AEU Journal Vol 42. No. 3 | May 2010

Official publication of the Australian Education Union (SA Branch)

Vol 42 I No.3

May 2010

AEUJOURNAL SA Working for the community INSIDE N

NAPLAN victory: Gillard agrees to working party

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TAFE: new campaign launched

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FPERAT E SUI D RE N ST’S VIEW

AEU JOURNAL

Moratorium lifted page 5 AEU President on NAPLAN settlement.

Australian Education Union | SA Branch 163 Greenhill Road, Parkside SA 5063 Telephone: 8272 1399 Facsimile: 8373 1254 Email: journal@aeusa.asn.au Editor: Craig Greer AEU Journal is published seven times annually by the South Australian Branch of the Australian Education Union.

AEU Journal 2010 Dates Deadline Publication date #4 May 28 June 16 #5 July 23 August 11 #6 August 27 September 15 #7

October 15

November 3

Subscriptions: Free for AEU members. Nonmembers may subscribe for $33 per year.

Print Post approved PP 531629/0025 ISSN 1440-2971 Illustration: Simon Kneebone Cover: Avante Media Printing: Finsbury Green Printing

Working for the community

Invest in Quality

page 10 BSSO Tiffanie Tran provides a crucial link between school and community.

page 9 TAFE campaign launched in SA.

L E T T E R S TO T H E E D I TO R

TOP LETTER

*Winner of TOP LETTER!

“LIES, DAMNED LIES AND STATISTICS” It was Mark Twain who said ‘lies, damned lies and statistics’. I hate to think what he would say if he were alive today. The My School website is using data to significantly mislead and ill inform. It is difficult to know whether the misleading information is due to ignorance or malice.

Some of the like school comparisons are ridiculous and would be funny if they were not so dangerous.

A primary school in the northern suburbs with an enrolment of less than 120 (R – 7) is described as statistically similar to a nearby local private college with an enrolment of over 1300 (R – 12). Depending on what “statistically similar” means I beg to differ! I have visited both; there is no similarity in facilities, resources or clientele.

At some recent DECS T&D I went to it was suggested that maths is important because it gives a simple way to describe our world. I would suggest that currently statistics are being used not in a simple way but a simplistic way. I am sure that

well qualified statisticians can use figures to provide valuable and informative information. I am not sure that many of our politicians and government bureaucrats have the required qualifications.

Even my basic high school maths taught me that when considering cohorts under a certain figure, statistics were inaccurate. It might also be useful to know what statistics they are comparing because I do not think that is clear on the website. Conversely, it would be prudent to analyse those statistics being ignored, such as enrolment numbers, funds available, etc.

We need to challenge the veracity of the statistics used on this site (and I suspect many others) at every opportunity.

Significant decisions about children’s futures are being made on the seriously flawed use of data.

I Jan Webber Principal, Magill Primary School

LEAGUE TABLES On the subject of league tables, members might be interested in navigating their way to this website: www. bettereducation.com.au It ranks all schools in each state according to their performance in the NAPLAN areas of spelling, reading, numeracy and so on.

Advertise in the AEU Journal. Reach over 13,500 members across South Australia.

8272 1399 journal@aeusa.asn.au

Got something to share with AEU members? Write a letter to the editor

AND WIN !!

Best letter in each AEU Journal will receive two tickets to an Adelaide Symphony Orchestra concert.

Email to:

journal@aeusa.asn.au It took me five minutes to compare our school with the five closest in our area.

What does the site actually tell us? Not much really. Without contextual information about the school, the rating is just a meaningless number waiting to be misconstrued and taken out of context.

The scary thought is if I can do this, so can our parents and potential new enrolments, and so too can a journalist (who could probably do it quicker than I).

Let’s hope the new 'working party' will work something out with Julia to ensure this type of thing can't be done and more importantly, published! Websites such as these should be shutdown immediately.

I Tobias O’Connor Deputy Principal, Gulfview Heights PS

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AEU PRESIDENT’S VIEW

VICE PRESIDENT’S VIEW

NAPLAN settlement a win for Public Education

Make ‘A’ vacancies count

“This win belongs to you and it will keep the issue of league tables alive long after the 2010 NAPLAN tests have concluded.”

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he first national campaign for the AEU, focused on the critically important issue of league tables. Since the launch of the My School website, league tables have been published in the media and on various websites.

There are no surprises with these tables. Our most disadvantaged, rural and remote schools do not appear at the top of simplistic ladders! After months of lobbying the Federal Government to no avail, collective action in the form of a national moratorium was enacted by every AEU branch and associated body in the lead up to the 2010 NAPLAN tests.

The AEU Federal Executive worked tirelessly to bring Deputy Prime Minister Julia Gillard to the negotiating table in order to reach a positive solution yet these requests were ignored. Instead, the Federal Government, via COAG and therefore state and territory education ministers, launched an unprecedented legal and industrial attack on the AEU and our members.

For a few weeks, it was reminiscent of the waterfront dispute, with threatened sackings, fines, disciplinary action, orders and legal sanctions via the Fair Work Employee Ombudsman - remember, Fair Work replaced WorkChoices!

Our colleagues in Victoria, the ACT and NT were facing fines of $6,600 per member. In NSW, sackings were threatened and schools were raided by the Education Department bureaucracy to retrieve NAPLAN test boxes. While we didn’t experience the intimidation and threats which were levied at our interstate colleagues, the AEU SA Branch was waiting on the decision of the Industrial Relations Commission when settlement was reached with Ms Gillard on Thursday 6 May.

There is no doubt that the high level of commitment shown by members around the nation under increasing pressure was the catalyst for the settlement offer from the Federal Government. Details of the settlement have been forwarded to worksites and members via email and can be found in the news section of AEU website.

One question that has been asked of me is: “Why did we settle the dispute now?” Firstly, we needed to ensure that our campaign had a vehicle for change beyond the NAPLAN test week.

Secondly, the establishment of a working party between the AEU, ACARA and other associations/unions will create the forum to have our issues addressed with respect to the misuse of NAPLAN data for the creation of league tables.

Thirdly, we now have a document from Ms Gillard that clearly states that the Federal Government has “an opposition to the use of student performance data for the construction of simplistic league tables” And lastly, but most importantly, our first national campaign had a win! Your actions brought Ms Gillard to the negotiating table and this enabled Federal Executive to settle the dispute.

Can I say to you that the issue of league tables has been resolved? No. Our campaign has good momentum and now it is time for us to continue our work in the political arena using the pressure and commitment of our national membership to keep the ALP honest and transparent when it comes to saying no to league tables.

May I extend the thanks of AEU Branch Executive members to all AEU members and in particular, principals, for their strong resolve and support for this campaign.

This win belongs to you and it will keep the issue of league tables alive long after the 2010 NAPLAN tests have concluded. I In solidarity, Correna Haythorpe, AEU President

As announced in an AEU fax to all schools on 30 April, the AEU has been involved in urgent discussions with DECS and the Principal Associations to increase the number of permanent teaching positions available to both contract and permanent teachers in this year’s Local Selection process.

Following these discussions, DECS issued a circular on 29 April outlining revised timelines for Stage 1 vacancy advertisements. SNAP and Anangu schools posted their advertisements on Friday 7 May. Vacancies for all other country and metropolitan schools will be advertised on 28 May, followed by consequential vacancies on 6 August.

The revised timelines are aimed at significantly increasing the number of long-term and permanent positions (‘A’ vacancies) and reducing the unacceptably high number of ‘B’ and ‘C’ vacancies, with a tenure of one year or less. This strategy will only be effective, however, if individual schools make a concerted effort to identify and advertise as many ‘A’ vacancies as possible.

AEU members consistently rate permanency and long-term placements as a very high priority, both on a personal level and in the interests of stability and continuity for schools. In recent years, the Local Selection process has failed to improve permanency rates, primarily because individual schools have not declared ongoing vacancies. Numerous schools have more than half their teaching staff on contracts, which is detrimental to students as well as our members, with teaching programs suffering because of high turn-over of staff.

I would therefore urge every Subbranch and every PAC representative to work together this year to maximise the number of ‘A’ vacancies declared. The success of a statewide strategy to increase permanency levels depends ultimately on action at the local level. Our colleagues in PAT and contract positions need our support and they need it now. Let us resolve collectively to make every ‘A’ vacancy count!

I Anne Crawford, AEU Vice President

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OPINION

Starting School in SA Making better use of the flexible amount of time in Reception

by Teresa Golin, Jean Horan Kindergarten

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s a preschool teacher of 25 years and mother of four adult children I am concerned about the short amount of time some children spend in junior primary in South Australian schools and how it may impact on their potential for future educational success.

Generally, South Australian children spend a minimum of three and a maximum of six

terms in Reception, usually starting school in the term following their 5th Birthday.

Most schools have a policy that children who start in Term 3 must have six terms of Reception, so these children continue in Reception in their second year of school.

