The teaching profession, arguably one of the most important of all, is under stress because of the stifling impact of big government, cumbersome bureaucracies and ideological unions.
The results of Labor’s big government trying to micro-manage service delivery has proved a disaster for the $43 billion National Broadband rollout, the $16 billion Julia Gillard National Memorial Classroom rort, the $2.3 billion pink-batt disaster, and the $1.5 billion cost blowout that has only delivered 150,000 of the 1 million computers promised for students.
Centralised bureaucracies spend their time developing rules and regulations which provide mountains of unnecessary paperwork for school principals. Left wing unions with a stranglehold on the teaching profession push politically correct agendas more akin to brainwashing than education.
It is ironic that within a profession that should empower young minds to realise their potential the opposite seems to be the case within much of the public education system. As a result parents are voting with their feet and making sacrifices to send their children to private schools where principals, teachers, parents and students are empowered to make decisions and be responsible for the outcomes.
A prime responsibility of our Federal and State Governments is to ensure that every Australian child receives a quality education. To achieve this they have to remove the dead weight of bureaucracy from our schools, bypass the ideological doctrines of left-wing Labor unions, delegate more responsibility to school principals and ensure they have the resources to meet the educational needs of their students.
Special consideration needs to be given to schools in disadvantaged and remote areas. Communities need to be empowered to take ownership of their schools. Principals and parents should have the flexibility to adapt to local needs. Teachers should be provided with realistic incentives to transfer to these environments. The curriculum should be flexible enough to meet the educational needs of local areas.
Successful schools within the public education system, and there are many, should be used as models for disadvantaged areas. These are usually the result of inspirational leadership from the school principal and his/her ability to motivate teachers, parents and students in spite of government bureaucrats and union officials.
Government must also ensure that the supply of teachers is sufficient to meet demand. Currently there is a shortage of 421 secondary teachers in NSW. Of more concern is the shortage of maths, science and technology teachers within this number. This means that hundreds of classes and thousands of students across NSW do not have permanent teachers.
It’s time for Kevin Rudd to stop spending money like a drunken sailor and refocus on his prime responsibility of ensuring every child in NSW has access to a quality education.
