Developing a submission

By Angelo Gavrielatos

The following points are provided to assist members in the development of submissions about the Futures Project.

While the points do not touch on all issues covered in the "consultation" paper, it should not be interpreted that this indicates a disregard for matters not directly addressed.

The points are listed under the most relevant chapter headings. The layout and organisation of the DET document is very confused with chapter headings, content and questions often unrelated.

Members are encouraged to include the following points in submissions:

Chapter 1 Reflections on public education and training

• The provision of comprehensive public education (preschool to year 12 and TAFE) which embodies the principles of community and inclusiveness is vital for the future of our society.
• Equity programs must be maintained and expanded, for they are crucial to closing the achievement gap between students from low socio-economic status communities and their peers.

Chapter 2 Students - early childhood years

• Every child should have access to at least one year of free preschool education, with qualified early childhood teachers.
• Additional resources should be allocated to improve young children's access to support services, such as counsellors, speech therapists, mental health experts, medical professionals; these are particularly needed in rural and remote areas.

Chapter 3 Students - Primary School Years; Chapter 4 Students - Middle Years; Chapter 5 Students - Secondary School Years

• Kindergarten to year 6 schools have proven sound and are strongly supported in our communities as they provide a positive environment to promote the educational and social development of students. Therefore there is no need to tamper with the successful structure. To do so would create an extra transition point which would not be to the advantage of students.
• Outcomes-based student assessment, introduced without adequate support or guidance, has dramatically increased the workload of teachers. This must be addressed through implementation of the recommendations of the Eltis Review, Time to Teach, Time to Learn, in full consultation with teachers.

Chapter 6 Students - 15-19 Year Olds: Increasing Engagement

• NSW Government policy states that all secondary schools will be required to establish intensive linkage/transition programs with their local primary schools, but negligible funding and support of these programs significantly undermines this initiative.
• Additional staffing and resourcing for years 7ˇV8 must be provided to allow schools to introduce strategies such as reduced class sizes or collaborative team teaching programs to address "middle-schooling" issues.
• "Flexibility" in school organisation and teaching practice should not be used by the Department and the Government as a ruse to cut resources and devolve responsibility in an era of declining government investment in public education.
• Mandatory hours of study provisions must be retained as they represent a curriculum guarantee for all students.
• To ensure curriculum continuity from year 11 to year 12 and to meet the demands for appropriate courses created by increased retention rates, a senior school "curriculum guarantee staffing supplementation" must be provided.
• Greater cooperation and coordination between schools and TAFE within geographically identifiable areas should be a priority to enhance educational opportunities within local communities.
• Appropriate parallel placements and settings must be established for students at risk whose needs cannot effectively be met within the regular school.
• Equity programs must be expanded to support the neediest public schools. Concentrations of socio-economic disadvantage require targeted concentrations of additional support.
• Governments have a responsibility to provide additional resources to address the current inequality in learning outcomes for indigenous students.
• It is estimated that more than 40,000 students in need are not receiving ESL support. Over the past 20 years, there has been a doubling of the student/teacher contact ratio. Additional ESL teaching positions must be provided to address this inequity.
• On-going demand funding must be provided to TAFE for the provision of programs for students at risk.

Chapter 7 Students - TAFE

• TAFE must be affordable for everyone. Therefore TAFE fees should be dramatically reduced.

Chapter 8 Teachers and Leaders - Teachers; Chapter 9 Teachers and Leaders - Leaders; Chapter 16 Quality Schools and TAFE - Public Schools - Quality Education in Every Classroom

• The Government and Department at all levels are responsible for properly resourcing schools and TAFE to support excellence in teaching and learning for all.
• The reorientation of the DET, to ensure that teaching and learning is at the core of all its operations, is critical.
• The curriculum and syllabi are at the heart of teaching and learning; therefore the reintegration of the Office of the Board of Studies into the DET is fundamental to ensuring the primacy of teaching and learning within the Department.
• Existing and aspiring leaders in schools and TAFE need increased support and access to quality professional development as part of a statewide comprehensive leadership development strategy.
• The promotions system must be enhanced to include the validating process of on-the-job assessment of applicants. The current process is a poor substitute for rigorous, on-the-job assessment to determine an applicantˇ¦s merit for promotion.