Children who start in Term 2, however, mostly progress into Year 1 in their second year of School after three terms of Reception.

So, in effect, if your birthday is in May you would have six terms in Reception and if it is before the middle of April you would have only three.

As a mum I have seen my own children experience different amounts of time in Reception (our daughter having the minimum three terms) and have sent hundreds of children to school from preschool at the start of Term 2.

Having had these experiences, I feel worried about some of the children we send to school at the start of Term 2, often hoping that their Reception teachers will request

1 Teresa Golin with some of her preschoolers at the Jean Horan kindergarten.

that these children remain in Reception in the following year. I think, however, that this has not been the case.

In general, it appears most of these children are put into Year 1 in the following year. A long-term Reception teacher I spoke with recently said that to her knowledge in her school only one Term 2 intake child she could think of had been put back into Reception, and this child had a global developmental delay.

I feel parents, junior primary teachers and principals need to consider how only three terms in Reception may could affect these children. While many are ready and cope well, others would benefit from another Reception year rather than progressing through school as the youngest in their cohort. If anything, it seems there is a ‘put them up and see how they go’ mentality, which is, in effect, a step along the road to ‘this is how it’s going to be.’

If there is already some indication at the

To read the full version of Teresa Golin’s article go to: 6

www.aeusa.asn.au/sector_early_childhood.html

VICE V I CE PRESIDENT’S P R E S I D E N T ’ SREPORT VIEW

“...teachers should be carefully considering the advice we give parents and encouraging them to give their kids ample time to develop before rushing to move them on from Reception.”

end of three terms of Reception that a child has been struggling socially, emotionally, physically or intellectually, it is then quite possible putting them up into a straight Year 1 class will impact detrimentally on their future education. But sadly, it seems to be common practice.

Why put them up in the hope they might catch up, when they have shown they are already struggling? How likely is it they are going to catch up and actually excel when they made a difficult start?

Repeating or continuing for a further year in Reception is a simple way of giving them the best possible chance of catching up. In fact, countries like Finland don’t start their kids in school until their seventh birthday, a practice hailed as beneficial by researchers at Cambridge University in England. The university’s Primary Review found the disadvantage of being the youngest in a year group persisted right through primary and secondary school. While 60.7% of September-born girls achieved five good GCSEs (General Certificate of Secondary Education), only 55.2% of August-born girls achieved the same.

These research findings raise some important questions. Why start and continue through school as the youngest in the class when you can be the oldest? Would it not be preferable to have a firm grasp of all the routines and expected skills?

Wouldn’t it be better to be the confident child who helps the other students and the teacher? Is it not preferable to develop your self-esteem in a situation where you are continually succeeding and doing well?

I have asked the parents of these Term 2 intake children to think carefully before allowing their child to begin an educational journey that may place them at a disadvantage throughout their time at school.

Many parents do not feel empowered to make educational decisions regarding their children and need the advice of teachers. I believe that teachers should be carefully considering the advice we give parents and encouraging them to give their kids ample time to develop emotionally, socially, physically and intellectually before rushing to move them on from Reception.

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Delays to SACE implementation must be overcome quickly Schools are doing their damndest to make sure the new SACE is working for their students.

David Smith reports

After the arrival of the PLP last year and the ensuing urgent build-up to the introduction of Stage 1, teachers, principals and SACE coordinators are now coping with its first year as well as scurrying to get things in order for Stage 2 to be introduced next year. But it’s a confusing and difficult task.

For the last couple of years we have been very concerned the new SACE curriculum plan was being rushed into place.

We expressed our concerns to the Future SACE team, the SACE Board, and the then Minister Jane Lomax-Smith. We were assured sufficient resources had been put into the planning and implementation of the new SACE. In May last year we met the minister and asked for two pupil-free days for schools to prepare their curriculum plans. We were rebuffed.

We know what has happened with the Learning Assessment Plans for Stage 1 subjects this semester. In a recent letter to principals and SACE coordinators, the SACE Board explained the approval and return of the plans had been delayed for 50 schools until the beginning of Term 2.

That is clearly unsatisfactory, but many other schools did not receive their plans – approved or otherwise – until the last week of Term 1. Even then, some plans came back to the schools without being approved.

That has caused a number of critical problems. Some teachers have told the AEU they had to delay the teaching of certain important sections of their course until they were sure of the approval. With just a few weeks of the semester now remaining those teachers and students are working flat out to complete the course, and in

some cases they are fearful they will not be able to do justice to the material or indeed complete the course at all.

Further, there are real problems for some in getting together in clusters for crossmarking. Schools are finding that, without a time allowance or funding, it is very difficult to meet, especially in country locations.

The SACE Board assures schools they will be ‘working together to get the systems right’. Amen to that, but I can’t help concluding there was simply insufficient resourcing for SACE Stage 1 implementation. But that was Stage 1? What of Stage 2?

Granted, the curriculum books have been available for some time, but with the generally higher stakes placed on Stage 2 – especially for tertiary entry – we must all ensure the preparation is timely and effective. Once again, teachers of senior secondary courses are conscientiously working on their current courses and trying to attend sessions to prepare them for the new aspects of Stage 2.

We meet with SACE Board personnel on a regular basis and appreciate doing so. It gives us the opportunity to discuss progress, issues and concerns with the aim of benefiting teachers as they prepare their courses. When it comes to allotting extra preparation time within government schools, however, it is DECS and not the SACE Board who bear responsibility. As a union, we also work with DECS to bring our members’ legitimate concerns to light, and to ensure the workload of such an initiative as SACE in its newest form will be manageable.

For our part, we will be urging those parties to make sure teachers of all subjects, especially the new Research Project, have the time and resources to adequately prepare.

In addition to all of that is the uncertainty about student subject choices for Stage 2 in 2011. Once the course counselling is completed, there will be significant timetabling and staffing implications for schools. If schools eventually deal with the Research Project in Year 11, how many contact hours per week will Stage 2 subjects have? Which subjects will not be taught for want of student numbers?

Next we will have the new Australian Curriculum for senior secondary years. How many changes will that require?

Whatever happens, we must still get this I SACE right, and time is short.

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L E AG U E TA B L E S

Life outside the blinkers “Over time, my doubts about accountability and choice deepened as I saw the negative consequences of their implementation.”

Diane Ravitch

Australian public education is heading down a dangerous path but Julia Gillard’s eyes are shut.

AEU Research Officer Mike Williss reports

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hat is there to learn from recent developments in education in several prominent OECD countries? Some seemingly unrelated observations may well tie into the Australian debate around the so-called “Education Revolution”.

Australian teachers have had their first taste of national testing and school league tables and are mobilising to support a moratorium on the NAPLAN tests. In England, where schools have suffered for years under a league table regime, head teachers and

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deputies covered by the National Association of Head Teachers (NAHT) and the National Union of Teachers (NUT) voted on April 15 to boycott this year’s Year 6 national maths and English tests.

Only school leaders were balloted so their industrial action could be protected as part of a campaign to defend their terms and conditions of employment. NAHT members supported the ballot by 61% and NUT members by 75%. The use of the tests to compile damaging league tables and the inevitable narrowing of the curriculum in favour of repetitive test drilling has prompted school leaders to finally act after many years’ experience of “accountability” and “choice”.

On the other side of the lake, a former proponent of neo-liberal “reform” of US public education, Diane Ravitch, has published a book which denounces the reform agenda to which she was previously so heavily committed. Ravitch, who joined the administration of George Bush Snr in 1991 and worked for successive Presidents and their school reform agendas, writes: “Over time, my doubts about accountability and choice deepened as I saw the negative consequences of their implementation”.

“Part of the agenda that has led US school reform is the blame attached to teachers for student underperformance.”

Poverty and ethnicity were downplayed as factors affecting learning. In their place,

teacher quality became a relatively no-cost scapegoat for educational woes. Gillard has swallowed this hook, line and sinker and says to an appreciative right-wing media that “demography is not destiny” and that “underperformance and failure” (by teachers and schools) “will no longer be tolerated”.

Ravitch is not alone in fighting attacks on US public education. In Florida, Governor Charlie Crist vetoed a Bill which aimed to tie teacher pay to student results and to abolish permanency for all new teacher appointments. This followed a massive campaign by teachers and parents that included sickouts, sit-ins, street protests and letter writing. According to the Miami Herald: “The governor’s office has received nearly 120,000 messages about the bill.

Though about 51,000 were still unread, almost 65,000 of the logged messages opposed the bill. Just 3,000 supported the bill.” People’s power triumphed!

