A Labor government will offer Australia's "best and brightest" tax-free bursaries of $40,000 to become teachers.

Deputy Labor leader Tanya Plibersek will announce the plan on Monday, with the bursaries to be worth $10,000 over four years, to lift the school system.

"If you were dux of your school, won a university medal or are at the top of your profession, we want you to consider a teaching degree," Ms Plibersek told The Sydney Morning Herald and The Age.

"We want people competing to get into teaching in the same way they compete to get into medicine. We want Australians with a track record of achievement, motivation and capability to teach the next generation. A career in teaching should be a first choice, not a fallback."