Tebbutt fails students and teachers

Education Minister Carmel Tebbutt has introduced unsound and dangerous education policies while Minister, writes MAREE O'HALLORAN.

During her short time in office, the State Education Minister, Carmel Tebbutt has acted almost exclusively on the advice of Department of Education and Training officials. The Director-General, and some of his senior bureaucrats, have no qualifications in education and no teaching experience. Nevertheless, the Minister prefers their advice to that of teachers. The result has been the introduction of unsound and dangerous education policies as well as the introduction of legislation into Parliament which potentially exposes teachers to victimisation.

In March 2005 the Minister addressed Federation Council. The upshot of her address was that teachers should not expect increased state funding to public education because of budgetary constraints and difficulties. Federation properly took the view that despite the Minister's address, it was essential to campaign for increased funding from both the state and the federal governments. The introduction of the Vinson plan for the future of public education requires significantly increased funding, over a number of budget cycles. Federation, however, also recognised that the Minister could not extract increased funding for public education on her own. Greater investment would only be provided by the State Government if sufficient political and community pressure was applied.

Federation did expect, however, that the Minister would listen to the advice of teachers and make political interventions where Government/Department policy was educationally unsound or anti-teacher. This has not happened. Most notably the Minister has:

• refused to defer the mandatory introduction of the Year 10 Computer Skills Assessment Test
• refused to negotiate a framework of student report options which would allow school communities some choices
• introduced legislation into Parliament which removes procedural fairness safeguards in place to protect teachers who are charged with a breach of discipline
• allowed the Department of Education and Training to appeal the Amery decision and continue their exploitation of non-permanent teachers.

The most disturbing aspect of the State Government's and Minister Tebbutt's modus operandi is that it seems to be based on a desire to be more conservative, indeed reactionary, than the Federal Government. Thus, the State Government has mandated A to E grading of children from the age of six in every key learning area. This is despite the fact that even the Federal Government allows for the use of "equivalents". Equivalents would at least allow the use of different terminology at school level. The introduction of the Education Staff Legislation (Amendment) Bill 2006 into Parliament was characterised by deceit. The bill was drafted without any consultation with the Federation. It was introduced into Parliament over the objections of Federation. The stripping away of procedural fairness rights is wrong at any time. However, in the current political and industrial relations environment, the State Labor Government should be providing employees with more rights, not fewer.

Federation welcomed the peaceful salaries settlement in 2005 and the State Government's move to protect TAFE teachers from the Federal Government's industrial relations legislation. Unfortunately, in the face of the Minister's recent decisions that goodwill is rapidly dissipating.

NSW public education teachers should be considering giving the Minister E for effort and achievement.

Maree O'Halloran is the President.

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