Monday 23 June

Tuesday 24 June

Wednesday 25 June

Thursday 26 June

Friday 27 June

Saturday – Sunday, 28 – 29 June

Monday 23 June

• The West Australian
  

  • Changes to OBE English ‘are ignored’ (page 17)
    by Bethany Hiatt

    “English teachers claim the Curriculum Council has betrayed them by ignoring the recommendations of a panel of teachers hired by the State Government to review problems in the outcomes-based education English course.

    “A “teachers’ jury” last year said that the OBE English course that Year 12s sat for the first time in 2007 was flawed and required significant changes.

    “The jury was concerned that students were able to do the TEE English course without reference to books or films they had studied during the year and said the new course must have more explicit content. It specifically recommended that creative writing should not be included in the writing section of the Year 12 exam from 2009, though it should be assessed during the year.

    “The 48-member panel also recommended that students should not have to write about still images seen for the first time in the viewing section of the exam. Instead they should refer to “non-print texts” such as films which they had studied during the year.  But new sample exams designed to give teachers an idea what to expect in 2009 include both writing about previously unseen images and an option to write creatively.

    “A spokesman for the English Teachers Forum, which opposed the new OBE English course after it was introduced, said a reference group set up by the Curriculum Council to implement the jury’s recommendations was overriding them instead.  “Unless the reference group does as the jury wanted them to, it’s an enormous waste of time, money and effort for everyone involved, “he said.

    “The jury said there shall not be creative writing, for a whole range of reasons, and the reference group has said, ‘no, we know better’.”

    “Marko Vojkovic, spokesman for teachers’ group People Lobbying Against Teaching Outcomes, said the reference group appeared to be taking lessons from African despot Robert Mugabe. “They get a result from a jury they don’t like and they just ignore it and go on their merry way,“ he said.

    “Mr Vojkovic said Education Minister Mark McGowan had given a “rock solid” guarantee that all jury recommendations would be implemented in full.  “It’s time to replace the English reference group because they seem to be the last remaining problem between the old OBE debacle and some sanity coming back into the system, “ he said. [emphasis added]

    “Curriculum Council chief executive David Wood said almost all the English teacher jury’s recommendations had been implemented.  Half the reference group managing the implementation had also been members of the jury.

    “Mr Wood said students had to answer only one out of five questions in the writing section of the exam.  “Students may choose creative writing, but this is not required,” he said.  “In the viewing section of the exam, students have to refer to a non-print text studied during the year, as well as unseen static image.”

    From The West Australian
    
    
    

  • Teachers ‘expected to register’ (page 9)
    by Bethany Hiatt

    “Education Minister Mark McGowan has broken his silence on the prospect of hundreds of teachers being banned from schools for refusing to pay their compulsory registration fees, saying he expected all teachers would meet the deadline.

    “Last week, Mr McGowan refused to comment on the possibility of a dramatic escalation of the teacher shortage if more than 2000 teachers do not pay their outstanding annual $70 fee to the WA College of Teaching by the final deadline in two weeks.

    “Yesterday, he said it was a legal requirement for teachers to be registered, which also provided for compulsory criminal screening.

    “I expect all teachers will register before the deadline of July 3 as they did last year, “he said. “More than 95 per cent of teachers are already registered and registrations are pouring in at the rate of 200 to 300 per day. I urge all remaining teachers to register.”

    “State School Teachers Union general secretary David Kelly said Mr McGowan’s advisers should have prepared contingency plans against the possibility that some teachers were deregistered.  “He’s the Minister for Education, so if there’s 2000 teachers – and they’re not all in public education – I’d expect him to know exactly where these are and in what context, what contingency plans need to be put in place to make sure there are teachers in front of classes, “he said.

    “I’m sure the (education) director-general (Sharyn O’Neill) would be very conscious of the implications for the workforce.  At a time of teacher shortage already, we do not need another 200 or 300 teachers ineligible to be standing in front of a class.”

    “Mr Kelly said while the union would prefer employers to pay teachers’ registration, $70 was a minimal fee and WACOT had an important role in ensuring that only qualified educators were fronting classrooms.

    “WACOT director Suzanne Parry said the number of teachers who had not paid their fee was fluctuating. “It’s almost impossible for me to give any sort of accurate figure, “she said.

    “But she had no doubt teachers would pay by the deadline.  She said a small group of teachers had taken the opportunity to make a protest because they were disenchanted with the profession.  “They’re protesting about the whole range of things that have been happening to education, “she said. “Curriculum changes, the current enterprise bargaining agreement being unresolved – there’s any number of things.”

    From The West Australian
    
    
    

  • Letter to the Editor (page 22)
    

    • Hogwash, Minister

      “It became apparent when reading your report (Teachers Need Big Pay Rises,  Says Report 19/6) that the Minister for Education’s previous stance about the Twomey report not being released until Cabinet had studied it was a load of hogwash and to say that he has released it now as ”an act of good faith” further stretches credibility.

      “Mark McGowan has known since last December of the report’s findings on teachers’ pay and conditions.

      “He knows that to maintain and attract teachers a whole raft of measures needs to be implemented, including a substantial pay rise (not just a token amount of executive teachers to earn $100,000).

      “The SSTU and the Education Department have been in negotiations since the end of September last year to replace the old School Education Act Employees (Teachers and Administrators) General Agreement which expired on March 1.

      “If acting in “good faith “was an important factor, a new agreement would have been up and running from March 1.

      “Instead, obfuscation and muddying the waters have been prime department tactics.  Referring the case to arbitration further delays an eventual agreement.

      “If the process should take 12 months (as some reports suggest), will the new agreement be backdated to March 2008? If not, then the Government has, in effect, partly paid for new salaries and conditions by employing the stalling process of arbitration and saving on pay increases which should have come into effect more than three months ago.

      “A cynic may also be tempted to believe that it is expedient for the Government to immediately grant department heads and bureaucrats quantum pay rises because this keeps those people onside and parroting the Government line.

      “Of course, there are only a few of them and a few huge top-up costs less than adequately rewarding thousands of teachers (and yes, nurses, policemen and public sector employees).”

      Kevin Milligan, Carine
      
      

    • In Short
      
      "The gas crisis would possible bring any normal State government to its knees. Not so in WA. Quite remarkably, the Labor Cabinet managed to hold the fire hose with one hand while simultaneously finding, reading and releasing the Twomey report with the other. Well done."

      Frank Mulligan, South Perth
      
      
      

• WACOT Media Statement
  

  • Non-paying teachers to be deregistered
    
    Teachers whose annual membership fees have been outstanding since April will be deregistered by the Western Australian College of Teaching, effective on July 4.

    At an extraordinary meeting last night, the College Board agreed to deregister non-paying members, many of whom had left the teaching profession or left the State.

    College acting chair Jacqueline Varris said that the majority of the College members had paid their fees on time and only about five per cent had failed to pay.

    She stressed that many of the teachers who would be deregistered were no longer working in Western Australian classrooms, or had left the State, and had simply failed to notify the College of their intentions.

    Mrs Varris was confident that the majority of the remaining non-financial members would follow the same pattern as last year and pay the fee before they faced cancellation of their membership and deregistration.

    “The College Board urges those who have not paid to do so in order to minimise the disruption that deregistration would cause to schools and the wider community,” she said. “Re-registration is a costly and time consuming exercise for teachers.

    “Teachers have a system of registration similar to other professional groups such as doctors, nurses and midwives, dentists, accountants, lawyers and psychologists. There is a legislative requirement for teachers to pay an annual $70 fee for registration.

    “Teachers have a membership card clearly stating the March 31 expiry date of their financial membership of the College. They are sent an invoice in February and the majority of our 45,000 members pay on time.

    “The College Secretariat sends a reminder letter in April and if the membership fee still goes unpaid, there is a follow-up reminder notice in May, along with a letter from the College Director forewarning of deregistration.

    “All of this requires a lot of extra administrative work for the College Secretariat and this process cannot go on indefinitely.

    “All non-financial members will be sent notices tomorrow advising that deregistration will be effective from 4pm on Friday July 4 if fees remain outstanding by 4pm on July 3.

     “In some instances teachers may have changed address and will not have received an invoice.  Numerous measures have been taken by the College to contact these teachers even though it is their responsibility to inform the College of their contact changes.”

    As the teaching profession’s regulatory authority, the College works to ensure that teachers in Western Australian classrooms are suitably qualified, are competent to teach, are of good character and have satisfied the requirements of a criminal record check.

    Teacher registration has been in place in Western Australia since September 15, 2004. All Australian States and the Northern Territory now have teacher registration boards.
    
    
    

• The Age
  
  
  • The Monday Education Section is online !  and has 10 articles, including:
    
    
    • Have we learned our lesson yet?
      by Tony Thompson
      
      "The real story about the looming teacher shortage in the state system has nothing to do with the imminent departure of the baby boomers. It is a far less predictable tale. Teachers are simply quitting.
      
      "Generation Y can't see the point of a long career in teaching and Generation X still can't figure out why they got into it in the first place. Opportunities do appear. Private schools regularly seek out state-school teachers for a quiet chat. Overseas postings are advertised weekly in The Age.
      
      "I have had friends leave for all kinds of professions. A teacher who had a big influence on me in my early days at Princes Hill now writes detective novels. Another former colleague sells Viagra. Yet another plays music professionally.
      
      "What they have in common is the sense that they made the right decision. They were all excellent teachers and they all say they miss the kids but there is no regret. This raises big questions, I believe, that have not been entirely answered by the recent agreement negotiated by our union. I used to think it was money but there is a bigger issue: respect.
      
      "Another friend of mine who left the profession last year made a very telling comment recently. She said that she felt, for the first time in her working life, like a grown-up. What does this mean? This is about respect.
      
      "To work in the state system these days is to feel like Winston Smith in George Orwell's 1984. The Inner Party or the "department" looms threateningly over those of us in the Outer Party, "the schools". The Department of Education is interested in "accountability" and the sense that teachers are doing something wrong is widespread. Our leaders cannot be satisfied. The day before Melbourne Cup Day in most businesses is a holiday. No questions asked. The Education Department has other ideas. We must do 7.36hours of extra work throughout the year.
      
      "Now most teachers do twice that amount of extra work every week but this is not recognised. It is clear that we don't deserve that day. The community isn't happy. Our holidays are already too long. The Government is tired of our griping and the "department" has to take a stand.
      
      "I often try to picture these people, these people of the "department". I assume that most people in education administration are former teachers. Why did they leave the classroom? Was it too stressful? Was it too easy? No, they left because they wanted more money and to be recognised for their work. Unfortunately, they seem to have forgotten this and seem determined to punish those of us who do not wish to leave the classroom. I have never met even one of these people so I am generalising. I just find their attitude mystifying.
      
      "Many teachers feel as though they are jumping through a burning ring every morning when they enter the school but this is not interesting to our keepers. They decide on the hoops and hurdles. If we go through the annual review process, then we need to do a curriculum audit. Then it is time to do some kind of professional development project. And boy, do we need professional development. It is clear that most of us have a lot to learn. The Victorian Institute of Teaching suggests 100 hours; about one hour a decade is enough for me but that is simply not good enough. Repeat - I am a bad teacher, I must develop professionally. I could be the assistant manager of a retail operation and make more money but it is clear that I have a sentence to serve. And I will serve this sentence by listening to education gurus tell me that my style of teaching is wrong and that I have to change. My lessons are not "inclusive" enough. I need to give the students more "ownership" of the process. My knowledge of my subject can impede student learning. They must be challenged to seek out information on their own. God forbid that I answer a question. I need to be a guide, not a sage. I should use "scaffolding". I still don't know what this means.
      
      "Most parents I deal with are very supportive. It is time for them to get angry. The people who put their children in state high schools are heroes. I suspect that many of these parents could afford a private school.
      
      "They choose us because they like what they see and desire a more democratic environment for their kids. The level of trust is high but they have to know the truth. They trust us but our employers don't and morale is at breaking point. Most companies have finally realised that treating employees properly is just good business.
      
      "Creating an atmosphere of suspicion and accusation can only lead to a drop in productivity.
      
