Education : journal of the N.S.W. Public School Teachers Federation

Call Number
Nef 331.8809944 EDU
Created/Published
Sydney : The Federation, 1919-2021
Issue
Vol. 83 No. 06 (10 Jun 2002)
Images
32
View Catalogue

Contents

EDUCATION JOURNAL OF THE NEW SOUTH WALES TEACHERS FEDERATION 1
Oh what a night! Politicians to get class size message, loud and clear 1
Budget offers token increases for critical areas 1
NEWS Women vital for union survival 2
Class sizes and staffing issues on annual conference agenda 2
Executive structure correction 2
Advertising 2
Officers 2
Executive 2
Salaries discussion paper 3
Survey offers window to teacher thinking 4
Advertising 4
Findings 4
Principals should be active in the union 5
CFMEU has issues for Royal Commission to investigate 5
Are you a casual who should be temporary? 5
TARS for principals too 5
Advertising 5
Federal Parliament silent on public education 6
Integration and discrimination not clear-cut 6
Israel Palestine: renewed call for settlement 6
Federation resolution on the Israel-Palestinian conflict 6
Fed Reps CD-Rom launched 7
Submission says inner city report ‘defeatist’ 7
Advertising 7
TAFE Pay rises appear fully funded 8
TAFE matters 8
Advertising 8
National Party lobbied 8
Institute budget cuts will lead to strike action 8
Credit union board’s attempt fails 9
Advertising 9
The President Writes 10
LETTERS to the Editor Charity with a vengeance 10
Three Australian icons 10
Responsibility needed 11
Educational merits 11
Reciprocal loyalty needed 11 , 12
Advertising 11
Education spending is best defence 12
Public education billboards 12
IEC stays after fight 12
Disempowering TAFE 12
Save habitats from heavy grazing 12
Advertising 12
Human rights for asylum seekers 13
Australia is refugees competition 13
New MAI/GATS proposal threatens public education 13
Dust bowl transformed 13
2002 Election to Fill Casual Vacancy for Administrative Officer, Country Organiser (1) 14
Elections to be held at June Council 14
Eric Pearson Study Grant 15
OH&S finding may benefit teachers 15
Advertising 15
Inquiry into the provision of public education in NSW 16 , 17
Advertising 17
Starting points for travelling teachers 18
Advertising 18
VIEWS What’s special about special education? 19
Advertising 19
Difficult to staff areas provide promotional opportunities 20
Advertising 20
TAFE part-time casuals SIG expanding networks 21
Menzies report advocates deregulation and vouchers 21
President visits Riverina Regional TAFETA 21
School Libraries SIG welcomes policy 21
ADMINISTRATION Trade Union Training Program semester 2 Continuation of regional courses 22
Course descriptions 22
Advertising 22
Some background information about Trade Union Training courses 23
Advertising 23
RETIRED Retired Teachers Association Second Friday of each monht, 1,15pm. Teachers House, Mary Street, Surry Hills Sydney. 24
Advertising 24
FILM Impressive debut feature films from Australian directors 25
Grants available for writers and illustrators to visit 25
Advertising 25
Theatre Theatre wins by a hare 26
Up, Up and Away 26
Location, location, location 26
GOING UP THE COUNTRY A sense of optimism 27
Computer Corner Thunderbirds are go 27
Website Stamp designs have style licked 27
Advertising 27
Form guide Out of this World Six years of Mr Yen 28
Cheap WINE The long and short of it 28
Win wine passes 28
Advertising 29 , 30
DT SMITH 30
Abecedarian 30
THOSE WHO CAN’T 30
East Timor: inspiring and depressing 31
Student membership surges 31
US visitors bewildered on Aussie policy 31
INSIDE 32
May 23,2002 32
Public education in the spotlight 32

Text

EDUCATION  

JOURNAL OF THE NEW SOUTH WALES TEACHERS FEDERATION  

Agreement No. PP25S003 00104  

Vo 1. 83 No.6 June 10. 2002  

Oh what night! Politicians to get class size message,  

loud and clear  

by Jennifer Leete  

toast to public education. Sandra Joseph, Henry Rajendra Snr  

and Margaret Cheah, Parramatta TA, Henry Rajendra, City Organ-  

iser and Linda Eisler, Inner West TA.  

by Diane Hague and Kerri Carr  

The Public Education dinner on May  

22 will be remembered as defin-  

ing moment for public education in  

NSW.  

