each year during the course and for the first two years after as she launches her teaching career.

She is one of a new cohort of teachers and educators needed as the state government invests in 15 hours of preschool a week for all 3-year-olds, which will be rolled out in stages from 2026 to 2032.

Julia Hainsworth and her youngest child, Finn. Photo: supplied

Hainsworth is confident she has made the right decision.

“I think at 43 you have that one shot to make a good career change, to retrain, and I really wanted it to mean something,” she said.

“What’s happening in early childhood is really innovative and play based, allowing the children to find their learning style and their space.”

Also taking up the call to help our next generation get their lives off to a flying start is Amanda Holocek.

Holocek currently lives in Pinnaroo in the state’s south-east and works in a local preschool.

For the past four years, she has been studying part-time online at Charles Darwin University (CDU) and will complete her Bachelor of Education in Early Childhood Teaching in 2026.

Holocek’s husband, Ben, is a primary school teacher working in SA’s country schools. While they were living in Ceduna, she completed a Certificate III in Early Childhood Education and Care and worked at the town’s Ngura Yadurirn Children and Family Centre.

“Once I started studying, I realised how important early childhood is and that the development in those early years is just so huge – it actually impacts your whole life,” she said.

Holocek’s colleagues, qualified teachers, encouraged her to take the next step and get her bachelors degree.

Studying online has given her flexibility to fit study in around parenting and work. It has also enabled her to have a seamless study experience when the couple moved for work to Pinnaroo, then to Cowell and back to Pinnaroo.

Holocek said her assignments focused on the South Australian policies and curriculum, enabling her to immediately put those learnings into practice at her work. She also welcomed the university’s focus on First Nations perspectives.

Having lived in small communities, she knows firsthand how hard it is to attract and retain quality teachers, and she is determined to be part of the solution.

“I have three kindies within half an hour of where I live and there’s never enough teachers to fill the positions,” she said.

She has ambitions to eventually take on a leadership role and possibly do further study, knowing the sector offers her a flexible career path.

“I don’t want to change careers, I do love this job,” she said.

“There are so many different areas of education, even in early childhood, such as inclusion and wellbeing, and there is so much that I would be really interested in learning more about.”

Hainsworth is also keen to play a role in inclusion. Her three children, Finn, 6, Max, 11 and Kaylee, 19, are all neurodiverse and this has been a factor in her decision to study early childhood teaching.

“The more knowledge we develop around early childhood and the importance of those foundations, the more we can support neurodiverse children going into school,” she said.

She said she looks forward to being an impactful teacher and advocating for children’s early years.

“And to having a qualification that will give me career opportunities and growth in an area that I’m really interested in,” she said.

“As a mum, you always put your own career on the backburner for your kids.

“It’ll be nice to be something that I can be passionate about and feel fulfilment in.”

Find out more about a career in early childhood education here.

South Australian residents studying an approved early childhood diploma or an early childhood birth to 5 bachelors or master’s degree may be eligible for financial support of up $25,000. They must be starting or have received an offer for their course and be an Australian or New Zealand citizen. Additional funding is available for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people to work in the sector and for eligible people living in regional and remote areas.