      "Maybe the retirement of the baby boomers is significant for another reason. I always ask them how they have hung in there for so long and the answers are generally based on a commitment to an ideal and the belief that teaching can change the world.
      
      "I'm not sure this is enough to sustain me through another 20 years. I know that my experience and my perception of the situation is not universally shared but I believe that it is time to talk about something other than money and short-term fixes. The state system in Victoria must be preserved. Let's start with those at the front lines."
      
      Tony Thompson is an English teacher at Princes Hill Secondary College.
      
      From The Age at link
      
      
      
    • Universities face up to double threat
      
      An ageing university workforce and fierce global competition for top academics pose some of the biggest threats to the prosperity of Australia's higher-education sector, according to a national discussion paper.
      
      
      
      
• ABC News
  
  
  • Regional teacher search heads to Scotland
    
    "The Department of Education has begun interviews in Scotland to find more regional teachers for Western Australia.

    "It is the second recruitment drive in the United Kingdom this year, with a third expected to take place in October."Already 52 teachers have been recruited from London and Ireland to begin work in WA schools at the start of 2009."The department's Allan Blagaich expects to recruit a further 50 teachers from Scotland.

    "Yes we are seeing the fruits, we're getting people through, it started slowly last year, this year I know that with the 52 we have added we have over 100, 120 people on our books ready for appointment in Western Australia," he said."

    From ABC News at link
    
    
    
  • Police told to prepare for bitter pay dispute
    
    "The President of the Western Australian Police Union has predicted officers will need to fight an extraordinarily bitter pay dispute when a new enterprise bargaining agreement is negotiated next year.

    "Mike Dean has told the Police Union's annual conference that the Labor State Government has a fascist pay stance, where it draws out negotiations and then takes pay disputes to the Industrial Relations Commission to get a favourable result.

    "He says the current negotiations between the State Government and the State School Teachers' Union are an example of the Government's inability to bargain in good faith. [emphasis added]

    "However, Mr Dean says officers are prepared to do whatever is necessary to get an appropriate pay rise.

    "Meanwhile, the Police Commissioner, Karl O'Callaghan, has told the conference police stations across the state need urgent upgrades.

    "He also said the Government was not providing enough officers to enforce new child abuse laws.

    "Commissioner O'Callaghan says mandatory reporting of child abuse cases needs 30 more detectives to be enforced.

    Industrial action

    "Meanwhile, the Police Union has threatened to take industrial action if the judiciary fails to jail offenders who assault police. "The State Government recently increased maximum penalties for police assaults from 10 to 14 years jail, but refused Opposition and union calls for mandatory jail terms for serious offences. "Mr Dean told delegates attending the conference that the courts must ensure people who seriously assault police are always sent to jail. "He says police officers will take industrial action and hold rallies the next time a court allows an offender to walk free. "The reality is the Government governs this country, courts are there to carry out the will of Governments," he said.

    "The Judges and the Magistrates are not the ones that are out on the streets dealing with the daily violence."

    From ABC News at link
    
    
    
  • School maintenance more important than solar panels: Opposition
    
    "The Queensland Opposition says maintenance work on school buildings should be a higher priority than installing solar panels.

    "Premier Anna Bligh has promised a three-year, $60 million program to place solar panels on every state school roof."Opposition Leader Lawrence Springborg says that money should be spent on urgent repairs first."If the Government actually fixes the fundamental maintenance issues in those areas in our schools then of course we can move to solar panels," he said.

    "But the mums and dads out there with their kids at schools and the staff in the classrooms are asking for electrical safety switches, painting and basic drainage and plumbing work to be done."

    From ABC News at link
    
    
    
    
• WA Today
  
  
  • Teachers resign as leave refused [22 June]
    by Vanessa Williams
    
    "Teachers in need of a break are handing in their resignations as the Education Department refuses to grant unpaid leave.
    
    "In a report released in March last year, which reviewed the teacher recruitment practices, a growing number of teachers believe the Education Department is letting them down by not recognising the benefits of offering unpaid leave in place of resignations.
    
    "Shadow Education Minister Peter Collier said that figures obtained from the Department show approved leave requests continue to fall and that Education Minister Mark McGowan has failed to see the decline as an issue.
    
    "This government continues to ignore the advice from the reports and taskforces it commissions," he said.
    
    "Areas where real change can be made continue to be identified but no action is being taken."
    
    "According to the report, only 27 per cent of the 258 applications filed for unpaid leave were approved as the number of teacher resignations increased from 314 in 2003 to 908 in 2007. 
    
    "Compare this with figures from 2003 which showed out of 660 applications, 97 per cent or 645 teachers were granted leave without pay," Mr Collier said. "This level continued in 2004, with 555 teachers out of 573 allowed to take a well earned break from their duties."
    
    "After speaking to a distraught teacher who was refused leave and had been in the profession for over 27 years, Mr Collier said the inflexibility of the Department was a major letdown for hard working teachers who need a well-deserved break.
    
     "A fundamental shift is required in the way the Government and Department view teachers, otherwise we will continue to witness the dramatic shift away from this profession."
    
    From WA Today at link [also see the Hansard Question and Answer of 17 June]
    
    
    
    
• The Sunday Times online / PerthNow [late midday update on 22 June]
  
  
  • Children safe from strikes
    by Paul Lampathakis
    
    "Children and parents have a temporary reprieve from planned teacher strikes that were to hit WA schools within weeks.
    
    "The WA State School Teachers' Union says its executive decided on Friday to comply with orders by the WA Industrial Relations Commission that teachers not have rolling-half day strikes over pay and conditions.
    
    "But the union says this does not rule out future strikes because it will appeal the commission's decision.
    
    "As far as we're concerned, that doesn't rule out future industrial action entirely, in that we're going to seek to vary the orders of the IRC and appeal," said Union general secretary David Kelly.
    
    "Mr Kelly also said the union's "directive one" remained in place for teachers not to do any unpaid tasks, such as after-school activities.
    
    "He said this measure was also being tightened up. For example the Education Department would now have to provide cars for teachers to move between schools when they needed to, rather than teachers using their own cars as they had in the past.
    
    "The union would continue to confer with its legal team as to the best time to go back to the commission for such an appeal, he said.
    
    "Earlier this month, the union voted at its state council meeting to roll out half-day strikes over pay and conditions and had planned to do so before the end of term on July 4.
    
    "The Industrial Relations Commission took over arbitration of the pay deal this month because the WA Government and the union could not reach agreement after more than eight months of wrangling.
    
    "Union president Anne Gisborne previously said a survey completed by members had favoured half-day strikes and the state council had endorsed these.
    
    "Ms Gisborne said teachers were disillusioned and angry with a government that was being obstructive, rather than constructive.
    
    "She said the arbitration process the Government had chosen would mean every clause in teachers' agreements -- about 120 in the union's log of claims -- would "need to be fought for piece by piece''.
    
    "It would take between six and 12 months for the union and the department to make their cases.
    
    "Ms Gisborne has said the union would try to give parents as much notice as possible of any strikes so they could prepare for them.
    
    "The commission previously fined the union $1500 for refusing to call off a February stop-work meeting that closed 35 schools.
    
    "The union is pushing for a 20 per cent-plus pay rise over three years.
    
    "It wants smaller classes, more preparation time for primary teachers and "appropriate'' administration time for principals and their deputies.
    
    "The Government's last offer, which it withdrew, was nearly 14 per cent, rising with allowances and other factors."
    
    From The Sunday Times online / PerthNow at link
    
    
    
    
• The Sydney Morning Herald
  
  
  • Products get a gig at schools
    by Harriet Alexander Higher Education Reporter
    
    "Corporate giants have broken through one of the last bastions of advertising-free ground to pitch their products directly to schoolchildren.

    "Mobile phone companies, hair product companies, video game manufacturers, magazines and youth websites have jumped aboard an event that showcases bands and runs sessions on careers in the music industry.
    
    "Boost Mobile Rock The Schools, powered by Schwarzkopf Taft FULL ON and LIVE Colour, as it is officially known, is touring 70 schools around Australia.
    
    "And its $1 million bill is being picked up by its 14 sponsors and partners in exchange for an opportunity to advertise their wares directly to the lucrative teen market.
    
    "The event follows moves by the health-care giant Johnson & Johnson to advertise in textbooks and McDonalds's sponsorship of Football NSW's "Kick it Kids" school development program.
    
    "Last week Rock The Schools visited St Patrick's College, Burwood Girls High, Bowral High and St Ignatius' College, Riverview in NSW.
    
    "The shows are prefaced with an advertisement from each of the major sponsors, and some include iPod and phone giveaways.
    
    "Simon Hakaraia, the director of the event, said he hoped eventually to run it with government funding, but it was currently a "win-win for everyone".
    
    "The sponsors really feel that they're doing something worthwhile with their marketing spend, the bands get exposure … and the kids in the school get a huge amount of value from having people come in and open their eyes to everything in the music industry," he said. "Some people argue that selling Boost mobile phones or Schwarzkopf hair products is not a good thing to be taking into schools but we would argue that kids are all aware and we're comfortable with the sponsors."
    
    "The NSW Department of Education is not involved and does not give or receive any funding from the event. But it does offer companies the chance to sponsor activities for events such as the Premier's Spelling Bee and the Premier's Reading Challenge. Sponsors for these include Fairfax Media, publisher of the Herald.
    
    "The NSW Greens education spokesman, John Kaye, said corporate sponsorship gave students the impression teachers endorsed particular products. "Corporate sponsors are trying to cash in on the intellectual authority of schools to create the illusion of official endorsement."

    From The Sydney Morning Herald at link

  
  
  
• The Australian
  
  
  • Stem cell website for students
    by Justine Ferrari, Education writer
    
    "The contentious issue of stem cell research will enter the nation's schools with the launch of an interactive website for high school students.

    "The Australian Stem Cell Centre is taking the debate over the use of stem cells in medical research and treatment to students with the development of the Stem Cell Channel, described as a first in the world.
    
    "ASCC chief executive Stephen Livesey said the centre received about 15 phone calls or emails a week from school students seeking information on stem cell research, which is an elective in some state science courses.
    
    "Professor Livesey said most of the information available on stem cells was highly scientific and dry, making it difficult for teenagers to understand.
    
    "There is no resource like this anywhere in the world," he said.
    
    "We believe it is vital that the public understand the vast promise of stem cell research, balanced by the ethical and scientific challenges, in order to commit their support and consent for the field to advance."
    
    "The website, funded by the Victorian Government and launched by Premier John Brumby at a biotechnology conference, Bio 2008, in San Diego last week, contains questions answered by short video clips."

    www.stemcellchannel.com.au
    
    From The Australian at link
    
    
    

  • Letter to the Editor
    
    
    • Teachers are still underpaid.
      
      "May I correct Christopher Pearson’s latest offerings on teachers ("Vivid memories of 1973’’, Inquirer, 21-22/6)? Victorian teachers on the top subdivision have won a well-deserved 15.4 per cent pay increase (not 15.2 per cent), which gives them hardly more than pay parity with NSW teachers and which still leaves them $18,702 worse off than they were in 1979. "Teachers on the 10 middle subdivisions have won only 4.9 per cent - and that is after a pay freeze lasting 18 months. These increases are to be paid from May 11, not over three years.
      
      "Teachers at all levels have failed to regain the working conditions stolen from them by the use of retrospective legislation in 1992, while the average secondary school still has five teachers fewer than it would have had under the 1979 staffing ratio.

      "The reversal of the 12-minute cut made to the secondary instructional day in 1991 is not laughable. It will add eight days of teaching time in a year, or a whole term over the six years of secondary schooling. We all know that a further 12-minute cut would not be so downplayed but would lead to an outpouring of teacher-bashing invective.
      
      "The Victorian pay deal is the best in 25 years, but that just tells you how badly teachers have done in pay and conditions in the long term."
      
      Chris Curtis, Hurstbridge, Vic
      
      
      

• The Guardian
  
  
  • Oxford launches new educational assessment centre
    by Anthea Lipsett
    
    "The University of Oxford, in collaboration with the publisher Pearson plc, is to launch today a new centre specialising in educational assessment.

