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The latest education news for the principal and parent leaders
- President's message - a 'Stinking Bishop's' deal for funding
- Comment: David Gillespie, Trevor Cobbold, John Thompson
- Consultation on new Good Practice Guide for Healthy Eating and Drinking In Schools
- 7 Tips for Managing Exam Stress (ReachOut.com Australia)
- Transition to school infographic (ACSSO)
- Ford Australia's driving skills program dates
If you enjoy our October Australian Education News please use the Forward button in the footer section to share it with colleagues and friends.
Read our President's message
It’s hard not to sense the same sort of stench coming from the newly-minted special deal for our nation’s fully-loaded private schools. In fairground parlance everyone’s a winner! – unless of course, you happen to be a public school.
President's message
A Stinking Bishop’s Deal
In the world of washed-rind cheese there is one that is well known by children of all ages – and that is ‘Stinking Bishop’ – the mere whiff of which revives a comatose Wallace back to life in the movie ‘Wallace & Gromit: The Curse of the Were-Rabbit’.
It’s hard not to sense the same sort of stench coming from the newly-minted special deal for our nation’s fully-loaded private schools. In fairground parlance everyone’s a winner! – unless of course, you happen to be a public school.
The Prime Minister has seemingly bypassed his brand-new education Minister in a classic patriarchal attempt to deodorise the rotten stink coming from his betrayal of the tenets of Fair, Simple and Transparent, and truly needs based funding agreements with no special deals.
The odoriferous miasma from this outrage to common decency is seeping into the pores of non-government school advocates, where it will be impossible for them to ever completely remove the final traces of its disgusting aroma; no matter how many times they try to wash their hands.
...billions of dollars are due to be squandered on an already obscenely overfunded and exclusive sector...
And yet, within all this, we see the opposition declaiming the deal saying they will pay even more. No wonder Stephen Elder has been declared as the Financial Review’s most powerful person in education this year. It seems he has the Midas touch for Catholic and other wealthy private schools. Expert reaction in the media has been swift and excoriating, and with good reason.
Most of the states and territories were on the very cusp of signing new funding agreements with the Commonwealth, on the basis that they would underfund their 80% contribution to public schools by 5% whilst overfunding their required 20% donation to non-government schools; in some cases, close to half as much again.
Think on this for a moment - billions of dollars are due to be squandered on an already obscenely overfunded and exclusive sector, whilst our fully inclusive public schools that are open to all and increasingly the first choice for Australian families, are being cast aside like so much old news.
Now is the time to fully revive the fortunes of our nation’s superb and fully inclusive public schools, and support their surging enrolments, not with a whiff of Charles Martell’s finely crafted cheese, but with proper resourcing for our artisanal educators, authentic community partnerships and that magical bit of alchemy that all public schools deliver.
Our state and territory governments need to unite and stand up to this odoriferous insult from the PM. They alone have the power to correct this offensive absurdity by insisting on additional funding for our public schools, to balance out this special deal.
At the very least they can choose to set their contribution to non-government schools to 15% for now and shift anything above that to our public schools where it can make a real difference. Our children, their families and our nation’s future deserve nothing less.
Phillip Spratt
President
Australian Council of State School Organisations
October 2018
WHY ARE WE THROWING MONEY AT PEOPLE
WHO CHOOSE NOT TO USE PUBLIC EDUCATION?
Why are we indeed? David Gillespie poses a very good question.
Together the 12 households that have chosen not to use the education system funded by all taxpayers are asking the other 88 households to pay for their choice. They argue that in choosing not to use a public service they are saving the community money and so they should be compensated. But that is the equivalent of an avid reader suggesting he is saving the local library by buying his own books and then expecting his collection to be paid for by the taxpayer. Or the chap installing a pool in his backyard to be expecting it be paid for by the government because he is taking load off the public pool.
Click on the below link for David's full story.
SAVE OUR SCHOOLS - EDUCATION POLICY COMMENT
We're sharing this comment piece from Trevor Cobbold regarding both Labor and Coalition state governments' attempts to evade commitments to increase their funding of public schools through a subterfuge. His article goes deeply into the details of funding formulae and current political negotiations between the jurisdictions.
While the states are right to cry foul about the special and unjustified deal done by the Morrison Government to appease private schools, we have to be alert for more fudges in state government commitments to funding public schools.
Read his full article via the below link.
http://www.saveourschools.com.au/funding/state-govts-evade-commitments-to-public-schools
PRIVATE SCHOOLS DON’T PAY RATES AND TAXES
John Thompson, an economist, asks why ...
non-government schools receive very substantial financial benefits and concessions in addition to considerable State and Commonwealth grants. These concessions are known as ‘tax expenditures'.
It is important for all levels of government to consider the nature and level of tax expenditures for non-government schools when determining the level of direct government funding they should receive.
Read the full story on the below link.
http://johnmenadue.com/john-thompson-private-schools-dont-pay-rates-and-taxes/
CONSULTATION ON NEW GOOD PRACTICE GUIDE
Supporting Healthy Eating and Drinking in Schools
A consultation, led by the Department of Health, Queensland, on behalf of the Healthy Eating in Schools advisory group, is now open for input into the national draft Good Practice Guide - Supporting Healthy Eating and Drinking at School.
Click on the below link to view and share the document with anyone in your community who cares about the future health and wellbeing of our children. Your feedback is valued and welcome.
DOWNLOAD THE CONSULTATION PAPER HERE.
Complete the survey at this site asking about the content, pitch, structure and language of the document. The survey requires you to read the draft Good Practice Guide and should take less than 10 minutes to complete. The survey closes Monday 15th October 2018.
You may also be able to attend a consultation meeting in your state or territory.
Connect with families for transition
The time is upon us when schools are transitioning families and students into their school for 2019. Transition sessions are the first glimpse into school and determining future relationships. ACSSO has compiled the following five tips to encourage engaging interactions with families.
Ford Driving Skills For Life
ACSSO is proud to support Ford and its Driving Skills for Life programs run nationally and suitable for learners, provisional and licenced young drivers.
Driving Skills for Life allows participants to have hands-on training to learn new driving skills in a safe and controlled environment. The training will also highlight the importance of safety on the road and equip the new generation of drivers with skills beyond those taught in traditional driver education courses.
Program Dates:
Melbourne – 20th October
Ballarat – 21st October
Toowoomba – 28th October
Brisbane – 3rd November
Sydney – 8th December
Click the below link for further information and free registration.
http://www.acsso.org.au/index.php/portfolio/casual-theme-57/ford-driver-education
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Help us to help you!
Head over to http://www.acsso.org.au/have-say/3-messages-feedback/ and share your opinion on current education policies so we can present the widest possible views to decision makers.
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Email: contact@acsso.org.au
