Federation will fund an independent inquiry into devolutionary policies, President Maurie Mulheron announced on the third day of Annual Conference.
Work that was previously done by public servants inside the NSW education department, has been forced onto schools, due to job losses within the department.
The union is concerned that devolutionary policies, such as Local Schools, Local Decisions, are shifting responsibilities that should sit with the government and department onto schools — teachers, principals and administrative staff.
Teachers are concerned that the extra responsibilities are taking them away from their core teaching and learning duties.
The inquiry will look at the loss of the department’s capacity to support schools and the impact this is having on the nature of teachers’ work.
It will also look at how principals’ work is being redefined from a leading teacher role to a business administrator role.
When the research team has been established, Federation members will be asked to contribute to the research.