    "Assessment is seen an increasingly important part of teaching and learning. Ministers have earmarked £150m over the next three years on the "assessment for learning" project to help teachers assess children regularly.

    "Pearson has donated an "undisclosed sum" to fund and support the new centre, and a Pearson professor of educational assessment - Gordon Stanley - who is also the centre's inaugural director, for 10 years initially.

    "The centre will bring together research expertise in Oxford's Department of Education with Pearson's international expertise in educational assessment.

    "The centre, based in Oxford's education department, will have postdoctoral scholars and doctoral students, and research staff associated with the research programme as it evolves and will work with existing staff interested in assessment.

    "There will also be a formal association with researchers specialising in psychometric testing at the University of Western Australia. [emphasis added]

    "Stanley said: "We look forward to working collaboratively with other researchers and agencies on the challenges confronting education systems in the quest for global qualifications and standards.

    "The research will look at new approaches to educational assessment to help improve the understanding of different types of learning processes and outcomes.

    "It will examine the opportunities offered by recent advances in learning and assessment technologies, and the challenges presented by the increasing requirement for global qualifications and standards."

    "Prof John Furlong, director of Oxford's education department, said: "This is a very important new development for Oxford and for education systems around the world.

    "Assessment is a key part of learning at every level of the education system; it is vitally important to parents, teachers, governments, as well as to learners themselves.

    "This new centre will help to ensure that our assessment systems in the UK and internationally are underpinned by the highest quality research."

    From The Guardian at link
    
    
    
  • Disabled are urged to become teachers
    
    A major campaign to recruit more teachers with disabilities is to be launched by the Training and Development Agency for Schools (TDA).
    
    
    
  • School sex clinics fuel debate on promiscuity
    
    Condoms, pregnancy tests and morning-after pills are being offered in schools to hundreds of thousands of children, some as young as 11.
    
    
    
    
• The Independent
  
  
  • Scrap diplomas and go back to the drawing board, urges CBI
    
    Britain's employers have withdrawn their support for the Government's new diplomas, urging ministers to go back to the drawing board and concentrate on improving GCSEs and A-levels instead. The CBI's move comes just months before the new qualifications were to be introduced in schools this autumn.
    
    Related story on BBC News

 

Tuesday 24 June

• The West Australian
  
  
  • Teachers ban 2009 courses planning (page 3)
    by Bethany Hiatt
    
    "State high schools could be thrown into chaos by a teachers’ union decision to push ahead with a ban on the implementation of more than 30 long-planned Year 11 courses next year.
      
    "Just weeks before Year 10 students choose which subjects they wish to study next year, the State School Teachers Union has directed members to ban the implementation of a range of new courses, including maths, geography, history, literature and physics.
      
    "The union’s State council proposed the ban two weeks ago and the union’s executive endorsed the ban on Friday and notified all teachers yesterday. The directive says: “Planning and preparation for implementation of the 2009 new courses of study is to cease.”
      
    "Union president Anne Gisborne said there were issues around general resourcing and preparation of materials in the time available.
      
    "Ms Gisborne, who also sits on the Curriculum Council which is in charge of rolling out the courses, acknowledged there could be huge problems if private schools implemented the courses next year but State schools did not.
      
    "But she said the Department of Education and Training had to ensure its schools were appropriately resourced.
      
    "It appeared that teachers were now working two jobs, running this year’s curriculum at the same time they were preparing for next year, she said. The courses were important and needed to be introduced properly.
      
    "Teachers have said they can’t prepare programs, lesson plans and assessment items for the new courses during normal school hours. Under the union ban on unpaid overtime, which has been in place since the start of the year, teachers cannot do the work after school.
      
    "Education Minister Mark McGowan said if the union executive went ahead with a ban on preparing the Year 11 courses it would hurt students and anger parents.
      
    "Marko Vojkovic, spokesman for teachers’ group People Lobbying Against Outcomes, said the ban was unfortunate because so much work had gone into revising the courses to make them workable.
      
    “But unfortunately, due to the Government’s attitude towards teachers, it has become a workload issue and, as such, I support the ban,” he said." [emphasis added]
    
    From The West Australian at link
    
    
    
  • Letters to the Editor (page 22)
    
    
    • In Short
      
      “Why am I still reading about this parody of a bureaucracy called the Curriculum Council (Changes to OBE English are ignored, The West, 23/6). I thought the Minister promised last year that he was going to dissolve the dysfunctional organisation and create a new group to look after what is taught and assessed in our schools.”

      Patrick F. Whalen, Yokine
      
      

    • I Disagree
      
      “As a student in my final year of high school, I have found it appalling to have read recent letters responding to the current mistreatment of teachers issue (Bring Back Cane, 20/6). These articles say that corporal punishment is the long-awaited answer to troubled students and that forceful discipline is the only way teachers, and parents for that matter, can have a healthy relationship with teenagers.

      “This is where I start to think, how can I, with only 17 years of life experience, have more common sense than those many adults who agree with this statement?

      “Surely they should be able to see that the bringing back of corporal punishment and enforcing more discipline and restrictions on to modern day teenagers is the worst possible solution for their issue. The fact that they can’t only highlights their inadequacy with living in a modern society.

      “Having been educated in a public high school for the past five years, I have seen a number of student – teacher relationships; both good and bad. I have noted that most students, regardless of what they say, how they act, actually have an enormous amount of respect for their educators.

      “But in order for the student to want to develop a healthy relationship with their teachers, there has to be an equal amount of respect from both parties. Students will not want to help or learn from teachers who show their lack of enthusiasm with their job, or openly display no trust and belief in their students.

      “How can students develop a healthy relationship with adults who constantly have such a negative attitude towards them? Out of my six subject teachers, I am most likely to work harder for those who continually encourage me, and treat me as an equal human, more like a friend or acquaintance, rather than an insignificant child. I have found myself wanting to please those teachers who put in the same amount of effort as I do.

      “How can I become a successful adult if all my childhood I am given the impression that I am not equivalent when compared to those older than myself?

      “To those who may think that this is purely a rant from a naive teenager who holds a grudge  against the elderly; you couldn’t be more wrong. In fact, the teacher I most respect is a 64-year-old woman who, despite growing up in a very different generation, still connects with today’s youth and tries to learn from them, and work with them.

      “The call for corporal punishment to be brought back into schools is utterly ridiculous and would only encourage students to rebel more. It is easy for students and teachers to work together and for a healthy relationship to form; you just need both respect and trust. Methods that used to work in the past will not work in our modern-day society.”

      H. Passmore, Waterford
      
      

    • I’m sick of the bleating

      “I am sick of hearing the constant bleating from really silly people that if we use corporal punishment on our children we invite more violence. Hello ... we have removed corporal punishment and now we are a more violent society than ever before.

      “A good slap never hurt anyone. I was bought up in times when schools gave you a few good whacks with a strap on your hands. Believe it or not I am a law-abiding citizen with two wonderful law-abiding children (both now adults). They had gentle slaps while growing up.”

      Antoinette Cameron, Jane Brook
      
      
      

• ABC News
  
  
  • WA to reap iron ore royalties
    
    The Treasurer, Eric Ripper says a near $700-million royalty windfall will be spent on infrastructure projects rather than funding pay increases for public servants, such as teachers.
    
    
    
  • Sense of urgency leads to early election speculation
    
    There are more signs the State Government is clearing the decks for an early election, with a number of Bills being rushed through the Upper House.
    
    
    
  • Education Dept unable to explain student exodus [McGowan can't find them either: see the next story]
    
    "The Education Department says it cannot explain why 39 school students have left a remote Kimberley community at the centre of a coronial inquest.

    "The ABC understands many of the children's parents have left Oombulgurri, in northern Western Australia, believing tougher liquor laws may be introduced after the state coroner hands down his findings into five alcohol-related deaths in the community.
    
    "One of Oombulgurri's six teachers was sent to Wyndham to teach 10 secondary students who moved there last week.
    
    "The Kimberley district education director, Bill Mann, says he cannot explain why just 15 of the 54 students enrolled at the Oombulgurri Remote Community School are currently living there.

    "I think it was to do with sporting stuff, I tried to find out whether there was any particular reason, because I think the families move and where the families go the kids go with them and on this occasion 10 of the kids had moved between Oombulgurri and Wyndham," he said."

    From ABC News at link
    
    
    
  • Minister unsure of location of missing students
    
    "The Education Minister, Mark McGowan, says he believes 29 students, who have left a remote Kimberley community that was the focus of a coronial inquest, are still attending school.

    "Thirty nine of the Oombulgurri Remote Community School's 54 students have left the community.
    
    "The Education Department says ten of them are attending school in Wyndham but Mr McGowan says he is unsure where the remaining 29 students are.
    
    "The informal advice I've had is they're going to other schools," he said.
    
    "Now people move around a lot and what schools they're going to I'm not aware of."
    
    "The Opposition's Child Protection Spokeswoman, Robyn McSweeney, wants parents' welfare payments quarantined if their children are not attending school.
    
    "The State Government had it in Halls Creek and it had an 86 per cent success rate and then they pulled it," she said.
    
    "Ms McSweeney says immediate action is necessary from both the State and Commonwealth governments.
    
    "I would invoke the welfare to school rule so that at least these children have a chance," Ms McSweeney said.
    
    "This is negligence on the Commonwealth Government and the State Government's part."
    
    "Mr McGowan says the State is assessing the merits of the idea but will not be forced into a knee jerk response to the problem of truancy.

    "Oombulgurri is at the centre of a coronial inquest into five alcohol related-deaths."

    From ABC News at link
    
    
    
  • Stressed teachers on compo
    
    "It has been revealed 488 people working within Tasmania's education system have lodged workers compensation claims in the past 12 months.

    "The Premier and Education Minister, David Bartlett told a budget estimates hearing in Hobart last night, that 14 per cent of those were due to stress related conditions.

    "Mr Bartlett said during the same period, 4 people had their employment terminated.

    "He told the hearing two were dismissed because of serious misconduct, one did not comply with probation conditions, and another was unable to perform their duties."
    
    From ABC News at link
    
    

  • Union angry at timing of pay increase
    
    "The Northern Territory branch of the Australian Education Union says the timing of the Government's pay offer - as the bells rang for the last time before school holidays - shows it is not serious about ending industrial negotiations with teachers. [Will McGowan pull the same stunt? Web]

    "The commissioner for public employment is offering teachers a 12 per cent pay increase over three years, an increase of one per cent on the Government's previous offer.

    "The union is pushing for a 20 per cent rise over the same period.

    "The union's Nadine Williams says the Education Minister is wrong to think an agreement will be reached before school returns in a month.

    "The unfortunate thing about this offer of course is its timing - 3 o'clock on a Friday afternoon, the last day of the school term, is not a very good piece of timing by the commissioner for public employment.

    "We have no capacity to ensure every single member of the union, let alone all staff who are covered by the agreement, are going to get to see it because they are legitimately and quite properly on what's called stand down leave because the school holidays are well and truly known in advance."

    "The union expects to have a meeting with the Education Department during the holidays."

    From ABC News at link
    
    
    

• The Australian
  
  
  • Resources export boom just got louder: ABARE
    by David Uren, Economics correspondent
    
    "The China-led boom will boost Australia's export revenue by at least $58 billion in the coming year, equivalent to almost $3000 for every person in the country.

    "In forecasts made before mining giant Rio Tinto last night won a record jump in the price paid for its iron ore exports to China, the federal Government's commodity markets adviser ABARE predicted mineral exports would soar 50 per cent in 2008-09 to $178 billion.

    "However, that figure is believed to be based on a smaller rise in the iron ore price than themassive increases secured by Rio last night and likely to bematched by its rival BHP Billiton. It is understood Chinese steel mills will pay Rio 85 per cent more for its iron ore in the coming year, generating an extra $20 billion in export revenue for the nation's iron ore exporters.

    "Analysts expect the surge in exports to bring Australia's international trade account back into surplus for the first time in six years. UBS chief economist Scott Haslem said improved commodity prices should translate to an additional $4 billion a month in exports, enough to deliver a surplus within months..."
    
