Nine weeks out from the state election, the Andrews government has rolled out advertisements on digital displays at the MCG that urge footy fans to “enrol now” at a state school.

The campaign will also appear as TV, digital, radio, billboard, bus and print media ads.

The government would not disclose the cost of the campaign, saying the details would be revealed in the Education Department’s next annual report.

The move to entice more students to the sector comes as data reveals a significant increase in parents choosing public schools.

State schools’ share of enrolments is expected to jump from 63.7 per cent this year to 64.7 per cent in 2022, reversing a 20-year shift to non-government schools.

Though a growing number of parents are choosing state schools, one in two Victorian families are bypassing their local state school, according to a 2017 Auditor-General’s report.

Victorian Education Minister James Merlino said the ads promoted the great work taking place in state schools and aimed to attract the best teachers to the system.

“With so many new schools built and existing ones expanded, Victorian parents need to know they can enrol their child in a world-class public school close to home,” Mr Merlino said.

But the opposition’s education spokesman Tim Smith labelled the campaign “political advertising” and said the money would be better spent on teachers and students.

“This should be seen for what it is: publicly funded political advertising in the lead-up to a state election,” he said.

The campaign is further evidence of a shift in the government's stance on school choice and follows new rules that will force many state schools to turn away out-of-area families.

The government is keen to curb the growth of large schools and encourage students to enrol at their local school.

Lobby group Our Children Our Schools has been calling on the government to fund a campaign to promote public education for the past two years.

“It is high time the Education State championed its own public education system and this is exactly what we called for,” the group's president Cate Hall said.

“Victoria has historically been a bit of an outlier compared to other states when it comes promoting public education."

University of Melbourne emeritus professor Richard Teese said the campaign was a welcome departure from previous practice.

“In the past the ministers for education have stressed that they are responsible for both government and non-government sector and they can't be seen to be promoting one at the expense of other,” he said.

“Now they are coming out directly in favour of public schools.”

The advertisements have been authorised by the Victorian government and feature children, parents and students talking about the benefits of attending a state school.

“Our school is a great place to learn," a beaming science teacher says in one of the ads. "Find out about public schools in your area to enrol your child today and make our school, their school."

Catholic Education Commission of Victoria executive director Stephen Elder said while it was fine for the state government to promote its own schools, the Catholic sector took a huge load off the budget.

"We provide an education for more than 210,000 students, close to a quarter of the state’s schoolchildren, in Victoria’s second biggest school system," he said.

He said educating a student in the Catholic sector saved taxpayers $7500 every year, or $100,000 over the 13 years of schooling.

Australian Education Union deputy Victorian president Justin Mullaly said celebrating public education was "fantastic" and consistent with the role of state government.