Back in Europe, the “choice” agenda suffered a major blow when it was revealed Sweden’s high performing and equitable education system had slipped steadily in the OECD’s PISA rankings. Sweden had pioneered the dismantling of public education by means of public “independent” schools (for-profit schools that were given control over their budgets and curriculum) and decentralisation of the rest of the nation’s education budget to some 290

TA F E – C A M PA I G N L A U N C H

Invest in Quality, Invest in TAFE

Recently, Federal TAFE Secretary, Pat Forward, visited SA to launch the new TAFE Campaign AEU TAFE Organiser Alan Wilson reports

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www.aeusa.asn.au/sector_tafe.html

At a lunchtime meeting at Regency TAFE, Pat spoke to members about the need to lobby the Government to properly invest in TAFE. The launch coincided with the release of new figures that showed how cuts in funding and resources were forcing TAFEs to turn away students across the state. A recent survey of TAFE teachers and managers across Australia showed rising demand across the states for the quality training and education only TAFE can provide.

Almost 65 percent in South Australia indicated that they had been forced to turn away students from their institute in the last two years. It was probably no coincidence that at the same time over 70 percent of teachers reported the overall budget for their department had fallen.

If the Government is serious about reducing unemployment, tackling skills shortages, meeting future workforce demand and ensuring all South Australians can get

the skills and education they need to get well-paid, secure jobs they need to drastically improve funding to TAFEs around the country.

In addition to the findings of the State of our TAFE’s survey, Pat reported on new research conducted by the Centre for the Economics of Education and Training (CEET) at Monash University which showed TAFE funding per student hour in South Australia had fallen by 16 percent since 2003. In dollar terms, the report shows that if both expenditure per hour and TAFEs share of that expenditure had been maintained, even at 2003 levels, TAFEs funding would have been $623.6m (17%) greater in 2008 than it actually was.

The report costed two COAG targets for higher level qualifications: halving the proportion of the population without a Certificate 3 or higher qualification and doubling the annual number of diploma completions by 2020. This research demonstrates that the Government needs to spend an additional $200 million a year until 2020 to meet new COAG targets if it is to be nothing more than another Rudd Government “broken commitment”.

While the Federal Government needs to lead the way by increasing funding, and this is what the AEU campaign is focused on in the lead up to the Federal Election, the SA Government must also start investing more in the quality training and education that only TAFE can provide.

Increasingly, the pressure is on TAFE staff to do more with less and to “teach smarter”. There comes a point with this mindset where the quality of training is seriously compromised and we no longer have a skilled workforce.

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Support the Campaign:

municipalities.

Public “independent” schools were introduced by the Liberals in Western Australia, and were a key part of the SA Liberal Party’s education policy for the last state election. A report on Sweden concluded “the results show that Swedish schools have become less effective in compensating for socio-economic differences” and cited record levels of immigration, particularly by refugees from the war in Iraq. It’s funny how “demography” is resurrected as an excuse when things go pear-shaped for right-wing reforms! The Swedes are still targeting the “quality of teaching”, however, and plan to bring in testing from Grade 5, school inspections and a mandated curriculum for the independent schools to try and make up the losses.

Meanwhile, Finland – which doesn’t exist for Gillard and her advisors – holds its preeminent position. Last year more than 100 foreign delegations and governments visited Helsinki, hoping to learn the secret of their schools’ success. (Gillard went instead to New York where she shared a platform with Jeb Bush and praised the US equivalent of Whelan the Wrecker - Joel Klein, Michelle Rhee and Arne Duncan). Finland requires new entrants to teaching to have a Master’s Degree in Education (Gillard promotes Teach for Australia which only requires six weeks of training). Children do not start school until the age of seven, and spend the fewest number of hours in the classroom in the developed world (Gillard supports the US-derived Pearson model of extended school hours).

Demography partly explains Finland’s results. Finland has low levels of immigration. So when pupils start school, most speak the native language, eliminating a problem that other societies face.

No standardised tests, no league tables, no “choice” …aah, gotta love that “demography” excuse!

But wait, there’s more. “A tactic used in virtually every lesson is the provision of an additional teacher who helps those who struggle in a particular subject. But the pupils are all kept in the same classroom, regardless of their ability in that particular subject.”

Perhaps when the volcanic ash finally settles over Europe, the Deputy Prime Minister might show some modesty and flexibility and broaden her evidence base with a trip to Finland!

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COVER STORY

PHOTO: AVANTE MEDIA

Working for the community Bilingual SSO Tiffanie Tran provides an important link between cultures

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urrently working at Ridley Grove Primary School in Woodville Gardens, BSSO (Bi-lingual School Services Officer) Tiffanie Tran has been working with migrant families in South Australian schools since 1991. Including her national Vietnamese, Tiffanie speaks three Chinese dialects and English.

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Working mostly with Vietnamese and Chinese families, Tiffanie says translating has allowed her to work with a wide range of educators and administrators, adding considerably to her knowledge and skills in the workplace.

“I’ve worked with teachers, special education teachers, principals, school counsellors, governing councils, department officers and almost anyone who is involved the school community. This has given me extensive knowledge about how the system works and about how I can best assist the students and families I work with,” says Tiffanie.

Having previously worked in head office, Tiffanie is back working with new arrivals at Ridley Grove Primary School, which caters for around 25 different cultural groups.

1 BSSO Tiffanie Tran with parents and students at Ridley Grove Primary School

“We have a high number of new arrivals in the area so there is a lot of work for me helping them with the language. I also do some work as an ECW at Mansfield Park, which will soon merge with Ridley Grove, Ferryden Park and Woodville Gardens Preschool,” she says.

The opening of a so-called Super School on the Ridley Grove site, due in 2011, will no doubt create new challenges for Tiffanie, who is already relied upon by parents for advice on all kinds of matters from school through to Australian social practices.

“With the parents and families asking for help about how to enrol and how to choose a school, I have to give good advice.

Parents put their trust in me to make these decisions.”

“If the school requires it, I will do a home visit with maybe the school counsellor or

I N T E R N AT I O N A L

Can New York clean up the testing mess?

“One gets the feeling that like many educators, Tiffanie is more concerned for the children and the families she works with than her personal situation.”

the special ed or classroom teacher. I often need to help families with parenting skills and that kind of thing so my role is quite varied and interesting. I get to put a lot back into the community,” says adds.

Parents often come to Tiffanie for advice on how things work in Australia, like the school starting age and mixed classes, which are not common in Vietnam or China. “Parents sometimes don’t understand that in a mixed class the work expectations are different for say Year 3s than Year 4s. So I help explain things like that,” she says.

With 20 years experience and incredibly broad expertise, Tiffanie is one of the many BSSOs yet to be offered a permanent job.

“The most difficult thing is the new year period when I don’t have a contract,” she says. “I have to ask the school to make a manual payment in advance because payroll and personnel haven’t sorted it out. If this didn’t happen I would not be paid until the middle of Term 1.”

“I do 15 hours of ECW work which is permanent but my 22 hours of BSSO work is yet to be converted, even though they really need me to do the translation work.

It doesn’t make sense, but I’m hoping soon it will get better,” she says.

One gets the feeling that like many educators, Tiffanie is more concerned for the children and the families she works with than her personal situation. Her disappointment with her employment status is clearly overshadowed by her love for her job. “The children I work with are wonderful and I enjoy it so much,” she says, with the kind of warm smile that would make even the most recent migrant I feel welcome and at home.

When test scores become the goal of the teaching process, they both lose their value as indicators of educational status and distort the educational process in undesirable ways.

By Sol Stern

As New York State’s executive and legislative branches sank into a swamp of corruption and political paralysis this winter, something brave, honest, and totally unexpected took place in one Albany office.

Pounding the table and refusing to accept any more excuses, the new chancellor of the Board of Regents, Merryl Tisch, forced the state’s notoriously dysfunctional department of education to submit to an outside audit of the reading and math tests, mandated by the federal No Child Left Behind (NCLB) act, that it has administered to all students in grades three through eight. A memorandum of understanding between the department and Harvard professor Daniel Koretz—one of the nation’s top testing experts—gives Koretz access to the data he’ll need to determine whether New York’s test scores have been inflated.

And once he does, it’s likely the state’s claims of spectacular student progress will be revealed as an illusion.

Such a development would be healthy for education reform nationally, because all states need to come clean about testscore inflation. Reliable tests of student achievement are as essential for improving education as accurate monitoring of bloodsugar levels was to advancing the treatment of diabetes. Unfortunately, when NCLB became law, it left the door wide open to massive test inflation by stipulating all

American students “will be proficient” by the year 2014—and imposing a series of increasingly onerous sanctions on districts and schools not moving toward that goal—yet allowing each state to develop its own tests and set its own standard for “proficiency.” Since men are not angels, it was inevitable some state education authorities would lower the proficiency bar to make themselves look good to the feds.

Now the Obama administration has launched the most expansive (and expensive) federal school-reform initiative in American history. Like NCLB, the initiative judges teachers, schools, and states by improvements in students’ test scores.

But testing could be the Achilles’ heel of Obama’s reform agenda unless states like New York, where sudden student improvements strain all credulity, shape up.

