Teacher training, pay and performance are often the subject of studies and reports that generate tense public discussion, so let's boil it down to one thing: what actually helps children learn?

What levers within an early childhood education system can be pulled to improve how well a child can do things like read and write — "the foundation of their learning"?

We spoke to teachers, academics and looked at international examples and some common themes emerged:

Improve teacher welfare and support

Improve teacher welfare and support Make teaching an attractive professional career and that means paying teachers more.

What's the deal with Finland?

When the Australian Education Union (AEU) announced it was recommending Australian school teachers be required to complete a masters degree, it used Finland as an example.

The argument is, the Finns do education best and they require teachers to complete a post-graduate level of education.

Pasi Sahlberg is the Finnish education guru and he has long said masters degrees are important "but not a panacea".

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The Finnish system does get results:

Finland ranks as number one on the World Economic Forum's overall "quality of primary education" index

Finland ranks as number one on the World Economic Forum's overall "quality of primary education" index Australia sits at number 15.

There are many differences between those two early education systems:

The curriculum is very different. Finnish students start reading and writing education much later

The curriculum is very different. Finnish students start reading and writing education much later Finnish students will only sit one major compulsory exam for all of primary and high school

Finnish students will only sit one major compulsory exam for all of primary and high school Teachers are required to get a masters. Those degrees are free and are highly coveted positions.

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Brenna McNeil is an Australian teacher returning home after time in international schools and was one of many who took issue with the AEU's recommendation.

"It's simplistic to say 'Finnish teachers all have a master of education and their students do well. Therefore, all Aussie teachers should have a masters of education so their students do well'," she said.

"It completely ignores the culture and conditions surrounding education in Australia."

Lyn Bryant has always worked as an educator: first for high school art students, then in early childhood, at international schools, tutoring teaching students and, most recently, consulting to schools.

She got her masters after 20 years on the job and her message is: "there isn't one way to teach."

"Teaching requires a lot of sitting and thinking through how you're going to be able to do things. If it doesn't work you don't run away from it, or do it the same way next time," she said.

"Thinking skills come from practical work, they don't come from studying for an extra two years."

The AEU has since clarified its position, saying the proposal to require teachers to undertake masters degrees was "an important part of a continuum" to elevate the profession of teaching.

We asked Ms Bryant what she believed could be done to help children learn in the classroom:

"Improve the wellbeing of teachers in the classroom who are working now"

"Improve the wellbeing of teachers in the classroom who are working now" "Up the entry levels so you get people in teaching courses who actually want to be teachers."

Professor John Hattie is the director of the Melbourne Education Research Institute at the University of Melbourne and he agreed.

He did say he would support the idea of requiring teachers to have masters degrees because it would serve as a filter to ensure only candidates really engaged in the practice would end up in the classroom.

But he says we have all the answers right here at home.

"Five, seven years of study, it doesn't matter. Experience is what makes a difference," he said.

He said the key was keeping good people in the profession for a long time and pointed to efforts in South Australian and New South Wales systems to develop them into places where teachers can progress and specialise.

"Why would you enter a profession where after 10 years you're at top of the scale?" Professor Hattie said.

"We've got to really introduce the idea of expertise and that's where pay makes a difference."

Would support, pay and respect make teaching attractive?

Lyn Bryant completed her Masters in education 20 years after she started teaching. ( ABC News: Emily Clark )

Ms Bryant says to lift the status of teaching, education systems can simply: "pay teachers more."

"I think that people would put it on their list," she said.

"Instead of it being 'Oh well I didn't do very well, I'm going into teaching', it'll be 'I really want to be a teacher because I can see they have status in the community, they're paid well, it would be a good profession to go into'.

"Status comes with pay."

Two generations of educators, Jemma Manning, and mother Lyn Byrant with baby Max. ( ABC News: Emily Clark )

Ms Bryant's daughter Jemma Manning is also an early childhood teacher. She says there is no incentive for school-leavers with high scores to enter teaching and that's about pay but also support.

"It's basically out of love. You do it because you're passionate about it and you want those children to have the best education that you can give them but ... there's no incentive," she said.

"You've got 25 children and they're your responsibility. As a prep teacher I'm teaching them how to read and write which are the foundations of their learning and that's a really big responsibility.

"I think people don't realise how stressful it is."

Early childhood teacher Jemma Manning with her new son Max. ( ABC News: Emily Clark )

Teachers are leaving the profession and new teachers say their first years are "all about survival". Professor Hattie said that pressure affected student outcomes.

"We really do have to provide resources for teachers to see change over time," he said.

Mrs Manning:

"If a teacher is anxious then the kids are going to be anxious," she said.

"So if you're trying to get through all of these assessments in order to show evidence that this child who is five is of a B or a sound level on a 15-point scale — that in itself is ridiculous.

"That would never happen in Finland."