Chapter 10 Supporting Learning and Teaching: Meeting the Diverse Needs of Students

• The NSW Government is responsible for staffing the statewide public education system. This responsibility should not be abrogated by devolution.
• The statewide transfer system has the capacity to meet genuine school needs by closely matching the qualifications, skills and expertise of teachers with the vacant position.
• The statewide staffing system and its centrepiece, a system of transfers, is the essential element in ensuring the appointment of teachers in every school across the state and therefore a curriculum guarantee for all students.
• The right of a student to be taught by a qualified teacher, in all parts of the state, must always be a higher priority than a desire by a particular school to locally select a particular teacher.
• Incentives to attract and retain teachers must be expanded to better meet the needs of difficult-to-staff schools.
• New staffing policies are required to increase the recruitment and retention of experienced teachers and leaders.
• To ensure a "curriculum guarantee", the number of teaching positions within any school should be determined by formula, based on factors such as student enrolments and subject offerings, supported by mandatory hours of study requirements.

Chapter 11 Supporting Learning and Teaching: Partnerships - Schools and Communities

• Public education, and the values that define it, remain the key for a vibrant, inclusive, democratic, multicultural Australia.
• Consistent with sound educational practice, the development of positive relationships and partnerships between school staff and parents/carers and the wider school community, must be a high priority.
• With appropriate levels of funding and resourcing schools can enhance their capacity to develop stronger partnerships and relationships with parents/carers and the wider community.

Chapter 12 Supporting Learning and Teaching: Partnerships - TAFE and Industry

• Teachers in TAFE work successfully with industry and community groups and must be further supported in this approach.
• TAFE resourcing rarely recognises the complexity of industry and community liaison; additional resources must be provided, especially in rural and remote areas.
• Partnerships between TAFE and industry that share use of equipment and facilities should be encouraged, but it should be recognised that the focus of TAFE is education and training.
• Apprenticeships, cadetships and traineeships all have an important educational and employment role, but these must offer real education and training opportunities with real employment outcomes. The abuse of traineeships must end.

Chapter 13 Supporting Learning and Teaching: Information and Communication Technologies (ICT)

• Professional development funding and support to build teachers - skill levels in ICT must form the foundation of any ICT strategy.
• Provision of computer hardware, software, networking and connectivity must be well-resourced by government.
• An effective, reliable and efficient system of technical support for ICT in schools is an urgent and critical need.
• Delivery of TAFE online teaching and learning should be appropriate to the needs of students. Teaching and learning conditions should be consistent with face to face programs.
• The focus by TAFE on administrative duties being undertaken using new technology and other systems, should be accompanied by appropriate levels of training, resources, support and not increase workload.

Chapter 14 Supporting Learning and Teaching: Environments for Learning

• Governments must urgently redress the continuing under-funding of public education infrastructure - its buildings, facilities and equipment, to provide quality teaching and learning environments befitting a 21st century education in an economically advanced nation like Australia.
• "The quality of the physical space affects self esteem and student/teacher interactions, parental involvement, discipline, motivation and interpersonal relations." (Vinson, 2002)
• Federation supports the NSW Government's policy: "Our goal will be to make comprehensive high schools into "schools of all round excellence". We will renew our focus on the foundation stone of public secondary schooling - the local high school - to ensure all children, no matter where they live or what their talents are, have their needs well catered for." (ALP, "Stronger High Schools", 2003.)
• For TAFE to remain the pre-eminent provider of vocational education and training, facilities and equipment must be up to date and to industry standards.
• Governments must accept responsibility for properly funding public education, instead of offloading responsibility to private companies through Privately Financed Projects (PFP).

Chapter 15 Supporting Learning and Teaching: Organisational Culture

• Public schools and TAFE colleges are best served by an organisational culture that is free from the political interference and opportunism of recent decades.
• Attempts to impose contract-based employment and to restrict employees' rights to freedom of speech through a code of conduct, undermine the professional standing of the teaching service.
• The emphasis on educational leadership and culture should not be over-ridden by a misplaced focus on the culture and practice of corporate managerialism.

Chapter 17 Quality Schools and TAFE - TAFE - Flexibility, Sustainability and Renewal

• Governments must accept responsibility for properly funding TAFE.
• TAFE Teachers deliver educational programs in a range of locations, at a range of times and in a variety of modes, within the parameters of their award. TAFE is a flexible education and training provider.
• TAFE must provide a range of learning opportunities to meet different learning styles, and cater for the needs of rural and regional communities.
• Partnerships between public education sectors should be encouraged so that they complement rather than duplicate each other.

Angelo Gavrielatos is the Senior Vice President.

Futures project threatens public education

Reflections on public education and training

For further information

November 2004 contents