For more than two decades, mainstream American social science has recognized that accountability schemes like NCLB can lead to fraud and distortion. The principle even has a name: Campbell’s Law, after Donald Campbell, one of the greatest American social scientists of the twentieth century. In one study, Campbell observed various companies’ attempts to improve employees’ performance indicators by giving them incentives. He came up with this general formulation: “The more any quantitative social indicator is used for social decision making, the more subject it will be to corruption pressures and the more apt it will be to distort and corrupt the social processes it is intended to monitor.”

Campbell even extended the ‘law’ to the realm of education testing, writing “when test scores become the goal of the teaching process, they both lose their value as indicators of educational status and distort the educational process in undesirable ways.” In plain English: when school districts, prompted by systems like NCLB, offer teachers and administrators substantial incentives to raise students’ test scores, the teachers and administrators will be tempted to find extraordinary means — but not always ethical ones — to get the test scores up.

I From New York’s City Journal. The unabridged version can be found via the League Tables section of AEU SA Website: Home > Issues > League Tables

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L E AG U E TA B L E S

Julia Gillard agrees to working party After a long standoff, a breakthrough finally comes AEU Federal Executive Resolution 0n NAPLAN 6 May, 2010 The Federal Executive of the AEU acknowledges with admiration and respect the profound commitment and dedication of members in the campaign to protect students, schools and school communities from the misuse of student data and the damaging effects of league tables.

Acting with integrity, AEU members have demonstrated their professional and ethical commitment to their students and Federal Executive congratulates members on achieving an outcome that enables the profession’s concerns to be addressed.

In contrast, this dispute has seen governments and their departments take extraordinarily deplorable and unwarranted actions, ignoring the professional and educational concerns at the heart of this dispute. The AEU Federal Executive condemns the intimidation and threats of disciplinary action, the recourse to punitive legal action raising the prospect of penalties and thousands of dollars in fines against individual teachers and principals as well as the employment of unqualified people, including tourists, to supervise tests.

The Federal Executive welcomes the proposal by the Deputy Prime Minister Julia Gillard to form a working party of educational experts including literacy and numeracy specialists, principal organisations and representatives of the AEU and IEUA to provide further professional advice on the use of student performance and other indicators of school effectiveness as ACARA continues to develop the My School website.

The working party’s advice and the work of ACARA in further developing the My School website will be in line with the clear commitments of the Federal Government, as stated in the Deputy Prime Minister’s letter of 5 May 2010, which includes “an opposition to the misuse of student performance data including simplistic league tables”. This proposal from the Deputy Prime Minister will provide a process to

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advance and address the profession’s educational concerns as they relate to the misuse of student performance data including league tables. It will also provide a way for the profession as a whole to engage in a genuine dialogue with the government on a sound approach to school accountability and improvement.

Accordingly, the Federal Executive of the AEU lifts the moratorium on the administration of NAPLAN 2010 and will advise its members of this decision.

While it is regrettable that the Federal Government has refused to entertain the

option of delaying the NAPLAN in order to allow a smooth administration of the test, in light of the disruption to preparation over the last three weeks the opportunity exists for state/territory governments and their departments to delay the tests as per the NAPLAN guidelines developed by ACARA. The AEU remains resolute in its opposition to the publication of damaging league tables and other inappropriate, invalid, inaccurate and misleading school rankings and will continue to campaign against the misuse of student performance data and the creation and publication league tables. I

I N D U ST R I A L

A history lesson: professionalism, defiance and principle The issue of high stakes standardised testing has been a matter of professional and educational concern to union members since the basic skills tests were introduced into South Australian schools in the mid 1990s.

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n 1995 the then Liberal Government (remember Brown, Olsen and Lucas?) determined they would implement the Basic Skills Test for students in Years 3 and 5. This resulted in a widespread boycott of the test by teachers concerned at the impact this would have upon their students. The debate and opposition was so heated that teachers determined they would stop work on the day of the test and picket schools and classrooms where the tests were to be conducted. The employer also threatened to stand down teachers who were not willing to undertake the test.

Negotiation between the government and union led to a deal being struck. The agreement reached enabled teachers to exercise their professional judgement without reprisal, on the condition they would not strike or picket the school.

The agreement says: The only circumstances in which a teacher or principal will lose pay are: • Failure to report for duty for industrial reasons, • Failure to undertake teaching duties or administrative duties as directed by the principal, district superintendant or other DECS delegate.

Denis Ralph, in communicating the agreement to employees, stated: “Teachers and principals who boycott the test will be

required to undertake other teaching duties or administrative duties as directed by the principal, district superintendent or DECS delegate with no consequent loss of pay.”

More importantly the boycott led to an agreement between Education Minister Lucas and the union on a code of conduct on use of the test results. This included an undertaking the data would not be published so as to compare schools and create league tables nor could the data be used to measure teacher competence. This agreement has operated successfully until now. Further, the Minister advised that legislative provisions around copyright and freedom of information could and would be used to prevent league tables from happening. If such provisions were applied in 2010 then there would not have been the disruption around the 2010 NAPLAN tests.

While this agreement was in place the AEU and teachers continued to campaign against the basic skills test. In 2000 the AEU wrote to members stating that in 1997, 1998 and 1999, 50% of teachers had boycotted the test. Parents also supported the action by withdrawing their children from the tests. The world did not end, schools were still funded, schools strategically planned and parents received quality information on the educational progress of their children.

The boycott of the basic skills test continued until it was replaced by the LaN in 2003. In 2003, the Rann Labor Government, elected on a promise of opposition to the basic skills test, made changes to the test which then became the LaN. By this stage the testing had been extended to include year 7.

Data protocols were negotiated with the AEU which were agreed by both parties for each of LaN tests.

The protocol said: “DECS employees at system or site level will not publish or broadcast or aid in the publication or broadcast of any information on achievement which allows comparison between individual learners or which ranks sites.”

The AEU still maintained its opposition and teacher participation in the LaN tests was voluntary. The same protocols from the basic skills test continued to apply where a teacher who refused to do the test was reassigned to other duties rather than losing pay and being stood down.

In 2006, new and more comprehensive data protocols were finally agreed. This

“DECS employees at system or site level will not publish or broadcast or aid in the publication or broadcast of any information on achievement which allows comparison between individual learners or which ranks sites.”

agreement between DECS and the AEU was formally communicated to schools at the start of the 2007 school year.

3.1.3 of the protocols state: “The child/ student information at the learning environment, site and system levels is to inform curriculum reform and improvement initiatives and resource allocation as appropriate. Use of data must be in a form that will protect individuals and not allow easy compilation of league tables.”

See www.aeusa.asn.au for protocols In 2008 the NAPLAN was introduced.

Again AEU members had educational and professional concerns with the test. These tests were to operate under the agreed protocols. AEU executive endorsed support for individuals who for professional reasons and/or workload reasons cannot agree to administer the NAPLAN tests.

This was communicated to members.

The agreed protocols were to remain in place and to this day still appear on the DECS website. Unfortunately the employer is no longer abiding by the agreements reached, which has in part led to the league table dispute we have today.

It is concerning to the union that the employer believes it does not need to honour agreements made with its employees nor does it think it appropriate to sit down and negotiate changes to such agreements.

This is why the collegiality of the profession and the solidarity of the union are so important in maintaining a quality public education system for our children and their children. Otherwise the political and industrial circle will bring us back to where we began.

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M Y SC H O O L

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n NSW, principals have sent an interesting letter to local members in marginal seats. We all send campaign letters but this one is tailor made for each electorate.

It can be tailor made for your electorates.

It opens by explaining that pressure is mounting to have My School fixed because it is misleading and in some cases grossly unfair. This opening is followed by a number of challenges to specific local members.

To put it in the South Australian context you can say this to some local MPs. You can say this to Jamie Briggs in Mayo: Did you know that Aberfoyle Park High seems to outperform just three schools in Year 9 reading and perform well below another? The first two are boys schools and the third a girls school. How can they be statistically similar to Aberfoyle Park?

Did you know the girls’ school against which it is compared is also a selective

Ask your federal member...

Chris Bonnor is a retired NSW secondary principal and co-author of The Stupid Country: How Australia is dismantling public education.

Recently he addressed AEU SA members on the flaws of My School. school? Please explain?

Are you going to tell Heathfield High that it is an underperforming school? After all, according to My School it is substantially below 20 schools in Year 9 reading. But, all these 20 are selective in one way or the other. Is this comparison fair? If not, could you at least tell the Member for Sturt?

We can say this to Mark Butler, member for Port Adelaide: Government schools such as Le Fevre High are required to take all local students. Yet My School wants us to believe its enrolment is the same as found at Trinity College Blakeview – next to your electorate, a school where Year 9 fees are around $4000. Do you believe a strictly comparable range of students actually walks each day through the front gates of both these schools? Are you going to take this up with the Deputy-Prime Minister?