    [Sorry, Mr Carpenter, "crying poor" won't wash. Web]
    
    Full story in The Australian at link [similar stories in virtually all daily newspapers]
    
    
    

  • Sick kids holding back indigenous education
    by Tony Koch
    
    "Teenage children from Cape York communities are often unable to read, write, tell the time or even know the days of the week, according to a doctor who has spent 12 years working with indigenous children.

    "Lara Wieland said the poor health and hearing difficulties of many children in the communities meant they could not learn, and a high proportion were not encouraged to attend school.

    "Addressing an education conference at the University of Southern Queensland in Toowoomba yesterday, Dr Wieland, who spent three years as resident doctor at Kowanyama community in Cape York, said that education and health went hand in hand.

    "She said Aboriginal children were every bit as bright as non-indigenous children if given a proper start in life.

    "I see indigenous kids who reach high school unable to understand the most basic of concepts or even able to read road signs, not knowing what day of the week it is," Dr Wieland said.

    "What choices will they have in life?

    "I have become absolutely passionate about the importance of providing these capabilities and facilitating choice for indigenous people.

    "I have seen far too many bright people become essentially crippled by their inability to choose lives they have reason to value, and I've seen far too many of them dangling from the end of a rope."

    "Dr Wieland said poor nutrition and hearing loss were the two most critical factors inhibiting indigenous children's learning. "Poor nutrition and iron deficiency are associated with impaired motor, intellectual and cognitive development," she said.

    "Malnourished children are less engaged, less active and have shorter attention spans, score lower in school and have less emotional control.

    "There is no doubt that poor nutrition impacts on brain development, but I suspect that the contributing factors are far more complex."

    "Dr Wieland said the cases of iron deficiency and malnutrition that she saw were a result of children "simply not being fed enough, or enough of the right foods at the right times".

    "In many cases, parents were uneducated, unemployed, living in an overcrowded house where at least one family member had substance abuse or gambling problems and there was some form of domestic violence, she said.

    "Many of them are very young, inexperienced parents too, and I am seeing more of these courtesy of the baby bonus," Dr Wieland said.

    "Virtually none (of the children) have books in the house, or much in the way of toys, let alone educational toys.

    "You'd be amazed how few of the young parents I see understand how important it is to interact with your child, to go to play group, to get your child into preschool, or to read to your child.

    "And indeed, many of the parents can't read anyway, perpetuating the intergenerational disadvantage that comes with poor education."

    From The Australian at link
    
    
    
    
• The Guardian
  
  
  • UK degrees are 'arbitrary and unreliable', says watchdog
    
    Degree classifications in the UK are "arbitrary and unreliable", the universities' watchdog has claimed.
    
    Similar story on BBC News
    
    
    
  • Video games degrees: 95% fail to hit skills target
    
    Nearly all degree courses in video gaming at British universities leave graduates unfit to work in the industry, campaigners warned today... A new campaign - Games Up? - which is backed by most of the UK's gaming companies, urges the government to address a serious skills shortage in the sector that could see the industry move abroad to find more talent.

 

Wednesday 25 June

• The West Australian
  
  
  • Legal bid to stop teachers' ban (page 3)
    by Bethany Hiatt and Kate Campbell  
    
    “Education Minister Mark McGowan has vowed to punish the teachers’ union by taking it back to the industrial umpire for the fifth time this year in a bid to overturn the union’s decision to ban the implementation of all new Year 11 courses next year.
    
    “In deepening hostilities between the Government and State School Teachers Union, Mr McGowan yesterday also called on union president Anne Gisborne to resign from the Curriculum Council, which is in charge of introducing more than 30 new courses to WA schools next year.
    
    “He issued instructions on Monday night to start legal action in the WA Industrial Commission to force the union to lift the ban.  The commission has already ordered the union not to take any more action while a new pay deal is being arbitrated.
    
    “So their (union) actions might already be infringing one of the IRC’s rulings,” Mr McGowan said.
    
    “He blamed the union’s executive for the ban, saying he did not believe classroom teachers wanted to take such action, which was another example of “industrial thuggery” which would cost them public support.
    
    “On each occasion the IRC has ruled in the Government’s favour... all they (the union) are doing is damaging education and not enhancing the interest of their members,” he said.
    
    “Mr McGowan said if Ms Gisborne had integrity she would resign from the Curriculum Council.  “It’s a bit strange when we entrust the SSTU to have some say in these matters and then they decide not to implement the courses,” he said.
    
    “Many courses under threat, including maths, physics, literature and history, have already been postponed twice over concerns about outcomes-based education assessments and lack of content.
    
    “Ms Gisborne hit back at Mr McGowan yesterday, saying the union would not be intimidated into backing down from the ban if the Government continued to ignore its demands.  She maintained there were not enough resources or time for teachers to prepare properly for the 2009 courses.
    
    “She said Mr McGowan was again “attempting to divert community attention” away from the Government’s neglect of teachers.  She would not quit the Curriculum Council’s executive committee and denied she had a conflict of interest. [emphasis added]
    
    “Ms Gisborne admitted going to the IRC was not an ideal option and it would be better if the two parties resolved the issues between themselves.  But she said teachers were already struggling with the new courses implemented this year.
    
    “Mr McGowan said it would not be viable to allow courses to go ahead in private schools next year while delaying the introduction to State Schools.
    
    “Department of Education and Training director-general Sharyn O’Neill said the department had asked five schools to continue preparing for the new courses while it sought legal advice.  She said the courses ban was counter-productive and could compromise students’ learning. [emphasis added]
    
    “Catholic Education Office director Ron Dullard said it would be impossible to run a dual system in which private schools introduced the new courses and state schools ran the old TEE courses.  He criticised the union for tis strong-arm tactics, but said IRC intervention should be an action of last resort.
    
    “WA council of State School Organisations president Rob Fry said the union ban was unacceptable and the Government had every right to send the union to the industrial umpire.
    
    “Independent Schools Association executive director Audrey Jackson said her schools were still working towards implementing the new courses in 2009 unless otherwise advised.”
    
    From The West Australian
    
    
    
    
  • Healthy food rules hitting schools: MP
    by Bethany Hiatt and Debbie Guest
    
    "Schools are being forced to close their canteens because of the combined impact of the State Government's healthy eating policy and a lack of volunteers, according to Independent MP Bob Kucera.
    
    "Mr Kucera labelled the "traffic light" food system an attempt to push "social engineering" into schools and called on Education Minister Mark McGowan to subsidise schools that are experiencing difficulty implementing the policy.
    
    "He also requested an independent survey to see how many schools were struggling to keep their canteens open.
    
    "Under the State Government's traffic light program, 60 per cent of every school canteen menu must comprise green foods, such as fruit and salads.
    
    "Canteens at Mirrabooka Primary School, which is in Mr Kucera's electorate, and Byford Primary School had been forced to close, reportedly because of a lack of volunteers.
    
    "WA School Canteens Association chief executive Robin Bromley said in some cases the traffic light program increased the need for volunteers because more fresh food had to be prepared and this was time consuming.
    
    "Mr Kucera said Mirrabooka Senior High School's canteen was also struggling. It had lost $10,000 last year and was running at a deficit this year.
    
    "He said if the Government was going to impose policies it needed to help those schools that were struggling to comply.
    
    "Volunteers were becoming increasingly difficult to find and imposing specialist training and onerous restrictions on what they could sell and buy did not help.
    
    "He supported healthy eating but more education was needed to change the culture in schools.
    
    "You're not going to be able to sell healthy food if the canteens are closed," he said. "I don't have a problem at all with the program except that they need to have a realisation that there's a huge impact on the profit level within the schools."
    
    "Ms Bromley said canteens were also under pressure because of increases in the cost of foods and families tightening their budgets due to interest rate rises and petrol increases. "All of these factors impact and sometimes it's just too hard," he said.
    
    "For all the doom and gloom, there are also those schools that since they have had fresher choices in place are actually doing better and making more money than they were doing before."
    
    "Mr McGowan said the Government's healthy canteen rules would not be changed. "The State Government has invested $1 million into the program and won't be subsidising individual canteens for not serving unhealthy food," he said.
    
    "Anyone who suggests that students in higher socioeconomic areas should be served healthier foods than those students in lower socioeconomic areas is wrong. Healthy foods can be just as popular as unhealthy foods and just as profitable."
    
    "Mr McGowan said the Department of Education and training had an advisory service to help canteens adjust to the new rules.
    
    "The department is also conducting and independent evaluation of the healthy food program in schools."
    
    From The West Australian
    
    
    
    
• ABC News
  
  
  • Teachers' dispute intensifies
    
    "A long running dispute between the State Government and the State School Teachers' Union (SSTU) has intensified.

    "The Minister for Education, Mark McGowan, is taking the SSTU to the Industrial Relations Commission (IRC) to force it to lift its ban on the implementation of all new year 11 courses next year.
    
    "The Union is campaigning for better pay and conditions, seeking a 20 per cent pay rise over three years.
    
    "Mr McGowan is pushing ahead in the IRC to overturn the ban and he has also called on the union's president, Anne Gisborne, to resign from the curriculum council.
    
    "The teachers' union has a position on the curriculum council which has created all of the new courses of study, excellent courses for students in year 11 and 12, [emphasis added] you can't be a part of creating those courses and then call for them not to be introduced," he said.

    "Anne Gisborne should resign."

    "The union has been contacted for comment."
    
    From ABC News at link

    
    
  • Union says teachers are feeling the stress
    
    "The Education Union in Tasmania is not surprised that a large number of workers in the education system are stressed.

    "It's been revealed 488 people working within the state's education system have lodged workers compensation claims in the past 12 months.
    
    "The Education Minister, David Bartlett, has told a budget estimates hearing that 14 per cent of those were due to stress.
    
    "The president of the Australian Education Union, Leanne Wright, says teachers are feeling the pressure.
    
    "Including expectations around reporting and we've had a number of changes with curriculum over the last few years and there are higher expectations from parents too and pressures from society in general," Ms Wright said.

    "Constantly we're seeing in the newspaper criticism of teachers that it's their fault that student outcomes aren't better that type of thing," she said."

    From ABC News at link
    
    
    
    
• The Washington Post
  
  
  • Experts Urge Longer Day to Raise Scores
    
    A Maryland education panel proposed yesterday giving students more class time, ensuring they are ready to complete algebra by eighth grade and enrolling them in a foreign language course by sixth grade.
    
    
    
  • Teacher Bonuses Get Unions' Blessing
    
    Prince George [county] Offers Rewards of Up to $10,000 Linked to Test Scores, Evaluations
    
    One of the most ambitious pay-for-performance initiatives in Washington area schools is drawing strong teacher interest and local union support even though many national labor leaders have long asserted that it is unfair to link teachers' paychecks directly to their students' test scores.
    
    
    
    
• The Guardian
  
  
  • Facebook a valid educational tool, teachers told
    
    Teachers and lecturers are getting the lowdown on how to use social networking sites such as Facebook and Bebo in an educational way.

    Most schools and colleges in the UK block access to the websites but they are missing out on their potential for education, a government-funded guide says.
    
    [The full report is available at this link]
    
    

  • Qualification in podcasting launched
    
    Honey-voiced students may like to consider a new subject on offer at schools and colleges from September: podcasting.

    Students will be able to take a vocational qualification in internet broadcasting from September 2008 thanks to the launch of an NCFE level 1 (GCSE grades D-G) award in podcasting.
    
    
    

• The Independent
  
  
  • More top graduates lured to teach in tough schools
    by Richard Garner, Education Editor
    
    "Gordon Brown has signalled a massive expansion in the number of high-flying graduates to be recruited into tough, under-performing, inner-city schools.

    "He said yesterday that the number on the Teach First scheme aimed at recruiting the best-qualified graduates to inner-city schools would more than double from 380 to 850 a year by 2013.

    "The scheme, open to graduates with top-level degrees, aims to recruit them to work for two years in inner-city secondary schools – without having to study for a teaching certificate. [emphasis added] Originally, it was intended as a means of getting top-quality graduates to work in teaching for two years before departing for better-paid jobs in the City.

