School keeps teacher after proposed stopwork

by Kerri Carr

Irrawang Public School has succeeded in its campaign to keep a 14th teacher after being prepared to take industrial action.

Teachers had proposed a one-hour stopwork for February 26 over staffing and class size issues. Irrawang PS needed an additional eight students to maintain its teacher entitlements.

If staffing was reduced, class sizes throughout the school, in particular kindergarten, year 1 and year 2, would have been above Departmental recommendation.

The stopwork had the support of the P&C Association at the school.

On February 25, Education Minister John Watkins' office advised Federation the Department of Education and Training had exercised its discretion to allow the school to keep a 14th teacher, thus averting the stopwork action.

In the lead-up to the proposed stopwork Regional Organiser Claire Shanahan said: "Composite classes of 28 in kindergarten and year 1 are not acceptable."

"The Department of Education and Training and the Government must develop a response that is more flexible when there is a minor reduction in student numbers," she said.

"They must also recognise the need to reduce class sizes in the early years of schooling. University research has demonstrated that students who begin their schooling in small classes achieve superior educational outcomes.

"It is short-sighted for a government to allocate funds under the Priority Action Scheme, and yet be unable to supply staffing to enable classes to be formed within Departmental numbers".

Ms Shanahan said the outcome was a "victory for the school and recognition of the action taken by teachers".

"Fed Rep Gary Wills and staff were very solid and strong on retaining the 14th teacher," she said.

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Last Modified: 15 Nov 2005