forefront
The fact that the Gonski Review suggests an
increase in school funding of more than $5 billion a year, or a 15 per cent budget boost, indexed to inflation from 2009, adds to the problem. Simplistic arguments will be repeated: what's the good of just throwing money at schools; a slip in outcomes is evidence that teaching standards have dropped; teachers unions are to blame; class sizes are too big. Vinson says it's true that teaching graduates
would benefit from more emphasis in their training on classroom management and strategies to engage kids, and smaller class sizes are known to deliver much better results, particularly at the beginning of a child's education and for those from disadvantaged backgrounds. Politicians and commentators who target
teachers as unaccountable and disinterested are wrong, Vinson says. The majority are dedicated, professional and self-sacrificing. In fact, the minimum standards required for appointment of a teacher in government schools "may or may not be" matched in private schools. "It's simply less transparent," he says. School funding is complicated with Canberra
and the states and territories all involved, but the most important thing is the level of funding. If the extra money is found, you'd hope that other points can be argued about later. Yes, there will be schools that are currently over-funded and churn out underachievers. According to the Gonski criteria they will score a D. Could try harder.
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