    "Since its inception, more than half of those recruited have stayed on beyond the two years – with some being fast-tracked into headships. More than 200 are in middle leadership roles in schools. Teach First expects at least 100 to become heads by 2018..."
    
    Full story in The Independent at link
    
    

  • Pupils, aged 7, could be asked to sign exam 'honesty codes'
    
    Children as young as seven could be asked to sign "honesty codes" at their schools in a plan to cut down on cheating in national curriculum tests and exams.
    
    
    
    
• The Australian
  
  
  • Extra storage as students go Gmail
    by Andrew Colley
    
    "Google has edged out some of the biggest brands in the enterprise IT services market to pick up another major contract win in Australia's education sector.

    "Google partner SMS Management and Technology has emerged as the leading bidder to supply the NSW Department of Education with 1.5 million student email services using a customised version of the search giant's Gmail service, Acting NSW Minister for Education and Training John Hatzistergos said.

    "This commitment is a further demonstration of the NSW Labor Government's commitment to equip teachers and students with the best possible means to compete successfully in the constantly evolving world of information technology," he said..." [Spare us the uninformed superlatives, Mr Acting Education Minister, it's only glorified email... Web]
    
    Full story in The Australian at link
    
    

  • Teaching load carried by 'servants'
    by Stephen Matchett
    
    "Sessional lecturers are the domestic servants of the contemporary campus and carry as much as 80 per cent of the undergraduate teaching load, according to a new report on the rise of the casualised class of academic.

    "In many ways the lifestyle of the traditional teaching (and) research academic is totally dependent on the contribution of sessional staff, in the way that Victorian middle-class lifestyles were dependent on the domestic servant," according to the University of Wollongong's Rob Castle, spokesman for the Recognition, Enhancement, Development report, released yesterday.
    
    "The report says up to 50 per cent of university classes are taught by sessional staff and that official figures, stated as full-time equivalents, do not make clear the sector's dependence on casualised academics.

    "In two of the 16 universities that took part in the RED project, commissioned by the Australian Learning and Teaching Council, sessional staff led 80 per cent of undergraduate classes..."

    Full story in The Australian at link
    
    
    
  • Libs push for bias probe
    by Bernard Lane
    
    "An inquiry into academic freedom and political prejudice in universities and schools is to be one of the last hurrahs of Coalition control in the Senate.

    "Victorian Liberal senator Mitch Fifield, who graduated from arts at the University of Sydney to a career as a political staff member, moved yesterday that a standing committee set out to measure the "level of academic freedom in school and higher education".
    
    "The reference to the education, employment and workplace relations committee was not opposed by government senators.
    
    "By November the committee is to report on "ideological, political and cultural prejudice in the teaching of senior secondary education and of courses at Australian universities".
    
    "The Young Liberals, which launched a campaign in March against educational indoctrination, claimed credit for the inquiry.
    
    "I didn't draft the terms of reference but it's very much on point," Young Liberals president Noel McCoy said. "We have been lobbying our senators pretty strongly."

    "In a statement Senator Fifield said he had been disturbed by reports of academic bias from students."

    From The Australian at link
    
    
    
  • Focus shifts to the curriculum
    
    The investment in teaching and learning during the past four years has come at the cost of neglect of university curriculum, which needs to be renewed, Charles Sturt University vice-chancellor Ian Goulter has warned...
    
    "While we know we are providing better learning and teaching environments, the question that is yet to be tested properly is whether what we are 'teaching well' is actually the 'best material', he writes.
    
    
    
  • UQ medical students to help set exams
    by Guy Healy
    
    "Some of the brightest medical students in the country will write a quarter of the questions for their end-of-year exams in a project aimed to increase their learning and reduce their anxiety.

    "The head of the University of Queensland's medical school, David Wilkinson, has defended what fellow UQ historian Binoy Kampmark has attacked as "a voodoo exam-setting method".

    "This delusional nonsense is patterned on the self-directed programs that have gradually moved into medical school syllabi over the years," Dr Kampmark said.
    
    "Students are no longer taught; they will do the teaching and conduct the instruction. Modern medical students are there to be pampered and promoted. Let's just get them to mark their own questions in future as well, shall we?" ... [emphasis added]
    
    Full story in The Australian at link
    
    
    

• The Hobart Mercury
  
  
  • Bartlett denies sin of omission
    by David Killick
    
    "Premier David Bartlett has denied leaving literacy and numeracy figures out of a key education report because they made his government look bad.

    "Tasmania's Education Performance Report 2007, released on Sunday by the Premier who is also Education Minister, omits data spelling out the state's poor performance in literacy and numeracy tests.
    
    "While the overall performance figures are omitted, the report appears to use the same data to claim the state is making gains in both literacy and numeracy results.
    
    "But the literacy "index of gain" calculations are based only on reading performance -- where the state performs relatively well -- and ignores results for writing where student performance has actually fallen in recent years..."

    Full story in The Hobart Mercury at link

 

Thursday 26 June

• The West Australian
  

  • Op Ed
    Gas crisis pales before Twomey smokescreen (page 20)
    by Paul Murray
    
    “Education Minister Mark McGowan can thank his luck stars that WA is gripped by a gas crisis. Were the consequences of the Varanus Island explosion not grabbing so much media attention, Mr McGowan's performance over the release of the Twomey report into WA's education staffing crisis - and its effect on the long-running teachers' pay dispute - would be getting much heavier scrutiny.

    “And the deeper you look into Mr McGowan's actions since he received the report last December from former Curtin University vice-chancellor Professor Lance Twomey, the worse it looks for him.

    “After reading the report, my first conclusion was that Mr McGowan must have failed comprehension in primary school.

    “How could he not understand the compelling argument Professor Twomey was putting to him for urgent action on a wide range of issues, not the least teachers' pay levels?

    “Perhaps Mr McGowan missed out on those remedial reading classes they offer in the navy for sailors which poor literacy skills.

    “There must be a good reason why he failed to understand that professor Twomey's findings on the task force's No.1 issues, remuneration, would never support the Minister's tactics against the teachers' pay claims.

    “Surely it couldn't be that the Minister for Education was seeking to deceive the State's teachers when he failed to comprehend Professor Twomey's call for an "immediate and significant" increase to their pay.

    “Hiding the report for seven months while using every available tactic to frustrate the teachers' legitimate pay demands does not seem compatible with the word "immediate".

    “Mr McGowan now appears to have damaged himself irreparably with teachers. Certainly, the teachers' union has reason to question why it should be a union affiliated with the Labor Party when a Minister treats it in such a fashion.

    “The Minister has the gall to say that he released the report "in good faith". Nothing could be further from the truth. What the report exposes starkly is the extent of the bad faith in his dealings with the teachers.

    “An Education Minister dealing in good faith - and with a sensible political head on his shoulders - would have realised on first reading of the Twomey report that he needed to have the teachers and their union on side for the huge job it outlines.

    “Unless he had the ability to keep the report under wraps for all time - and he didn't - a practical Minister would have realised its potential to expose his Government's protracted failings in dealing with the teacher shortage.

    “But because he knew the report favoured the union's pay campaign, Mr McGowan sat on it, citing the need for Cabinet to respond first to its wider implications.

    “It is completely disingenuous to argue that an important Government report could not be made public before Cabinet deals with its recommendations. It happens all the time.

    “The illogicality of the Minister's argument was made obvious by his decision to release it last week still without any public response by him or anyone else in Cabinet.

    It appears the report was released because the Minister feared he would be forced to produce it in the protracted pay dispute in the Industrial Relations Commission.

    “Just last month when questioned about the report by shadow education minister John Day in the Legislative Assembly, Mr McGowan indicated it would not be released until much later in the year:

    Mr McGowan: "It has been on the agenda of a Cabinet committee."

    Mr Day: "Which Cabinet committee?"

    Mr McGowan: "I cannot remember, but it was one of the Cabinet committees. It is a Cabinet document. The member need not worry - once we have a response, it will be released. The instant I release it without a response, the member will be the first to ask, 'Where's your response?'"

    Mr Day: "It is now six months later and the Minister still does not have a response. Surely he can at least let people know what is in the report so we can all be involved? That is often the case with reports. The Government can then go away and present a response within three months. Why can the Minister not do that?"

    Mr McGowan: "Once the Government has developed a response, we will release it. If I were to release it without a response, the member would call on me to release a response."

    Mr Day: “How long does the Minister need to prepare a response?”

    Mr McGowan: "How long is a piece of string? As I said to the member, other levels of government and other portfolios are involved. Once we have all the necessary information, we will present a response."

    Mr Day: "It is six months after the report was presented to the Minster and we still do not have any outcome. It is quite amazing."

    “Even more amazing is that the Minister has now released the report without any response, having hidden it from the teachers' union and the public for seven months. Several things are now very clear.

    “Mr McGowan denied the public the full knowledge of the Twomey report as part of a dumb political game he could only ever lose.

    “Instead of co-opting teachers to help in the multi-headed approach recommended by Professor Twomey, Mr McGowan has further alienated them.

    “Seven months down the track, the public has still not been shown that the Government is capable of fixing the massive problems the report outlines.

    “And we think the gas crisis is a disaster.”

    From The West Australian

     

  • Editorial
    No winner in senseless education war (page 20)

    “The increasingly virulent war between the Carpenter Government and the teachers' union will produce no winner. The losers are students and parents who have to contend with continuing uncertainty about and destabilisation of school activities as a result of bans or threats of them.

    “Teachers may or may not end up with a bigger pay rise than they have been offered by the Government. But any increase on that is likely to be marginal and more than offset by damage to the public standing of the teaching profession which the union professes to uphold.

    “Education Minister Mark McGowan has already lost he war; regardless of the official result. His recourse to legalism is a tacit admission of his failure to sell the offer to teachers or to get Cabinet to endorse a better deal for them.

    “He has mishandled this from the start. It is almost beyond comprehension that he would commission a report on the teachers shortage and what should be done to overcome it, withhold it for six months on the pretext of Cabinet confidentiality and then suddenly release it with nothing by way of adequate explanation or response as the pay dispute goes to arbitration.

    “All the arguments about the need for secrecy while the Government prepared a response evaporated in a relative instant. Presumably, the embarrassing realisation dawned belatedly on Mr McGowan or others in the Government that the report could be called as evidence for the arbitration which, ironically, his side of the argument sought. If he did not  foresee from the start the significance of such a report to the pay negotiations, he was either arrogant beyond caring or politically inept - or some combination of both. [emphasis added]

    “In the current mess of open hostilities, both sides show signs of having lost sight of their obligations to public education. The union appears bent on using whatever opportunity it can find for imposing bans on this or that and Mr McGowan has taken it to the WA Industrial Relations Commission for the fifth time this year - this time to overturn its attempt to obstruct the introduction of all new Year 11 courses next year. The union may have a point on those courses, but surely it could make its case without resorting to bans.

    “It's time for both sides to understand that the public doesn't care which of them scores more points off the other. People accept that teachers should be paid fairly, but not that they should penalise students in pursuit of their pay claims. Mr McGowan should not need to be told that he is entrusted and paid by the public to run a decent education system, not to be preoccupied with waging war on teachers.”

    From The West Australian
    
    

    
    
  • ‘Time running out’ for Year 11 courses (page 7)
    by Kate Campbell

    “WA’s industrial umpire could waste its time ruling on the State Government’s bid to stop the teachers’ union banning new Year 11 courses next year, with the union leader saying time might run out to implement the fresh curriculum in 2009 even if it was legally ordered to lift the boycott.

    “Education Minister Mark McGowan has ordered his department to take the State School Teachers Union to the WA Industrial Relations Commission for the fifth time this year after the union vowed to ban the implementation of more than 30 new Year 11 courses planned for all WA schools next year.

    “The union says it has no alternative but to veto the 2009 courses because teachers cannot cope with the extra workload stress in preparing the subjects and blames the Government for failing to resource the roll-out properly.

    “Union president Anne Gisborne predicted it “could take some considerable time” before the latest stand-off was resolved. It could be too late to get some courses up and running by next year even if the IRC forced the ban to be overturned. This dispute would probably take the most time for the IRC to deal with of any union matter referred to it this year.

