ALP backpedals on school funding

By Angelo Gavrielatos

Recent commitments by Kim Beazley could result in the preservation of the privileged position enjoyed by many private schools.

His address to the National Press Club on May 3 on schools education was more focused on appeasing the private school lobby than celebrating the achievements of public education.

He restated that school funding under the ALP would be "needs based" and that need would be measured against a "national resources standard".

Given that many private schools operate at resource levels far exceeding public schools, a "needs based" funding policy would be of greater overall benefit in terms of funding for public schools. However, "needs based" funding could also have the effect of some private schools, particularly Catholic and "low fee-paying" schools, operating with more total government funds than their neighbouring public schools.

For this not to occur, the ALP would have to commit to breaking the nexus in funding between public and private schools which sees an automatic flow-on in resources to private schools. It would have to freeze funding to private schools operating above or at the "national resource standard" and provide a huge injection of funds to public schools to reverse the current funding arrangement. This arrangement gives three quarters of the recurrent federal education budget to the one third of students who attend private schools.

Kim Beazley and the ALP have continued to cave in to the private school lobby and in doing so relinquished their commitment to their own policy of "needs based" funding.

This has occurred in the following ways:

1. Contrary to the application of a needs based formula which would result in a funding cut for many private schools, the ALP has given a commitment that no private school will lose any funding currently received by the government. This is despite some schools operating with a total level of funding which exceeds the level necessary to meet the national resource standards. [The Howard Government funds 40 per cent of private schools on amounts greater than they would be entitled to under the current so-called socio-economic status model (sometimes known as the "postcode model"). They are funded on a "funding maintained" basis, the amount determined by the previous funding scheme.]

2. When confronted that this would constitute a freeze on funding for private schools, Kim Beazley immediately caved in and gave an assurance that the level of funding to private schools would continue to be indexed to meet inflation. This represented another opportunity lost in reducing the total level of funding to private schools consistent with their "need".

3. Further pressured, he gave the commitment that not only would funding levels for private schools be indexed to meet inflation but private schools would also receive further indexation to reflect the increase in costs incurred by government to educate students in public schools. (This is commonly referred to as the Average Government Student Recurrent Cost. Because public schools enrol approximately 90 per cent of students with disabilities, Aboriginal students and those from isolated and remote settings, the average cost of this public education provision is higher than in private schools.) To automatically link this funding to private schools, therefore, is clearly inappropriate.

Angelo Gavrielatos is the Deputy President.

Federal Labor rejects AWAs

Final details for workers' rights allies on Wednesday

Angry teachers dump careless Spotlight

Shame file

Community joins in campaign event

For further information

June 2006 contents