The Honorable Nick Champion in the electorate of Wakefield might like to be reminded he has two schools in his electorate almost on the same ICSEA. While Gawler High must take local students almost without condition, enrolment at Craigmore Christian School (same ICSEA) is subject to many conditions and agreements –including fees – to which parents must agree. Contrary to what My School claims, they clearly don’t enrol similar stu-

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dents. Might this explain why their NAPLAN scores are different? Under these circumstances do you believe Craigmore is a better school? If so how might you explain this to the parents and students at Gawler High?

If not, would you like to take the matter up with the Deputy-Prime Minister?

Schools in the seat of Adelaide offer fascinating contrasts. Keep in mind I am an outsider and my observations might be wrong but in Australia we have highdemand and low-demand public secondary schools or shades in between. The former are in middle class areas and the latter serve low-income suburbs.

There is now ample evidence to show how the former have boomed and the latter declined. We reward the former by letting them take more students or become independent public schools – and we close down the latter. Isn’t this happening in the seat of Adelaide with Adelaide High on the one hand and Enfield High on the other? It sure looks like it. Of course this predates My School but the website will accentuate such trends. Maybe you could challenge Kate Ellis to tell Enfield High it is underperforming.

The seat of Hindmarsh has another ALP member who sits in the ALP caucus and like the rest of them probably asks “how high”

when Kevin and Julia tell them to jump. But Henley High has a girl:boy ratio of 4:6. It can’t be compared to schools where there is better balance. What about Underdale High School? Sixteen out of the eighteen statistically similar schools that do better than Underdale are selective in some way or another.

And I looked at the ICSEA of Warriapendi School – how can it be correct? Ask the local member to see if he can make sense out of its list of so-called similar schools.

One of these is Gladstone High in the electorate of Grey.

If you can get him to listen why not ask the Member for Sturt if he can explain why Charles Campbell Secondary School has the same ICSEA as Adelaide’s St Mary’s College.

The latter is an all girls school with Year 9 fees of $4600. Ask him to go out to Charles Campbell and chastise the kids for not doing as well as the belles of St Marys. Or better still, persuade him to ask the DPM a question in the House of Reps about this. It might reflect deeper thought about some of the important issues in education - but he has to make a start somewhere. I

”

The audio of Chris’ speech can be downloaded in full from the podcast section of the AEU Website.

A STO R Y

The Doctors

by Stephen Measday, Principal, Keithcott Farm PS

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here was once a group of doctors who had developed a local practice over a number of years. They were well respected and greatly appreciated by the many people who came to them for treatment and support for their medical and wellbeing issues. They loved what they did and knew that they were making a difference in their community and in the lives of their patients.

One day the government decided it needed to be seen to be doing something about improving the health of the nation. No one doubted there were things which could be improved and that there should be some planning for the future health needs of the nation. The doctors were happy to be involved in projects that would improve people’s health.

One of the decisions made by the government was to try to improve health services in local communities. A view emerged that too many people were dying and that measures should be taken to reduce the number of deaths. Another view emerged that people needed to know which were the best doctors in their area so they could go to ‘the best doctors’ for their health care. The fact that people had been making decisions about their doctors for years was ignored.

It was decided to gather statistics on the number of patients who died while in the care of each doctor and make this information available to the public via a website.

The doctors were alarmed. Patients die and a part of the doctor’s role was to support their patients through all aspects of their health care and lives. Why was this statistic being used? What about their work with health care plans, their specialist research and work supporting families with children with blood disorders? What about the success of their practice in the area of teenage health? What about all of the other things that they did to support their patients every week? When the doctors complained they were told by the government they were being unprofessional, that they were afraid of opening up their statistics to public scrutiny. They were told they were afraid of being compared to other doctors and what they really needed to do was reduce the number of patients who died while in their care.

The public were told, up until now, they had no way of comparing doctors and that

“It was decided to gather statistics on the number of patients who died while in the care of each doctor and make this information available to the public via a website.”

the website would give them a tool to use in making their decisions. Many, who had trusted their doctors for many years began to doubt their judgement and became afraid if they stayed with their doctor they might have an increased risk of dying! The doctors knew this was nonsense but the government set up teams of medical specialists to work with doctors with high death statistics so they could improve their service to their patients. The specialists would spend weeks looking at all aspects of a medical practice, talking with patients and staff.

What made this worse was that several other countries had tried to improve their health services in this way and all had failed. Indeed, the impact of this was to damage the health care services to such an extent that it was going to take years to repair

them. This did not deter the government.

People began to lose faith. They were happy with their doctor but the government was telling them there might be better doctors nearby and many thought of leaving their local practice.

There was even a suggestion from the government that medical payments to doctors might be linked to the death statistics in their practice!

The doctors were faced with a professional crisis. They had always believed they were in practice for all of their patients and that their role was to support the health needs of every patient who came through the door. This was why they became doctors and why they formed their local practice. What were they to do?

Our doctors eventually made a decision and instituted a new policy. They refused to take on any new patients over the age of 50. Other new patients who came to them with life threatening conditions were referred on to specialists or other medical practices and, over time, their statistics improved. The government was happy and rewarded the practice with praise and financial support. The patients now thought they knew which doctors to go to.

Years later, the government and the public were at a loss to understand why it was they could not attract new doctors I into general practice.

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PROFILE

Putting theory into practice at the Parks Parks Children’s Centre Director, Nittaya Cameron, bends down to pick up a dummy off the floor, washes it and coaxes a toddler to take it from her… rather than bringing it to him.

by Renata Provenzano

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ell-read in the suggested pedagogy of Piaget through to Vygotsky, Nittaya’s education style is a preference to encourage children to reach for challenges and make no presumptions on what they can do based on their age.

“Never make an assumption of a child’s ability to learn,” Nittaya says. “I congratulate achievement by giving the kids more challenges. I assist the children rather than make an assumption of their ability and tell them what to do. Children will tell you what they can and can’t do.”

Photos of the multicultural mix of children learning together, creating artworks and dancing, decorate the walls from the foyer corridor through to the busy openplanned play rooms. Some babies are being fed and some lay sleeping, while the older toddlers sit around colourful tables for afternoon fruit and pikelets: each with their own story.

With more than 40 children from challenging socio-economic or ethnic minority backgrounds attending the centre daily, Nittaya’s involvement with them is obvious.

“I know all the children here – if I am in my office and hear someone crying, I know who it is,” Nittaya says.

“This child is 50% at risk,” Nittaya points to a small-framed child who returns to a

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home of drug addiction and potential neglect every night. The child holds her emptied bowl up to a child care worker for more food. “That one had a brain haemorrhage at birth. We have to make sure she doesn’t fall down.” Another staffer sits next to this child while she eats.

As the rain dries up the children are ushered outside to a large canopied sand pit and safely fenced grass playing area.

Not all the children are at risk. Many from diverse cultural backgrounds have parents who are studying or working.

Nittaya’s hands-on approach extends to the parents of her charges. “I love my job.

I love working here because it is a non-profit centre. If parents are behind in payments I bring them here and show them what we are doing and why it’s important for them to pay for their child’s care.” Nittaya has also helped one child’s mother develop a plan to meet Centrelink’s expectations for her to work one day a week while continuing her studies, by giving her work at the centre.

Nittaya’s role as director just three years after graduating with a Bachelor of Early Childhood Education from the University of South Australia is an extraordinary achievement for someone raised with minimal education. Growing up with farming parents in Puntakoen, Thailand, Nittaya left school at the age of 12.

“My friend’s brother brought an English dictionary home from high school so I

“I assist the children rather than make an assumption of their ability and tell them what to do.” read it to learn English.” When her parents prepared an arranged marriage as is Thai custom for teenage girls, Nittaya ran away, married an Australian traveller and arrived in Australia in 1984. When the marriage ended she was a single mother with no education and few job prospects.

So began a dedicated effort to earn TAFE certificates and eventually begin her university studies while raising her daughter, remarrying and working.

She first worked at Parks Children’s Centre as a childcare worker but was given the chance to act as director on a few occasions during staff changes. Now in charge, Nittaya says the most important aspect of caring for and teaching children is to provide their basic needs first.

“Offering a safe environment gives them an opportunity to learn and be a success in any way – whether it’s in art or maths or just to sit and talk to you is achieving.”

In the first term of 2011 the centre will be converted to provide occasional care.

A long day care children’s centre is currently being developed on the Ridley Grove Primary School site.

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1 ST M AY 2 0 1 0

May Day celebrated in the sun With May 1st this year falling on a Saturday, members of trade unions, including a contingent from the AEU, marched from Victoria Square to the Torrens Parade Grounds in glorious sun to celebrate the international day of the workers on May Day. With the Federal Government’s failure to address the Howard-era construction industry laws, the ongoing intervention in the Northern Territory and the campaign for equal pay for women, there were no shortage of banners, placards and speakers calling for change.

Former ACTU President Sharan Burrow warned participants an Abbott Coalition government would reintroduce a full-blown WorkChoices industrial relations regime. The ACTU has launched a campaign with the slogan “WorkChoices – whatever the name, never again” in response to this prospect. Sharan bade a sad farewell to May Day marchers as she prepares to take up her post of General Secretary of the International Trade Union Confederation in Brussels. Marchers made their way from Victoria Square to the Torrens Parade Ground where a family fun day was held.