    “Mr McGowan also called on Ms Gisborne to stand down from the Curriculum Council over this issue, which she has refused to do.

    “Shadow education minister Peter Collier said if the courses were not finalised by midway through term 3, about two months away, it would be too late to aim for next year.

    “His (Mr McGowan’s) petulance is only serving to inflame what’s and already volatile situation,” he said.

    “Marko Vojkovic, spokesman for teachers’ group People Lobbying Against Teaching Outcomes, said no IRC order, fast or slow, would change this week’s decision to halt the course roll-out.

    “(The course ban) is not industrial action,” he said. “They would have a very hard time proving we are harming the kids by delaying the courses of study when they’ve already been delayed I think three times in the past.” [emphasis added]

    From The West Australian

     

  • Parents of pre-schoolers with autism to get up to $6000 aid (page 54)
    by Andrew Tillett, Canberra

    “Parents of pre-school-aged children with autism will receive up to $6000 a year for two years to pay for early intervention programs.

    “The Federal Government yesterday rolled out the first program of a $190 million package to help families get access to behavioural therapies, psychologists, doctors and one-on-one and group programs for pre-school children.

    “Under the program announced yesterday, about 9000 children diagnosed with autism will be eligible for assistance. Families in rural and remote areas will be eligible for a further $2000 to help meet their higher costs of care.

    “Other elements include Government funding for 150 playgroups for autistic children, paying for special training for 450 teachers and school staff to support autistic students and hiring 40 advisers to help parents following diagnosis.

    “Autism Association of West Australia chief executive Joan McKenna Kerr said parents would welcome the package.

    “First and foremost we have a whole host of initiatives that are going to provide a safety net at a time of grave crisis for a family when they realise their child is not developing as he or she should be,” Ms McKenna Kerr said.”

    From The West Australian
    
    
    

• ABC News
  
  
  • Intervention needs to tackle truancy: Mills
    
    "Territory Opposition Leader Terry Mills has focused on school truancy during a meeting with the review committee of the federal intervention.

    "Mr Mills says a trial in six communities where parents welfare payments are withheld if their children do not go to school should be extended to all communities in the Territory.
    
    "He told the head of the review that teachers also need more cross cultural training.
    
    "I'm pleased that the 19 that have been recruited have been given 10 weeks of intensive training, including a significant contribution in cross cultural training.
    
    "Teachers recruited in the Territory get two days with three hours of cross cultural training. We need to increase the training for those that serve in remote communities."
    
    "Mr Mills says his main message was that politics should be put aside and the reason for the intervention, not forgotten.

    "Chief Minister Paul Henderson met the committee last week and called for the $100 alcohol law to be scrapped."

    From ABC News at link
    
    
    
    
• CBS News [USA]
  
  
  • Education Schools Flunking Math
    Associated Press
    
    Elementary School Teachers Poorly Prepared To Teach Math, Study Finds
    
    "For kids to do better in math, their teachers might have to go back to school.
    
    "Elementary-school teachers are poorly prepared by education schools to teach math, finds a study being released Thursday by the National Council on Teacher Quality.
    
    "Math relies heavily on cumulative knowledge, making the early years critical.
    
    "The study by the nonpartisan research and advocacy group comes a few months after a federal panel reported that U.S. students have widespread difficulty with fractions, a problem that arises in elementary school and prevents kids from mastering more complicated topics like algebra later on.
    
    "The report looked at 77 elementary education programs around the country, or roughly 5 percent of the institutions that offer undergraduate elementary teacher certification.
    
    "It found the programs, within colleges and universities, spend too little time on elementary math topics.
    
    "Author Julie Greenberg said education students should be taking courses that give them a deeper understanding of arithmetic and multiplication. She said the courses should explain how math concepts build upon each other and why certain ideas need to be emphasized in the classroom.
    
    "Teacher candidates know their multiplication tables, but "they don't come to us knowing why multiplication works the way it does," said Denise Mewborn, who heads the University of Georgia department of math and science education.
    
    "The university was cited in the report for having an "exemplary program," while nine others met basic requirements. The rest offered too little math coursework or coursework that was considered weak, according to the report.
    
    "The University of Georgia requires teacher candidates to take courses to help them understand concepts underlying elementary-school math, as well as math courses not designed for teachers.
    
    "The report found significant differences in the number and kind of courses required by each education program.
    
    "Education schools also are not being selective enough, the report stated. Most require applicants to take an admissions test, usually around their sophomore year of college. But the test, which typically includes reading, writing and math sections, is far too easy, according to the report.
    
    "Almost anyone can get in. Compared to the admissions standards found in other countries, American education schools set exceedingly low expectations for the mathematics knowledge that aspiring teachers must demonstrate," said the report.
    
    "U.S. children often fall in the middle or bottom of the pack when compared to other students on international math tests.
    
    "Jane West, vice president of government relations for the American Association of Colleges for Teacher Education, said her organization had not received a copy of the report Wednesday. The National Council on Teacher Quality plans to release it publicly at a news conference Thursday.
    
    "The report also criticized the tests education students take when they complete their coursework, which are generally relied on by states in granting teacher licenses. In many cases, the prospective teachers are judged on an overall score only, meaning they could do badly on the math portion but still pass if they do well in the other areas.
    
    "Since states oversee the preparation of the nation's school teachers, the report recommends they set tougher coursework and testing standards.
    
    "Francis Fennell, the past president of the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics, said the report fails to examine the math instruction students receive while attending community colleges, where many elementary-school teachers start their higher education.
    
    "He also said the study's authors should have surveyed teachers to get their views on how well prepared they were to teach math.
    
    "Fennell, who instructs teacher candidates in math at McDaniel College in Westminster, Md., said a common area of weakness among his students is fractions - the same subject the national math panel described as a weak area for kids. "Part of the reason the kids don't know it is because the teachers aren't transmitting that," he said.
    
    "To boost teachers' understanding of math, the math departments at universities ought to place more emphasis on training educators, Fennell added."
    
    From CBS News at link
    
    
    
    
• The Washington Post
  
  
  • Teacher Bonuses Get Unions' Blessing
    
    One of the most ambitious pay-for-performance initiatives in Washington area schools is drawing strong teacher interest and local union support even though many national labor leaders have long asserted that it is unfair to link teachers' paychecks directly to their students' test scores.
    
    
    
    
• The Sydney Morning Herald
  
  
  • Reading, writing and virtual reality
    by Harriet Alexander
    
    "Students grasp concepts better and are more engaged in lessons when teachers use digital technology such as interactive whiteboards, teachers involved in a professional learning project say.

    "Teachers from six schools in northern Sydney were given special training in the equipment, which is being distributed to 2900 NSW schools over the next year and includes electronic whiteboards, video conferencing and digital resources.

    "Gretel Watson, one of two teachers from Curl Curl North public school who took part in the project last year, said the students were so excited about their lessons when they used the technology that they were willing to skip part of their lunch hour.

    "I had a visitor to my classroom and the kids were showing them what they were doing and the bell rang, and I said, 'Who wants to stay?' and 17 kids out of 24 stayed," said Mrs Watson, who addressed an interactive classroom conference in Sydney on Monday.

    "They're hugely engaged."

    "Students can touch the whiteboards to move objects on them. Other resources had allowed classes to "grow" virtual tomatoes that responded to watering and fertiliser, and develop games that helped students with maths, she said.

    "The School of the Air and remote schools have been using video conferencing to share lessons and resources for years; the technology is now becoming mainstream. The NSW Department of Education will distribute it to 200 schools by the end of this week and 400 by the end of the year as part of its Connected Classrooms program.

    "It has allowed students to take virtual tours of a NASA base and the Great Barrier Reef.

    "Jan Zanetis, a US educator and conference guest who has developed interactive classrooms, said schools would eventually use social networking sites such as Facebook and MySpace. She said some progressive school systems were already doing so.

    "But Bob Lipscombe, the deputy president of the NSW Teachers Federation, said there was not enough technical support for teachers to deal with Connected Classrooms.

    "We're particularly concerned given that the Federal Government is going to roll out huge numbers of computers in schools," Mr Lipscombe said."

    From The Sydney Morning Herald at link
    
    
    
    
• The Age
  
  
  • Op Ed
    Darwin's birthday could show shape of new Australia
    by Michael Gawenda
    
    Faith-based schools are giving multiculturalism a new meaning.
    
    "... There is no constitutional separation of church and state in Australia. The great battle over state aid for non-government schools was decided a half-century ago and was basically about state aid to the Catholic school system. The proponents of state aid won..."
    
    "The notion that a secular liberal democracy is underpinned by a free and universal secular education for all children — with the implicit values of such a system — is now well and truly dead in Australia.
    
    "According to some education officials, close to a quarter of Australian children attend faith-based schools. The row over the plans for an Islamic school in western Sydney, with Camden Council insisting it rejected the proposal on planning grounds and supporters of the school accusing the local non-Muslim population of prejudice and Islamophobia, has received a lot of media coverage.

    "This controversy is clearly not about planning. Swirling around it are questions about the meaning of multiculturalism and identity, and about the changing nature of the Australian population — change that will continue, given that migration is now at record levels.

    "What is not discussed is a broader issue that has nothing to do with the fact that the controversy revolves around plans for an Islamic school. This is the question that we need to debate: what does it mean that among secular liberal democracies, Australia has by far the greatest proportion of children attending non-government schools, many of them faith-based?"...
    
    Full story in The Age at link [plus a VERY similar Op Ed by the same author in The Sydney Morning Herald]

Friday 27 June

• The West Australian
  
  
  • Alston (page 20)


© The West Australian




• Letter to the Editor
  

  • Propaganda
    
    “Mark McGowan is drawing a very long bow when he suggests that students will be disadvantaged by teachers refusing to commit to more unpaid overtime to prepare the untested and frequently reworked Courses of Study for 2009.  He knows very well that students could continue with the tried and tested courses as they have for a decade.
    
    “Perhaps Mr McGowan should have spent the past six months “implementing an immediate and significant investment in public teacher and lecturer remuneration”, as recommended by the Twomey Report, rather than issuing propaganda that alienates the teaching profession.  If he had, he might have found teachers more willing to once again sacrifice their family time to implement his poorly resourced initiatives.”
    
    Richard Ewing, Eaton
    
    
    

• The Australian
  
  
• School results lacking details
  by Lenore Taylor, National correspondent
  
  
  "The federal Government should demand more detailed information about how well the states are meeting national goals for schooling in return for the $9.3 billion handed over by the commonwealth each year to be spent on schools.

  "A report from the National Audit Office, released yesterday, said information provided by the states "casts little light on performance variability across the schooling system" or on "areas in which performance can improve".
  
  "Most published performance information takes the form of system-wide aggregates or averages, which provides no information on the dispersion of performance or results," the audit office said in a report tabled in parliament last night.
  
  "No information is currently available publicly (or to the Australian Government) on the performance of the government school system in its own right; on how performance varies within the government (and non-government) school systems; on the margin by which students do not meet benchmark levels of performance."
  
  "At present, commonwealth funding is contingent on an agreed set of "national goals for schooling", established in 1999, but the audit office said these were long-term and should be supplemented with more specific medium-term goals in the next funding agreement.
  
  "The Department of Education, Employment and Workplace Relations accepted the recommendations and said it was already working on more specific performance measures for the next four-year funding agreement, currently under negotiation.
  
  "Indicative measures" agreed at the March Council of Australian Governments meeting include published literacy and numeracy achievements of students in Years 3, 5, 7 and 9, the proportion of students in the top and bottom levels of performance in international testing and the proportion of students still in education or training six months after leaving school.
  
  "Kevin Rudd has promised to reform all so-called specific-purpose payments to make sure they are paid for explicit goals, and that extra reforms are rewarded with new incentive payments to the states.

  "The commonwealth will provide $3.5 billion in 2008-09 to government schools - around 10 per cent of their public funding - and $5.8 billion to non-government schools - around 10 per cent of the public funding that they receive."