About 250 Federation activists  

and other supporters of public educa-  

tion, all dressed to the nines, gathered  

at Parliament House to toast public  

education and hear Professor Tony  

Vinson ’s first findings of the Inquiry  

into Public Education in NSW.  

All Association Presidents and  

Secretaries were invited and the  

country associations were fully rep-  

resented. Federation Executive, Offic-  

ers, representatives from the parents  

organisations, past Federation Senior  

Officers, Australian Education Union,  

departmental representatives and  

some MPs were also present, includ-  

ing President of the NSW Legislative  

Council and sponsor of the dinner,  

Meredith Burgmann.  

Aboriginal member on the Fed-  

eration Executive, Waine Donovan,  

acknowledged the traditional owners  

of the land. General Secretary Barry'  

Johnson was the Master of Ceremo-  

nies and other speaker's were Federa-  

tion President Maree O’Halloran,  

Federation of Associations  

President Bev Baker and Education  

and Training Minister John Wat-  

kins.  

Professor Vinson told the dinner  

public education had too many assets  

to be consigned to the crisis bin.  

“Why does it work as well as it  

does? Because the tradition of service  

before self is alive and well among  

teachers,” he said.  

Federation activists greeted Profes-  

sor Vinson’s speech and recommen-  

dations with rapturous applause.  

The recommendations in his first  

three chapters. Teacher Professional-  

ism, Curriculum and Technology and  

Foundations for Effective Learning  

have certainly pinpointed issues that  

teachers have been raising for years.  

Professor Vinson received standing  

ovation.  

Ms O’Halloran said NSW had  

thriving public education system but  

it was beset by poorly researched  

change and under funding.  

“Successive governments failed  

to say here’s the direction for public  

education.  

“We must have new way of cre-  

ating public policy in NSW.  

“It’s up to us to lead the debate on  

public education,” Ms O’Halloran  

said.  

Bev Baker said public education  

needs the resources to do what needs  

to be done.  

John Watkins announced the for-  

mation of new advisory body,  

the Public Education Council, to be  

chaired by independent education  

expert Lyndsay Connors, to examine  

the long-term future of public educa-  

tion.  

The Council’s first task will be to  

examine the first report of the Inquiry  

into the Provision of Public Edu-  

cation in NSW. Maree O’Halloran  

and Parents and Citizens Associa-  

tion Senior Vice President Rodney  

Molesworth have been invited to join  

the council.  

Reference groups made up of stu-  

dents, teachers and principals will  

assist the council.  

Ms O’Halloran said the Public  

Education Council was good step  

forward, but any delay would be  

unacceptable.  

And everyone had fabulous time.  

Thanks are due to the Officers and  

staff of the Federation who organised  

such wonderful night of celebration  

for public education.  

For more detail on Professor Vinson’s first  

report see pages 16 and 17.  

Federation will soon distribute post-  

cards to be sent to local Members of  

Parliament by parents and teachers  

campaigning for reduced, class sizes  

in the early years of schooling.  

The use and distribution of the  

postcards is also supported by  

parent and principals organisations.  

The postcards will cany the slogan  

“Twenty is Plenty” which was first  

adopted by the Primary Principals  

Association.  

Further materials to assist lob-  

bying of politicians will be sent to  

schools and associations.  

Federation has received many  

positive reports of successful parent  

meetings involving the screening  

of our class sizes video as well as  

the distribution of the class sizes  

leaflet.  

Primary and central schools,  

which have not yet screened the  

video for parents, should plan  

their meetings now. Remember;  

the video continues to be relevant  

and appropriate for screening at  

parent meetings until such time as  

we have public commitments from  

politicians to maximum class sizes  

of 20, kindergarten to year 3.  