That evening, guests at the annual May Day dinner were addressed by renowned human rights lawyer Julian Burnside QC. His reminiscing of the Patrick dispute and the tense battles for the rights of asylum seekers were part of an entertaining account of his personal transformation from a conservative barrister to a defender of the workers’ cause – the object of hate mail and other forms of vilification. The ‘Spanner Award’ for services to May Day this year went to MUA veteran Rex Munn.

Lifelong labour movement activist Eulalie Tapp had her name added to the Workers’ Memorial in Port Adelaide this year. Her sons gave accounts of their mother’s impressive dedication.

AEU members are encouraged to bring their families along to next year’s march and fun day which, weather being kind, promises to be even bigger and better than this year’s event.

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CONTRIBUTE to the AEU JOURNAL or WEBSITE

and WIN!!

1st PRIZE: Sony Full 1080 HD Digital Video Camera valued at $1500

2nd PRIZE:

Can you write, photograph, video, draw, Photoshop or Flash?

Two nights at “Bayview”, North Beach, Wallaroo, York Peninsula

If you’ve got articles, videos, photos, animations, letters,

To view: www.stayz.com.au/68950

cartoons or virtually anything that can be printed or

3rd PRIZE:

published online, send it to the AEU Communications team for your chance to win one of three prizes this year.

Two tickets to see the Adelaide Symphony Orchestra in the Botanic Gardens

Important Information: • All items must be relevant to AEU members and/or Public Education.

• Items for print in the AEU Journal must arrive by each deadline (see dates on pg 3).

• Items for the website will be published on receipt.

• Please email all contributions under 5MB to: journal@aeusa.asn.au.

• Contributions over 5MB please burn to CD/DVD and post to:

AEU Journal Office, 163 Greenhill Rd, Parkside SA 5063.

• Publication of all items will be subject to editorial approval.

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WOMEN’S FOCUS WOMEN’S FOCUS

AEU Women’s Officer Tish Champion | email: tchampion@aeusa.asn.au

Equality in the workplace: a cultural change The Committee for Economic Development of Australia (CEDA) launched a ‘Women in Leadership’ series at a breakfast forum on Friday 23 April. AEU Women’s Officer Tish Champion reports.

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hile I am definitely not a morning person, I was delighted to have the opportunity to listen to three motivating and inspiring speakers: the Hon Catherine Branson QC and co-authors of The F Word: how we learned to swear by feminism, Jane Caro and Catherine Fox. Their stories and rhetoric were wonderful.

While all three women delivered remarkably different speeches they all had a similar tone – cultural and organisational boundaries are major barriers to the success of women in leadership and senior management positions.

Catherine Fox told the story of a married couple who are both lawyers working in prominent SA law firms. Their young son was overheard telling someone that his mum and dad were both lawyers but his dad was a real lawyer. When asked by his parents why he thought this, he explained that daddy always said how important it was for him to go to work while mummy was the one to pick him up when he was sick, stay home with him when there was no school and attend the assemblies and parent teacher interviews. Obviously mummy’s job couldn’t possibly be as important as daddy’s!

When I think about my own work/family life, I see a similar situation occurring.

Appointments, school closures, early pickups, shopping, home maintenance and the like are, on the whole, juggled by me. I take shorter breaks to accommodate school

“The world will only be truly equal when there are as many incompetent women in leadership as there are men.” drop-offs and now work part-time to help balance my life and possibly my conscience more than anything. Working for an organisation that allows flexibility helps, but my work could almost appear to be less valuable or important than my husband’s. I like to think that I have married a ‘keeper’ – a fish of legal size – because my husband takes equal responsibility for the household chores and our children see both parents mucking in on weekends to get washing, ironing and cleaning done.

During the week, however, it’s me who does most of the school drop-offs and pick-ups, ensures homework is done, attends important school/life events like sports days and assemblies and takes the children to the office when I’m desperate. I have an important job but I still take on these extra family/life roles more than my husband.

Guilt – the totally useless emotion felt mostly by women. If we are ever truly going to experience equality in the workforce, we are going to have to rid ourselves of the guilt we feel when we work late, leave early or say no. Many believe men have benefited more from organisational work/ life balance initiatives than women as they seem more confident and almost proud to

announce that they need to leave to pick up the children. Conversely, women are still hesitant to admit they have conflicting commitments for fear that it will make them appear less reliable or committed.

We don’t have to be ‘superwoman’ to be successful. We are equally capable and entitled as men to take on leadership opportunities. Catherine Fox’s mother once told her: “The world will only be truly equal when there are as many incompetent women in leadership as there are men”.

As an employer, DECS appear better than some when it comes to valuing the contributions of women. They have developed a number of initiatives to both attract and retain women in leadership including part-time leadership support and work/life balance strategies.

Jane Caro invited all women to take the word ‘feminism’ back. The phrase, “I’M NOT A FEMINIST BUT …” is totally ridiculous. Recognising that women are equal to men and seeing how things are as opposed to how things should be is feminism. Anyone who believes this, regardless of gender, is a feminist and the sooner we accept this and speak out, the sooner we will see cultural and organisational change really making a difference to the leadership and management opportunities of women. “I AM A FEMINIST AND...”

Encouragingly, the South Australian Strategic Plan has two relevant ‘Women in Leadership’ targets for our state – T5.1 aims to increase the number of women on boards and committees and T2.12 involves improving work/life balance.

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1GOAL: Education for All Today, 72 million children around the world are denied the opportunity to go to school. These children could be the next generation's leaders, sport stars, doctors and teachers. But without an education they are confined to a life of poverty. They’re ready to do their homework - but school fees, conflict, working in factories and farms,

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losing their parents to sickness, the cost of a school uniform or sometimes simply being a girl keeps them from being able to attend school. Whatever their background – orphans, refugees, poor, disabled, child soldiers, child labourers, from disadvantaged backgrounds – the result is the same – denied the chance to learn they will never be able to fulfil their

To become a supporter go to:

potential. Education beats Poverty – and enables people to help themselves. Education is key to breaking the cycle of poverty for families, communities and whole countries.

This is why the AEU is one of a range of organisations supporting the 1GOAL campaign.

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www.join1goal.org.au

I N S H O RT

Four Days in July An historic nationwide gathering of Aboriginal peoples and supporters has been finalised for 6-9 July 2010 at the Alice Springs showgrounds.

The Alice Springs convergence, supported by Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal peoples from across Australia, will call on the Federal Government to immediately end the intervention and unconditionally reinstate the Racial Discrimination Act (RDA).

The continued suspension of the RDA with the full consent of the Rudd government allows for the contentious and racially discriminatory aspects of the NTER intervention to continue unabated.

Alyawarr spokesman Richard Downs and his people walked off their community in protest in July 2009. They’re calling for all Australians to join together to rid Australia of racism and to ensure justice and equal recognition for Aboriginal peoples and the promotion of human rights for all.

“We welcome everyone, all our brothers and sisters, to come and stand with us for four days in July. Let’s send a clear

message to the Rudd Labor Government and to all future government leaders that racism in all its forms will not be tolerated

by Australian voters. We truly need to turn a new page in race relations in this country, end the intervention, and show respect to each other as human beings” Mr. Downs says.

For further information contact: John Hartley, SA Unions Aboriginal Project T: 0424 943 990 E: karranjal@hotmail.com I

Merit Selection, Local Selection and PAC Training The AEU will not be offering training or retraining in Merit Selection during Term 2 2010 because DECS is still in the process of revising the Merit Selection Policy and Procedures. Once this process is finalised training will resume and training dates and venues will be published for members. It is wasteful of members’ time to continue to offer training in this area until the revised policy is approved and operational, hope-

fully in the near future.

In the interim, if your tenure as an AEU Merit Selection panellist was due to expire at the end of 2009 or 2010, it will be automatically extended until the new policy is operational to enable you to continue to participate on Merit Selection panels.

Given that Local Selection training has been integrated into Merit Selection training in recent years, AEU Local Selection representatives can contact the Ethical Standards & Merit Selection Unit on T: 8226 1342 if they have been unable to access training to date. The unit will forward you written information regarding the local selection process and reading this material will constitute accreditation for participation on local selection panels until the revised Merit Selection training is made available later in 2010.

Similarly, PAC training will not be offered by the AEU until the second phase of the current arbitration process has been finalised. Part II of the decision could well have a significant impact on school staffing, with important consequences for the work of the PAC. Once the second part of the Arbitration outcome is delivered and known, continued over page 3

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I N S H O RT continued from previous page 3 the AEU will update the training and publicise training times and venues for members as a matter of priority. In the meantime, members are encouraged to refer closely to the current PAC Handbook and to contact the AEU Information Unit on: 8272 1399 should further information be required. I

Federal funding review The AEU has welcomed the Federal Government’s move to initiate a review of schools funding. AEU Federal President, Angelo Gavrielatos said the review represents one of the most important chapters in the history of schools funding in Australia.