  From The Australian at link
  
  
  
• Comment: Everything's rotten in this state of Western Australia
  by Tony Barrass
  
  
  "Stop the presses! West Australians appalled by antics of bra-snapping, chair-sniffing Liberal leader who wears crushed beer cans on Viking helmet during drinking sessions.

  "News flash! Back-biting Labor MPs eat their own in bloody preselection slaughter, accuse Premier of shirt-lifting during drunken knees-up; more corruption claims expected before election.

  "Nobody does a scandal like we do in the west. Nobody. Belinda Neal? Phfffft.

  "The latest Newspoll makes interesting - but hardly surprising - reading as we watch Alan Carpenter prepare for his first election as Premier.

  "Newspoll normally tells us what the man on the street is thinking. It sniffs a gentle breeze that many a good political sailor may miss. But over in the west at the moment, the Freo Doctor is blowing a good 30 knots from the sou-west. People are appalled and even angry at the state of political debate dominating news.

  "Indeed, many West Australians are downright embarrassed about what's been happening over the past few years.

  "They are sick of the chair-sniffing antics of Buswell, they're sick of the conservative back-stabbing, they're sick of Brian Burke's dead hand on WA Labor, they're sick of ministerial sackings and corruption scandals and they're sick of the general political turmoil.

  "Journalists, on the other hand, can't get enough of it. But while both Carpenter and Buswell like to blame us innocent souls for the current chaos, it's worth noting that many of the damaging scandals to engulf both parties were leaked by their own sides.

  "This is where WA Greens, and to a lesser extent, the growing number of dumped and/or disgruntled MPs who now find themselves on the cross-benches, may benefit. At last count, there were eight of them, all in a row.

  "Carpenter's men must be thanking their lucky stars for the gas crisis, which has plucked the Premier out of the political sewer and given him an air of authority that has been sadly missing during his shaky tenure."

  From The Australian at link
  
  
  • Main parties' mess is gold for Greens
    
    
    
    
• Letter to the Editor
  
  
  • Not everyone can parent
    
    "Your report on the large group of neglected children ("Taking the children from harm’s way’’, 26/6) wrongly constructs the problem as a specific child protection failure, rather than as a broader community problem.
    
    "The simple reality is that there are many parents out there who are unable to care for themselves, let alone adequately care for vulnerable young children. Yet an unholy alliance of anti-abortion conservatives and civil libertarians has convinced us that anyone - whatever their personal or social disabilities - has a right to parent. But rarely do these groups address the negative consequences of their philosophy which is an out-of-control growth in overt child abuse and neglect by those who will never be competent parents. We license dog owners. Isn’t it about time we considered the possibility that some people should be legally prevented from having children?"
    
    Philip Mendes, Kew, Vic [same Letter in today's Age, but with "senior lecturer, Department of Social Work, Monash University" added]
    
    
    
    
• The Guardian
  
  
  • New teachers fail in basic skills
    by Polly Curtis, education editor
    
    "New teachers are not being trained to identify children who are struggling with reading, and some lack skills in teaching spelling, the education watchdog warns today. A survey by Ofsted also reveals that many teachers fail to teach young pupils to write well and do not understand how to identify when a child is falling behind.

    "Schools have been compelled to teach young children to read and write using phonics classes since last September, requiring new skills from teachers.

    "Ofsted investigated the 20 best teacher training courses in the country and concluded that some are not identifying the link between reading and writing, and perform poorly in the teaching of phonics for spelling. Despite showing "good knowledge and understanding" of teaching reading and writing, some training courses "failed to highlight the links between early reading and writing effectively".

    "The chief inspector, Christine Gilbert, said: "More can be done to ensure pupils' phonic skills are accurately assessed. Courses also need to do more to highlight the link between early reading and writing."

    From The Guardian at link
    
    
    
  • No novels necessary for new-look English GCSE
    by Anthea Lipsett
    
    OBE English, UK style !  Web
    
    "Pupils can choose to study biographies or travel brochures and avoid classic novels altogether in a shake-up of GCSE English unveiled yesterday by the qualifications regulator.

    "New-look GCSEs in English, mathematics and information and communications technology (ICT) will be taught from September 2010.

    "The Qualifications and Curriculum Authority (QCA) released draft syllabuses for consultation yesterday.

    "There will be three English GCSEs on offer, rather than the two at present; "English" joins English literature and English language.

    "For the new course, pupils will be assessed on their skills in reading, as well as writing, speaking and listening, but could pass without studying plays, classic novels or poetry.

    "The emphasis will be on learning through "real-life contexts" - such as giving information, explanations or directions - and on students' "creative approaches"...
    
    Full story in The Guardian at link
    
    
    

• The New York Times
  
  
  • Survey of Teachers Shows Dissatisfaction With Klein
    by Elissa Gootman
    
    "A school year that began with a choreographed show of harmony between New York City’s schools chancellor, Joel I. Klein, and the president of its teachers’ union, Randi Weingarten, ended on Thursday in discord, with the release of a survey in which thousands of the city’s teachers voiced strong disapproval of Mr. Klein’s leadership.

    "Of more than 61,000 members of the union, the United Federation of Teachers, who responded to the survey, 85 percent disagreed with the statement that the chancellor’s emphasis on testing had improved education in their schools, while 82 percent said they believed Mr. Klein lacked “confidence in the expertise of his educators.”

    "The union’s survey, which can be found online at uft.org, mimicked one that the Department of Education has distributed to students, parents and teachers for the past two years, with the word “chancellor” substituted for “principal.”

    “The teachers in this city are incredibly heroic and incredibly selfless, because they’ve actually put their own views and the fact that they don’t feel that kind of respect from their boss aside to really help kids,” Ms. Weingarten said at a news conference on Thursday at the union’s headquarters in Lower Manhattan. “Could you imagine what the results would be if they felt respected and if the chancellor actually listened to what they were saying?” ...
    
    Full story in The New York Times at link

  
  

Saturday – Sunday, 28 – 29 June

• The West Australian
  

  • IRC tells union to lift Year 11 course bans (page 4)
    by Bethany Hiatt
    
    “The industrial commission has advised the teacher’s union to lift its ban on the implementation of all new Year 11 courses due to start next year.
    
    “The West Australian understands the WA Industrial Relations Commission recommended that the State School Teachers Union lift its boycott after an urgent conference late on Thursday.
    
    “Education Minister Mark McGowan ordered the Department of Education and Training to take the union to the commission for the fifth time this year over its directive to halt planning and preparation for all new courses due to be introduced in 2009.
    
    “The union argues that under its current ban on teachers doing unpaid overtime, which has been in force since the start of the year, teachers do not have enough time to prepare lesson plans and assessments for the new courses. SSTU president Anne Gisborne yesterday refused to confirm the IRC had recommended lifting the ban on implementing the new courses.
    
    “She said the union’s executive had to discuss matters arising from Thursday’s conference and would report back to Senior Commissioner Jennifer Smith tomorrow.
    
    “It also emerged yesterday that if teachers ignored the commission’s recommendation and pushed ahead with the ban next year, it would create big problems because students would only qualify for high school graduation and university entrance if they studied the new courses.
    
    “Curriculum Council chief executive David Wood said all new courses, including history, biological sciences, physics and literature, would be the only approved courses and there were no alternatives.
    
    “This means that Year 11 students will not be able to study old TEE courses from next year because they will no longer be accredited. Only accredited courses are counted towards the WA Certificate of Education. Without the certificate, students will not be able to qualify for any of WA’s four public universities under new tertiary entrance rules that take effect in 2009.
    
    "Teachers could get a pay rise in September under a proposal put before the commission yesterday.
    
    “The Department of Education and Training has applied for an interim “enterprise order” to replace teachers’ old enterprise bargaining agreement, which expired in March, until a new EBA is arbitrated.
    
    “The union wants rises of more than 20 per cent over three years. Under the interim order, teachers would receive rises of between 8.16 per cent and 12.09 per cent over two years, depending on experience. The 4 per cent would be paid in September.” [emphasis added]
    
    From The West Australian
    
    
    

  • Scholarships leave student teachers broke (page 62)
    by Dale Miller
    
    “A scholarship billed by the State Government as a solution to teaching shortages in country areas is leaving some recipients worse off and struggling to meet basic costs such as rent.
    
    “The $19 million scholarship programme was launched late last year promising funding for tertiary students willing to teach in WA country public schools for up to four years.
    
    “Existing teachers who retrained in science, maths, design and technology and home economics were also eligible.
    
    “The five-year scholarship programme was lauded by the Government as one way of combating State teaching shortages with 158 scholarships offered to final-year teaching graduates in 2008.
    
    “But The West Australian understands at leave five University of WA students who received scholarships have complained of financial hardship as a result of the scheme.
    
    “Under the programme, scholarship recipients agreeing to a two-year country placement received $15,000 this year either in fortnightly payments or as a lump sum and will get a further $15,000 on completing their contract in 2010. A $60,000 scholarship was available to those committing to four years.
    
    “A 23-year-old UWA student, who did not wish to be named, has been forced to survive on $142 a week compared with receiving about $231 a week in youth allowance and rent assistance payments.
    
    “She lost more than 50 per cent of her $15,000 scholarship payment in tax and HECS repayments and was ruled ineligible for youth allowance because the scholarship money was classed as income and above the allowable limit.
    
    “She said she felt “absolutely duped” and had been forced to move back in with her parents to cope financially.
    
    “Basically it’s an employment contract and it was sold as a scholarship, they’ve completely misrepresented what it is,” she said. [emphasis added]
    
    “Fremantle’s Heidi Sommer, 25, quit the UWA course in April, partly for financial reasons. She said she had assumed she would be better off under a scholarship but would have received more money from Centrelink.
    
    “Department of Education and Training human resources acting executive director John Serich said 14 scholarship students had expressed concerns about tax implications but only related to the lump sum payment option. He said the department had not misled students and that the terms of 2009 scholarships were under consideration.  
     
    “UWA Dean of Education Professor Bill Louden said final-year teaching graduates were heavily reliant on financial help during their 12-week practical placements and it was not possible to work part-time at the same time.” [Fixing this very problem is one of the Twomey Report's many recommendations, which no doubt will not be implemented. Web]
    
    From The West Australian
    
    
    

• SSTUWA Update
  
  
  • Hyatt rally broken up by police
    by Don Rowe
    
    "Around 100 protesting teachers and civil servants were threatened with arrest this morning while protesting peacefully outside the Labor Party’s state conference at the Hyatt Hotel in Perth.
    
    "Unions WA Secretary Dave Robinson was forcibly removed by police and warned that to return to the forecourt of the hotel would result in his arrest.
    
    "Robinson is still unsure as to whether he faces charges.
    
    "SSTUWA General Secretary David A Kelly, who was driving the union bus around the hotel was chased by a squad car, pulled over and detained for 15 minutes by police who wanted to do a “license check” on the bus.

    "Mr Kelly was told that if he stopped in no parking zone at the front he would be arrested.
    
    "Finally, the management of the Hyatt Hotel told teachers and CSA members to get off the private property.
    
    "Police then gave the unionists 5 minutes to leave or face arrest – and then formed a line moving towards our members – who all quietly walked away.
    
    "The hotel management told police that protesters were on private property and they wanted everybody away- obviously they didn't move fast enough, because Dave Robinson (UnionsWA secretary), was grabbed by police and physically taken away from the premises, down the ramps and up the footpaths, 100m away from entrance.

    "I've seen over the years, violent union demonstrations and very passive union demonstrations.
    
    "And the most that you can say about this was that the singing of various chants was quite loud.
    
    "They (protesters) weren't even blocking the entrance to the hotel, they were off to one side.'
    
    "Unions WA Secretary Dave Robinson commented that the police and hotel management had taken an unbelievable heavy hand towards a quiet, peaceful protest."

    From SSTUWA at link






• The Sunday Times
  
  
  • Police 'grab' union leader Dave Robinson
    by Paul Lampathakis
    
    "Prominent unionist Dave Robinson was "grabbed'' by police this morning and marched away from outside the WA Labor State Conference, at Perth's Hyatt Hotel.
    
