Inquiry head makes plea to school teachers to tell their stories
31 March 2020
Section: News
Members of the profession are being asked to share the realities of their working lives for the inquiry investigating the value of teachers’ work.
Our 2020 vision: A spotlight on the profession
9 March 2020
Section: Columns
The start to the school year brought with it tremendous challenges that we would all hope to never be experienced again. For many of our members, their students and families there was no summer vacation.
Valuing the teaching profession — An independent inquiry
4 March 2020
Section: News
Attention will be drawn to the extent and complexity of changes to the nature of members’ work when an independent inquiry investigates the value of the work of teachers and principals over the next 12 months.
Call for additional release time for all teachers
2 March 2020
Section: News
In line with a determination by members, Federation is demanding at least two additional hours of release from face-to-face teaching per week for all school teachers.
Local Schools, Local Decisions: eight years of policy failure
While the professional voice of teachers is often ignored under Local Schools, Local Decisions, the views of Federation members will be amplified in the union’s submission to the Department’s evaluation of the policy.
Are you getting the release time you are entitled to?
21 February 2020
Section: News
Special funding is available for new teachers to lighten their workload in their first years of teaching and allow for mentoring to achieve accreditation.
Collective opposition to system-wide setting of school targets
22 November 2019
Section: News
Federation and principal bodies have presented a united front in response to the Department of Education’s imposition of further layers of target-setting, which will add to the workload of teachers in public schools.
Podcast interview raises key issues
25 September 2019
Section: News
Federation President Maurie Mulheron used the platform of Department of Education Secretary Mark Scott’s Every Student podcast to express the need for improvements in the areas of staffing and system-wide support for the work of teachers.
Workload burden and how to fix it highlighted to federal MPs
7 March 2019
Section: News
Members’ concerns about excessive workload have been conveyed to a federal inquiry into the status of the teaching profession.
Workload campaign gains traction
28 February 2019
Section: News
The Department has responded to Federation’s campaign to prioritise teaching and learning with the release of a special edition of School Biz “Reducing the Administrative Burden” on 7 December, 2018.
Consultation important in HSC monitoring
16 November 2018
Section: News
After discussions with Federation, the Department has revised the 2019 HSC monitoring procedures and guidance material relating to these procedures, soon to be released.
Shift in work tasks vital to prioritise learning
24 September 2018
Section: News
The report on teachers’ workload states: “Teachers’ autonomy is seen to be an indicator of professional respect and is an integral element in professional roles where contradictory and conflicting demands require freedom to manage these within complete professional roles.”
New OECD report reveals the real cost of Morrison govt education cuts
12 September 2018
Section: News
Australian teachers are teaching larger classes and working significantly more hours than their colleagues overseas, while public funding for education as a percentage of total government expenditure is falling, according to a new report.
First steps to reclaiming teaching and learning focus
26 August 2018
Section: News
NSW Education Minister Rob Stokes has proposed a working group aimed at reducing the administrative burden on schools, arising from discussions with Federation on the initial and final findings of the research project “Understanding Work in Schools: The Foundation for Teaching and Learning”, commissioned by the union.
Profession offers suggestions to shift workload focus to teaching and learning
9 July 2018
Section: News
Immediate action is needed to address the “very substantial, potentially debilitating and growing” demands upon teachers, “particularly in relation to administrative work”, a new report by Sydney and Curtin university academics.
Local Schools, Local Decisions needs to go
9 July 2018
Section: News
Loud applause met Federation Deputy President Joan Lemaire’s statement, “We need to end Local Schools, Local Decisions,” at Annual Conference today.
First steps towards addressing administrative workload
26 June 2018
Section: News
Federation’s pursuit of concerns raised in the teachers’ workload survey is showing progress with the Department and Minister listening and responding to the issues raised by more than 18,000 members.
PLAN2 data collection requirements cut
18 June 2018
Section: News
The Department of Education has responded positively to Federation’s call for a significant reduction in the workload associated with data collection for PLAN2 in the Early Action for Success (EAfS) schools.
Stokes prioritises administrative workload reduction
7 June 2018
Section: News
Education Minister Rob Stokes says he shares “concerns that a teacher’s core role of educating children in the classroom can be adversely affected by the administrative burden,” in a letter to Federation, dated 1 June.
Let teachers teach — Call to reduce paperwork
7 May 2018
Section: News
Federation is seeking a meeting with NSW Education Minister Rob Stokes to call for a review of administrative and paperwork requirements, plus more direct support from the Department to schools in relation to student learning needs.
Overwhelming response to workload survey
31 March 2018
Section: News
Federation thanks the more than 18,200 members who responded to the survey “Understanding work in schools – the foundation for teaching and learning”, which closed on 26 March.