“This is a chance to finally get rid of the Howard Government’s funding system that favours private schools,” Mr Gavrielatos said. “This review will be about the rights of Australian families and the obligation of governments.

The panel will be lead by chairman David Gonski AC. Gonski, is described as a businessman and philanthropist and is Chancellor of the University of NSW, chairman of the Australian Securities Exchange, Coca-Cola Amatil and Investec Bank.

Also on the panel is Ken Boston AO, the former Director-General Department of Education and Training (NSW); former Federal Minister and Premier of WA Carmen Lawrence; Kathryn Greiner AO, current Deputy Chancellor at Bond University and

chairman of Australian Hearing; and international educationalist and former ViceChancellor at University of Notre Dame Australia, Peter Tannock AM. On 30 April 2010, Minister for Education Julia Gillard, announced the expert panel leading the Review of Funding for Schooling and released the draft terms of reference and a discussion paper. The discussion paper will provide Australians with information about how schools are currently funded; issues that may influence future funding and questions that could inform the scope of the review. It also includes a I draft Terms of Reference.

The discussion paper is available at:

http://is.gd/bY7k9

Employee Travel “No employee is required, under any circumstances whatsoever to use their private vehicle for official purposes if they do not wish to do so.”

Source: Clause 10 Commissioners Standard 3.2 page 17 of 51, 23 December 2009 The Commissioners’ Standard on use of private vehicles is unambiguous. DECS cannot require you to use your private vehicle for work purposes. If you do agree to do so then they must pay you the prescribed travel allowance.

This is not a new inclusion in the Commissioners’ Standards; it has been in place for many years. The employer knows

that this is the requirement but continues to build into its structures a tacit requirement for employees to use their private vehicles for work purposes. In the majority of cases the employees are not reimbursed the required travel allowance.

How often do employees hear the line that you can “claim the travel costs back on your tax”?

How many schools or preschools have easy access to government cars?

How often have you seen senior bureaucrats use their own private vehicles at their own cost for work purposes?

The AEU has received a number of complaints on the requirement for employees to use their private vehicles for work purposes. These include: • AEWs having to use their own vehicles to undertake home visits • PRTs having to use their own vehicles to travel to non base schools • SSOs having to use their own car on a regular basis to transport students • Principals using their own cars to follow up on attendance issues.

All AEU members are encouraged to read the Commissioners’ Standard 3.2 and to ensure that your employer isn’t taking advantage. If required to travel for work purposes you should request access to a government vehicle, or if you agree to use your own car then you should claim back the appropriate allowance.

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To view the Commissioners’ Standards go to:

http://intra.sa.gov.au/ Policies/cpe/

S U P E R A N N U AT I O N U P DAT E

Leave Without Pay impacts Super “Staff, especially women, need to be aware that taking Leave Without Pay can significantly impact their super and insurance,” says Bianca Owen-Cooper.

Bianca is a member education officer at Super SA, the super provider for SA public sector employees. Bianca meets with hundreds of members each month and she’s still surprised most members don’t understand the effect taking Leave Without Pay (LWOP) can have on their super.

“There are two main areas which are

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affected. The first is contributions,” says Bianca. For most members, once their income stops so do their employer contributions. For women, the long-term impact can be significant. Women take longer periods of LWOP to care for children and elderly parents and retire with less super than men.

“The second is insurance,” says Bianca.

Most Triple S members are covered with Income Protection Insurance, which provides cover if they are temporarily unable to work due to illness or injury. However, cover is suspended while a member is on LWOP and they won’t be able to make a claim during this time, even if they continue to make contributions.

Triple S members with Death and Total and Permanent Disablement (TPD) Insurance will continue to be covered and pay premiums while they’re on LWOP, unless they choose to suspend their cover. If there’s not enough money in their account to cover the premiums while they’re on LWOP, their cover will be cancelled.

Lump Sum Scheme and Pension Scheme members can continue to make member contributions for up to 12 months while on LWOP. If they do this, their employer contributions and Death and TPD cover will continue.

Members should contact Super SA on 1300 369 315 before taking LWOP to find out how they may be affected.

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A E U 2 0 1 0 T R A I N I N G A N D D E V E LO P M E N T P R O G R A M

CO U N C I L DAT E S F O R 2 0 1 0

2010 UNION MEMBER DEVELOPMENT PROGRAM

Branch Council Meetings

Wed 7, Thurs 8, Fri 9 July

9.15am–16.00pm

Conflict Resolution through Mediation A high demand 3-day course facilitated by Professor Dale Bagshaw and practising mediators, covering the theory and practice of mediation. Participants must commit for all three days.

Who can attend: Leaders, OHSW and AEU reps and activists who are members.

Fri 13 August

9.15am–15.00pm

Non-teaching staff and SSO Contact Officers 1-day day course for AEU SSO contact officers and non-teaching PAC reps on resolving workplace issues effectively through various school decision making structures and processes and their role in supporting and informing non-teaching members.

Who can attend: Non-teaching staff reps on PAC and member SSO contact officers.

Fri 19 November

9.15am-15.00pm

Potential Delegates Course 1-day course introducing members to AEU decision making processes.

Who can attend: AEU members.

All courses are held at the AEU unless otherwise specified.

For more information on courses, relief funding or to register go to:

www.aeusa.asn.au 2009 Australian Education Union (SA Branch) Financial Reports

Upcoming dates for 2010 are: Saturday, 29 May Saturday, 14 August Saturday, 20 November

TAFE Divisional Council Meetings Upcoming dates for 2010 are: Friday, 28 May Friday, 13 August Friday, 19 November

N OT I CE B OA R D

In accordance with s265 of the Fair Work (Registered Organisations) Act 2009, members are advised that a summary of the Auditors Report, Financial Statements and Notes and Reports for the year ending 31 December 2009 are published on the AEU website:

www.aeusa.asn.au/ legal.html

The 5th International Middle Years of Schooling Conference AT: Adelaide Convention Centre ON: Monday, 6 September 2010 THEME: Our Worlds: Connecting in

BOOK REVIEW

the Middle

Bushfire by Elizabeth Mellor

BUSHFIRE, a new book by Elizabeth Mellor, is a great read for children and teenagers, and a powerful mentoring resource for adults.

This book is a gripping story about a child’s experience of a bushfire and its aftermath. It also offers a path for dealing with the trauma and emotional upheaval experienced by anyone affected by bushfire. The book is written with children and teenagers in mind but speaks to all ages and provides parents, teachers or anyone involved with young people, with a wonderful device to approach the issues surrounding traumatic events.

The story is written through the eyes of a young girl called Ruby and takes the reader through her experience of a major bushfire and its aftermath. Having survived the fire, Ruby’s family moves to a recovery centre set up on the local cricket oval where we get to know the other characters central to the book. This time of facing day-to-day difficulties and painful realisations is balanced by humour, good old fashioned common sense and an underlying theme of learning how different people cope with trauma and their recovery from it.

I RRP $17.95 Order through Books Online www.palmerhiggsbooks.com.au

• • • • •

Professor Paul Deering | Hawaii USA Professor Gary Stager | USA Professor Erica McWilliam | Qld Aust Dr Thelma Perso | NT Aust Robyn Barratt | SA Aust

For information and registration go to:

sapmea.asn.au/conventions/ middleschool2010

FREE to SCHOOL or PRE-SCHOOL Photocopier in good condition

Canon IRC 3200 – colour/bw Please contact Irene Tam at the AEU Office by email (below) to arrange inspection.

E: itam@aeusa.asn.au

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N OT I CE B OA R D

Members’ Market VICTOR HARBOR Holiday Hse: Enjoy a Break! Beautiful renovated 3BR hse walking distance of beach, skate park, shops, restaurants and the city centre. ‘Home away from Home’ with all facilities. Lge yard, great for relaxing and enjoying a BBQ and wine under the Pergola.

T: 0413 920 554 E: crupi@chariot.net.au

HOLIDAY HOUSE, 'NORTH BAY', CARRICKALINGA: Architecturally designed new two storey beach house. 4BR, 3 bath, 2 living areas, European stainless kitchen, extensive decking and views. Suits 2 families. Sleeps up to 10. Play equipment for the kids.

View: www.stayz.com.au and visit North Bay at Carrickalinga for rates & availability. T: 0403 015 964

FRANCE – SOUTH: Lovely Village House. Languedoc region. T: 0403 314 928 (Julie) www.myfrenchhome.com.au

HOLIDAY RENTAL: Yorke Peninsula: Brand new upmarket esplanade beach house ‘Manyana’ at Wool Bay (near Edithburgh). Features incl. spa, plasma TV, DVD, stereo, dishwasher. Tastefully furnished &

quality equipment, 3BR, sleeps up to 7. Enjoy panoramic sea views, beach walks, walk to jetty, good fishing etc. Avail. sch. hols, L/weekends, weekends etc.