    "WA State School Teachers' Union communications officer Don Rowe said about 200 teachers and Civil Service Association members were protesting peacefully for better conditions outside the Hyatt Hotel at the start of the conference at about 7.45am, when the incident occurred.
    
    "The hotel management told police that protesters were on private property and they wanted everybody away,'' Mr Rowe said.
    
    "Obviously they didn't move fast enough, because Dave Robinson, (UnionsWA secretary), was grabbed by police and physically taken away from the premises, down the ramps and up the footpaths, 100m away from entrance.
    
    "My understanding is if he goes back on the property he'll be arrested.
    
    "And I saw David Kelly, the secretary of the teachers' union who was driving the brightly painted union bus around the Hyatt, beep the horn and two police ran and leapt into a squad car and took off after him at speed.
    
    "Mr Rowe said Mr Kelly was pulled over by the police for what they called a licence check.
    
    "Mr Kelly was told that if he stopped in no parking zone at the front he would be arrested, Mr Rowe said.
    
    "It's just ludicrous,'' Mr Rowe said.
    
    "I've seen over the years, violent union demonstrations and very passive union demonstrations.
    
    "And the most that you can say about this was that the singing of various chants was quite loud.
    
    "They (protesters) weren't even blocking the entrance to the hotel, they were off to one side.''
    
    "No arrests were made by police and police comment was being sought."
    
    From The Sunday Times at link
    
    
    
  • School toilets won’t flush (page 22)
    by Paul Lampathakis
    
    “Plumbing faults at Baldivis Primary School have not been fixed, depriving students of running water to flush toilets, wash their hands and to drink.
    
    “Disgusted parents said supplies had been cut at least five times this year because pipes had been damaged during work at a nearby residential development.
    
    “Delays to repairs were the result of an ongoing dispute with contractors about who was responsible for repairs, they said.
    
    “As a consequence, the school was without running water for days.
    
    “Baldivis Parents and Citizens Association vice-president Tania Hird said it had written to Premier Alan Carpenter about the issue and it was hand-balled to Water Resources Minister John Kobelke.
    
    “The P & C heard that a new pipe would not be commissioned until the development was finished, which could be many months away.
    
    “Mrs. Hird, whose eight-year-old daughter Bianca is at the school, said “You’ve got no flushing toilets for two to three days in a row. The children are having to wash hands in a bucket of water left outside the toilets.
    
    “We’re talking from kindy to Grade 7. This causes health and hygiene problems.”
    
    “A letter from Mr. Kobelke to residents said the water main servicing the school was a non-standard service provided by the Water Corporation to areas where a normal supply was not available.
    
    “He said for such services the customer was responsible for paying for installing and maintaining the pipes, which in this case was the Education Department.
    
    “But he said a “permanent solution” was available following recent development of a subdivision on Fifty Rd.
    
    “Opposition education spokesman Peter Collier said it was disgraceful that the Government could not guarantee running water and other essential facilities for public schools.” [emphasis added]
    
    From The Sunday Times
    
    
    
  • Chief in refit row (page 29)
    by Paul Lampathakis
    
    “While teachers battle the Carpenter Government for better pay, Education Minister Mark McGowan has spent $666,000 of taxpayers’ cash refitting his luxurious St Georges Tce office.
    
    “Opposition education spokesman Peter Collier said Mr McGowan should feel ashamed to have spent so much money on himself then deprive teachers of well-deserved pay rises during a teacher shortage...”
    
    Full story in The Sunday Times
    
    See the full exchange in Hansard at this link
    
    
    
    
• WA Today
  
  
  • Tensions mount as teachers' let down again
    by Vanessa Williams
    
    "Tensions mount as teachers' are let down once again after the state government failed to meet a much needed review in pay and working conditions.
    
    "Teachers and members from the State School Teachers' Union gathered in protest outside the Hyatt Hotel, where the state ALP conference is being held, hoping to alert key figures of their presence.
    
    "The SSTU was in recent disputes with the Education Department as the teacher shortage continues, claiming the government has failed to recognise stressful working conditions and increase teachers' pay.
    
    "President of the SSTU Anne Gisborne said she hopes today's demonstration will bring attention to the Carpenter government, the poor work and pay conditions teachers have to face amidst the shortage.
    
    "We are at a point where we've got a teacher shortage problem and a growing crisis in front of us," Ms Gisborne said.
    
    "We want this matter resolved."
    
    "Ms Gisborne argues the government's second offer regarding teachers' pay was no where near good enough, and that an increase of at least 20 per cent is needed to keep up with the demanding work conditions and rising costs of living.
    
     "We want this government to pay attention," she said. "They've got the capacity to intervene in arbitration and look at the prospect of coming back with a proper offer to teachers."
    
    "Ms Gisborne said that many teachers are suffering as the horrendous work load takes it toll.
    
    "We've got teachers who are not getting their proper planning and preparation time, we've got teachers who aren't prepared to go on sick leave when they should be because we can't find relief teachers," she said.
    
    "There are a lot of problems in the system at the moment that are not fully disclosed."
    
    "In the midst of the shortage, teacher Steve Covich from Bibra Lake Primary School said he has had to risk his health by showing up to work sick as schools struggle to find relief teachers.
    
    "If I'm going to be sick tomorrow, I have to tell them by nine o'clock tonight," he said. "We just have no relief teachers that can replace us."
    
    "Mr Covich also mentioned that a family member, who is also a teacher, retired after being refused long service leave because there were no replacements.
    
    "We've always thought that one party or the other would look after us," he said. "But every time the party changes and the opposition becomes government, they simply let us down again."
    
    "Mr Covich, who has been a teacher for over 30 years, said he has had enough of the state government ignoring the needs of teachers.
    
    "After 30 years I think it's time to do something," Mr Covich said.
    
    "We need to tell the government and tell the people of WA that we're not really getting a fair deal."
    
    From WA Today at link
    
    
    
    
• ABC News
  
  
  • Costa 'demands an extra $245m' for school computers
    
    "Documents have revealed New South Wales Treasurer Michael Costa has demanded the Federal Government provide an extra $245 million towards the high school computer scheme.

    "The Federal Government pledged during the election to provide every student from years nine to 12 with access to a computer at school."Mr Costa's office would not confirm the demand, but the NSW Government says it is continuing negotiations with the Federal Government over the details.

    "Prime Minister Kevin Rudd's office says it is still committed to the plan."

    From ABC News at link
    
    
    
    
• US News and World Report
  
  
  • Education Takes Back Seat to Rising Gas Prices
    by Eddy Ramírez
    
    "A new national poll shows that education has taken a back seat to rising gas prices and other pocketbook concerns. That's not all that surprising, given how little the presidential candidates have talked about education so far. But, interestingly, poll respondents ranked education as the third-most important issue, slightly ahead of healthcare.

    "The poll, which was released this week by the Washington, D.C.-based Public Education Network, an association of education advocates, is one of the first to measure the nation's attitudes toward education in this election year. The findings were not very encouraging. Among the respondents, 22 percent expressed concern about rising gas prices, while only 12 percent were concerned about education. Respondents did, however, voice worries that schools are moving in the wrong direction and that key players in education—like businesses and the media—have become too disengaged. Specifically, 4 in 10 Americans said that the quality of public schools nationwide has declined, compared with 15 percent who said that schools were improving. Respondents were evenly split about No Child Left Behind and whether it has made schools better or worse. (This week, a separate report by an independent research group showed that most states have been making academic progress since the law took effect in 2002.)

    "The poll found some frustration with the presidential candidates. Six in 10 respondents said the candidates are focusing too little on education. Still, 48 percent of them noted that education is "very important" or "one of the most important" issues in helping voters decide whom to choose as president. The findings represent the views of 1,220 adults who responded to a national telephone survey. The margin of error is plus or minus 3.1 percentage points."

    From US News and World Report at link
    
    
    
    
• The Morning News [Arkansas, USA]
  
  
  • Undisciplined Students Dragging Down Education
    by Tom McMahon
    
    "One of the most disturbing aspects of public education is the lack of control teachers and principals have over their students. Most classrooms have at least one student who can consistently and effectively disrupt the entire class. So it should be no surprise to learn that teachers who left the teaching profession or transferred to a different school reported problematic student behavior as one of the top five reasons for dissatisfaction with the school they left, according to the National Center for Education Statistics.
    
    "If you are a frequent reader of this column, you know that, prior to the 1970s, it was extremely rare for a parent or teacher to not have control over his children. Those were the days when parents and teachers had the upper hand over children.
    
    "Flash forward to today, and you can watch a 6- or 7-year-old control a classroom and shut down learning. Sure, there are visits to the principal's office, but the student usually ends up back in the classroom. No wonder America's schools play second fiddle to those of most other industrialized countries."
    
    From The Morning News at link
    
    
    
    
• The Washington Post
  
  
  • Superintendent: Bad tenured teachers hard to fire
    by Frank Eltman
    
    MIDDLE ISLAND, N.Y. -- "Few people know better than school superintendent Allan Gerstenlauer that disciplining a tenured teacher can be a long and expensive process.

    "An English teacher in his Long Island district remains on the payroll, earning an annual salary of $113,559, even after pleading guilty earlier this month to drunken driving charges – her fifth DWI arrest in seven years.

    "The teacher will remain on paid leave at least until a disciplinary hearing in August, and it will be up to an impartial arbitrator to decide whether she needs to be fired as she faces a likely prison sentence.

    "It is very frustrating that the process takes so long," Gerstenlauer conceded.

    "The case illustrates a nagging problem in school districts in New York and elsewhere around the country: firing bad teachers. It is also part of the ongoing debate over education reform and the role tenure plays in the process.

    "Advocates for reform cite a list of egregious examples they say demonstrate why teacher tenure rules need to be overhauled.

    "In New York City, it often costs taxpayers $250,000 just to fire one incompetent teacher. Some teachers remain on the payroll even after being convicted of serious felonies, requiring districts to hold disciplinary hearings behind prison walls..." [emphasis added]

    Full story in The Washington Post at link
    
    
    
    
• The Age
  
  
• Uni expands student selection system
  by Bridie Smith
  
  "Australia's largest national university has moved away from using year-12 scores to select students, saying character and community service are also important.

  "The decision by the the Australian Catholic University could prompt other universities to place less emphasis on ENTER scores, which critics insist are a crude measure of suitability for tertiary study.

  "The university — the largest producer of nursing graduates in Australia and among the top five for teachers — will announce on Tuesday its intention to select candidates based on their community work or "mentality of service", rather than relying solely on an ENTER score. The scheme will operate at the university's six campuses nationally, including Melbourne and Ballarat. Courses available include arts, business, nursing, education and youth work.

  "We need to get away from the idea, in selecting people, that intellect is divorced from character. They are two sides of the one coin," university vice-chancellor Greg Craven said.

  "In next year's intake, up to 50% of undergraduate places will go to students under the Early Achievers Program, with applications open between July and September. Successful students will receive provisional offers by mid-December, a month before everyone else.

  "To be eligible, students must have completed three semesters of study in years 11 and 12. They must also demonstrate involvement in their community — through school, church, sport or a cultural organisation — and provide a written recommendation from their principal..."

  Full story in The Age at link
  
  
  
  
• The Weekend Australian
  
  
  • Ex-Marist students to sue teachers
    
    Lawyers representing more than 30 former students of Marist College in Canberra have mounted a potentially explosive action to sue dozens of individual teachers, after the Catholic order indicated it might use a legal loophole to escape liability for alleged sexual abuse.
    
    
    
  • Islamic school on fraud charges
    
    One of Australia's best-known Islamic schools has been accused of defrauding the commonwealth and West Australian governments of more than $3million by claiming it had hundreds more students on its books than it did.

    Australian Islamic College director Abdallah Magar, 69, and school principals Mark Debowski, 50, and Aziz Magdi, 53, are due to appear in a Perth court on Wednesday over charges that they obtained a financial advantage by deception for another person and gained a benefit by fraud.

All Alston cartoons are © The West Australian Newspaper
All media quotations, photographs and cartoons © their respective publishers

This page last updated 11 August, 2008 11:49 PM