One political party, the NSW  

Greens, has already made com-  

mitment to support reduced class  

sizes in disadvantaged schools. In  

press release about the Vinson  

recommendations Lee Rhiannan  

MLC said:  

“The $47 million to reduce kin-  

dergarten to year classes in dis-  

advantaged areas across the state is  

the most efficient additional money  

government can spend on social  

problems. Smaller classes in these  

areas will have massive flow-on  

benefits beyond keeping kids in  

schools and giving them better edu-  

cation”  

Meanwhile some politicians,  

including the Minister, John Wat-  

kins, continue to claim in media  

comments that the jury is still out  

on class sizes.  

Federation’s class sizes cam-  

paign will no doubt be strongly  

boosted by Professor Tony Vinson’s  

clear recommendations on the issue  

in the recently released first three  

chapters of his report on the provi-  

sion of public education in NSW.  

Professor Vinson states:  

“The task for policy makers is  

not to await an unlikely total con-  

sensus among researchers but to  

base policy on the best available  

information after considering the  

strengths and limitations of the  

research on which the findings are  

based. To await unanimity of out-  

comes in research into the effects  

of class size may be to condemn  

oneself to an endless wait for the  

jury’s verdict.”  

Jennifer Leete  

is the Deputy  

President.  

Parents and teachers are asked to forward the postcards to their  

local politician.  

Budget offers token  

increases for critical areas  

This State Budget is tentative rather  

than bold foray into the future of  

public education, Federation Presi-  

dent MareeO’Halioran said.  

i„ Jl JHS aaS 1S 7?  

investment. There is acknowledg-  

ment of the need to support teaching  

and learning in the classroom but  

only small allocation of funds for  

this purpose. Thus the overall impact  

for all teachers and students will be  

minimal,” Ms O’Halloran said.  

‘ It is disappointing that despite  

the strong recommendations in the  

Vinson Report to reduce class sizes  

in the early years of schooling that  

this budget contains only $5 mil-  

lion tor pilot program in 2003.  

This must not be used as an excuse  

to avoid dealing with the Vinson  

recommendations before the next  

state election.”  

Federation welcomed:  

□ additional funding for 40 of the  

most needy schools, designated pri-  

ority action schools, to support pro-  

grams such as smaller class sizes,  

team teaching and behaviour pro-  

grams for schools  

□ the modest increase in the  

schools’ global budgets  

[_} the creation of 50 new positions  

of mentor teacher which represents  

the first steps to providing much  

needed support forthe induction amt  

■  

retention of new teacher  

the fo E' lcant investment in capi-  

tal wor^s and information technol-  

°Sy-  

As the Budget was brought down  

only day before the journal was  

printed, detailed analysis of the  

State Budget will be included in the  

next edition of Education.  

For more initial information on the Budget see President Writes  

on page 10 andTAFE news on page 8.  

Cite

Citation options:
Work identifier

http://nla.gov.au/nla.obj-682634307

APA citation

N.S.W. Teachers' Federation & New South Wales Public School Teachers' Federation. (1919). Education : journal of the N.S.W. Public School Teachers Federation Retrieved August 7, 2025, from http://nla.gov.au/nla.obj-682634307

MLA citation

N.S.W. Teachers' Federation and New South Wales Public School Teachers' Federation. Education : journal of the N.S.W. Public School Teachers Federation Sydney: The Federation, 1919. Web. 7 August 2025 <http://nla.gov.au/nla.obj-682634307>

Harvard/Australian citation

N.S.W. Teachers' Federation & New South Wales Public School Teachers' Federation. 1919, Education : journal of the N.S.W. Public School Teachers Federation The Federation, Sydney viewed 7 August 2025 http://nla.gov.au/nla.obj-682634307

Wikipedia citation

{{Citation
  | author1=N.S.W. Teachers' Federation.
  | author2=New South Wales Public School Teachers' Federation.
  | title=Education : journal of the N.S.W. Public School Teachers Federation.
  | year=1919
  | section=volumes.
  | issn=0013-1156
  | issue=Vol. 83 No. 06 (10 Jun 2002)
  | location=Sydney
  | publisher=The Federation
  | url=http://nla.gov.au/nla.obj-682634307
  | id=nla.obj-682634307
  | access-date=7 August 2025
  | via=Trove
}}

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