Info/bookings: T:(08) 8832 2623 W: www.countrygetaways.info MARION BAY: ff, near new hse.

Gateway to Innes National Park.

Sleeps 8, 3BRs, large living area, TV and DVD. Spacious balcony w. outdoor setting and BBQ. Only 5 mins to Willyama Beach and 5km to National Park. Info/bookings: E: kireland15@gmail.com

and general store. 3BRs. Sleeps 6.

Spacious Lounge/ Fam/Dine rm. 2 way bathroom, separate toilet & laundry. Info/bookings: T: 8344 7921 M: 0419 868 143 E: foumakis@hotmail.com www.victorharborholidayhomes. spaces.live.com

Kangaroo Island Getaway KI RURAL RETREAT: Attractive self cont. large country home surrounded by garden and native bushland on 260 acres. Great for families or couples escape. Sleeps 2 to 12; 2 bath, 2 queen beds, 2 spacious living areas, laundry, patio. From $120/night.

T: 0407 790754 a.h.

E: semurphy@optusnet.com.au

HOLIDAY GETAWAYS VICTOR HARBOR: Kangaroo Island HOLIDAY HSE: All Seasons Lakefront Getaway: Set in bushland beside Harriet

Stunning self-contained luxury colonial home in the picturesque surrounds of Encounter Lakes, Victor Harbor. Priv. secl. sandy beach and lake at your back door!

4BRs. Sleeps 8. 2 spacious living areas. 2nd bath, 3 toilets & laundry. Huge lawned backyard.

Lakeside Getaway: Stunning modern villa at Encounter Lakes, Victor Harbor. Only 100m to clean, sandy beach and lovely reserve.

5-min. walk to scenic Esplanade, walk/bike trail, cafes, restaurants

River and on Vivonne Bay, (Aust’s best beach), is Kangastay a 3BR fully equipped and comfortable holiday house. Close to all major attractions (Seal Bay, Remarkables, Admiral Arch and more) and great to relax, swim, and fish. Sleeps 6, linen provided, winter special discounts. Available for rent all year. Prices start at $100/night.

Book through the owner at kangastay@gmail.com or T/text Ros on: 0407 215 345.

HOLIDAY RENTAL NORMANVILLE: South Shores Holiday Villa #25. 3BR (sleeps 8).

Secure gated community behind the dunes at Normanville. Golf, horse riding, pools, beach, lawns, cafes. Avail. all year incl. school holidays. T: 0413 155 460 www.stayz.com.au/23983

Kangaroo Island HOLIDAY COTTAGE 2BR cottage nestled in woodland at Vivonne Bay. Close to beach and Harriet River, visited nightly by wildlife, abundant birdlife during the day, well located for touring popular KI attractions. Self cont., air con, full size stove, BBQ. Quaint, romantic and cosy! Sleeps up to 4 at $95pn. T: (08) 8341 9185 W: www.ravencottage.com.au E: enquiries@ravencottage.com.au

FOR SALE: WILLIAMSTOWN 5 acre tranguil property Are you looking for a magnificent country property near Gawler with beautiful surrounds? Solid brick 4BR home, 2 with BIR’s, 1 with full wall bookcase, rooms are spacious, all in top condition.

Garden shed, Security system, low maintenance garden recently relaid solid drive, dog yard, mains water. T: 8524 6043 Reduced to: $469,950. Inspect by app.

SAIT Conveyancers We offer AEU members: • Free advice on real estate queries.

• 25% off the Statutory or Land Brokers Society recommended fee structure.

• Expert and experienced professional work with Mortgages, Transfers, Strata Plan and Plan of Division Lodgments, Caveats, Discharges of Mortgages – indeed, all facets of conveyancing work.

The South Australian Exchange Teachers’ League invites you to the

Exchange Teachers’ 90th Anniversary Dinner Saturday, 19 June 2010 | 7:30pm

If you are buying or selling or are involved in any real estate matter, either through a land agent or privately, consult us.

Pre-dinner Drinks 7:00pm Allan Scott Park Function Centre, Morphettville Corner Anzac Highway and Morphett Road Cost: $60.00 Payment in full by 30 May 2010

Contact Anne Walker or Simon Willcox Phone: (08) 8410 6788 Fax: (08) 8410 6799 Located at SATISFAC / Level 3 / 400 King William Street

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For information, registration and details/payment contact:

Bev Walker T: 8337 2007 or Libby Bartley E: eatonlibby@hotmail.com

N OT I CE B OA R D PORT ELLIOT HOLIDAY HOUSEALL SEASONS ESCAPE Stunning newly built, a/c, 4BR (sleeps 8), self-cont. holiday hse in heart of picturesque Port Elliot.

Metres to main street cafes, shops, restaurants,galleries. Short stroll to scenic Horseshoe Bay, sandy beach - swim, surf and fish. Easy walking/ bike trails and local/ regional tourist attractions eg produce markets, wineries, Steam Ranger Cockle train. Ideal for individuals/groups and family getaways in all seasons! Special rates all year round. Info/bookings: E: jack.k@live.com.au W: www.allseasonsescape. spaces.live.com

HOUSEBOAT: (near Mannum) There is still plenty of water for recreational boating. Shoulder and off peak seasons are the best ones to relax and enjoy the river.

AEU members are offered a 10% discount during these times.

Bundara accommodates up to 10 people. T: (08) 8277 8751 Visit us at: www.bundara2.net/ E: tandu.prucha@bigpond.com

ABSOLUTE SEAFRONT HOUSE Stunning summer beach, dolphins - wine - seafood. House (neg) or beach or balcony suites from $45 per double. Min 4 nights. from

$45 per double, mid-wk off-peak.

Kingston near Robe.

T: 8338 2316 a/h: 0402 922 445

ROOM FOR RENT: Share 3BR house with 2 others in Gawler. $70 per week plus expenses.

T: 0409 486 088

FOR RENT: f.f. private apartment in Glenelg for holiday or weekend rental. Heated pool, spa, steamroom, sauna, gym etc. Plasma TV, 100m to beach.

T: 8376 3747 or 0403 606 052

35mm SLIDE SCANNING Adelaide and Hills: Do you have old 35mm slides gathering dust and deteriorating?

Have them professionally scanned at high resolution and transferred onto CD. 17 years exp., reasonable rates. T: 0401 590 875 WORKSHOP: Stress management, personal development and learning difficulties: Brain Gyman introductory workshop. Movements to ‘switch on’ the brain.

T/fax: 08 8768 2537 E: gibbons@seol.net.au

SEAFRONT HOLIDAY HOUSE: Yorke Peninsula “Oceanfront Escape” 2-storey holiday house w. pergola overlooking beach & farmland on other side. V. secluded, sleeps 9, 4 BRMs, full kitchen,

barbecue, DVD, VCR, TV, Billiard table, fish cleaning room (great fishing). Peaceful and relaxing, great beach for kids to swim and explore. Contact Brenton on: T: 0409 864 682/(08) 8387 1659 E: bjejstevens@bigpond.com

CEDUNA BEACH HOUSE: Self-cont, beachfront, BBQ, DVD, LCD TV, R/C aircon, Sleeps 6.

Corporate rates AEU members.

Main street and jetty 5 min walk.

Available all year round for short or long term stays.

Ceduna Visitor Info Centre: T: 1800 639 413 & 08 8625 2780

GO SCUBA DIVING WITH ELITE DIVE ACADEMY: Are you a diver, but haven’t been in the water for a while?! Get $50 off a PADI Tune-Up program to refresh your skills. Contact: T: (Steve) 0413 134 827 E: info@elitediveacademy.com.au W: www.elitediveacademy.com.au CIVIL CELEBRANT: Dr Tom Haig weddings, renewal of vows, commitment ceremonies, funerals and baby namings. First class personalised services with AEU members receiving a 10% discount on services upon request.

T: 85311726 or 0439 687 529 E: tomhaig@internode.on.net W: www.tomhaig.com.au

FOR SALE: Certified organic cosmetics & personal products. www.bodytune.mionegroup.com CAMERON CAMPER TRAILER FOR SALE: Sits on 6’ by 4’ trailer with electric brakes and water tank. Opens out to create a 17’ by 7’ space. A full annexe is also included. Good cond. $3,200 T: 85324559 or 0407324559

HOUSE SITTING: Professional couple seeking house sit in Adelaide and environs, from late July to late October 2010.

Non-smokers and house proud.

Have wide experience in home renovations, domestic repairs and gardening. Good with animals and understand the need to leave any house sit in at least as good condition as found.

Contact Chris & Eleanor Oyston T: 02 6236 3008 E: oystons@iinet.net.au

Advertise in Members’ Market for FREE! Rent, sell, buy or offer goods and services. Send ads to:

journal@aeusa.asn.au