IEC head teachers struggle for justice

Head teachers in Intensive English Centres have been engaged in an industrial campaign for more than 12 months and now need the support of all members. PENNY CAROSI reports.

Federation has had a number of discussions with the Department of Education and Training (DET) about the workload issues of head teacher members in IECs. There are 14 IECs attached to host high schools and one Intensive English High School (IEHS) which was established as a result of the inner Sydney "Building the Future" DET restructure process.

The IEHS has an executive structure the same as any high school. At present, the allocation is a principal, deputy principal and four head teacher positions. A number of the IECs have more students and classroom teachers than the IEHS but have only one head teacher and share the principal and deputy principal with the host high school.

Evans IEC at Blacktown has one head teacher with 51 classroom teachers!

When the members instigated their campaign of no longer providing essential student data to the DET, a review was conducted by the Department so that options for an IEC executive restructure could be considered.

One of the options or models devised was similar to Federation's original proposal to redress the inequity and workload issues. Federation's modest proposal maintains the status quo for executive positions in IECs with 12 or fewer classroom teachers. For IECs with 13 or more classroom teachers, Federation seeks a non-teaching deputy principal position plus one, two or three teaching head teacher positions depending on the size of the IEC. DET is still refusing to implement this model because it will cost them money -- less than $250,000 per year.

DET has proposed that the money can be generated by increasing the student:teacher ratio for IEC classroom teachers. Any member who was aware of Federation issues in 1984 will recall that IEC teachers were stood down for several weeks in the Federation campaign to achieve a student:teacher ratio suitable for teaching high school age refugee and migrant students in preparation for mainstream high school curricula. Many of the students are survivors of torture and trauma and have had little or no previous education.

Affected members have rejected the Department's proposal to increase the student:teacher ratio and are now calling on colleagues to support their cause.

How you can help

1. If you are a teacher in a host high school, ask for a joint school/IEC Federation meeting where a motion of support for the IEC head teacher campaign can be passed.
2. Schools who take ex-IEC students and any other school can also pass motions of support.
3. If there is an IEC in your Association, please contact the Federation representative at the IEC or host high school and ask them to speak at the next Association meeting.

Motions of support should be sent to the Director-General of DET and a copy to Federation's General Secretary.

For further information, please contact your Organiser or Penny Carosi on (02) 9217 2100.

Penny Carosi is the Multicultural Officer/Post Schools Organiser.

For further information

February 2005 contents