Hundreds of Victorian teachers will walk out of classrooms bound for the steps of Parliament House, calling for children to be freed from detention and the closure of off-shore refugee camps.
Teachers from the public and private sector will leave their students to take a stand on the final day of the #KidsOffNauru campaign on Tuesday at Victoria's parliament house.
"We are taking this action because we are so concerned about what has been happening on Manus (Island) and Nauru," Teachers for Refugees spokeswoman Lucy Honan told AAP ahead of the rally.
"It is time to close those camps."
Mehdi, an Iranian refugee on Nauru, will be live-streamed to the rally along with other speakers including former Nauru teachers.
With people still on Nauru and Manus islands, and 16 children in a detention centre in Melbourne, the teachers want the federal government to resettle them in Australia.
"A lot of us are teachers with kids who have come from refugees backgrounds. It is impacting the classroom. It is a live issue. We have been given responsibility for the children and setting an example," Ms Honan said.
She said hundreds of teachers had been given permission from their school principal to take leave without pay.
A spokeswoman from the Department of Education and Training said teachers are free to support causes in their own time but they should not use their professional position to make political statements.
"Teachers have a role in encouraging students to consider and think critically about a range of perspectives on complex issues being debated in the community," she added.
Teachers will also rally in Queensland as part of the campaign.
Australian Associated Press
