isyulli: education

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Selasa, 03 Mei 2011

Teachers Bonus a Waste of Money

There isn't much doubt that the bonus scheme for teachers will not work. Like the mystique of "time and motion" where the claim is made that human productivity is linear and is an increasing curve, it's a pipe dream! Machinery can only be speeded up so much before parts start flying off in all directions and everything shuts down for maintenance. Furthermore, when task are done too quickly a lot of "non-size" rubbish is produced. While output in some industry can be improved, for paper carriers such as teachers this is virtually impossible.

Some teachers are better than others and for the main part this is innate: it is not learned and never can be. The only measurement is the quality of students that are lucky enough to be taught by them. Even then, tying down the factors that do improve matters is not easy to identify. Usually. students have an affinity with a teacher; thus they are prepared to work harder. It is not the teacher who is putting in more effort - it is the student. Testing students to deduce the performance of their teachers will also drive a wedge between teachers and students. Considering only one in ten teachers will benefit from the bonus scheme it is divisive for teachers themselves. Industrial strife is just down the road.

Overall, it is a silly exercise. Why should the Government, the taxpayer, pay more? Will good teachers be paid more for what they are already doing? It seems so. Why single out one sector of employment for a reward that everyone else doesn't get purely because it is motivated by one person, Julia Gillard? Apparently it has to do with good teachers being virtuous people. It is not much use holding out one group as an example if there is no intention to apply it to the whole workforce. Paying good teacher more will not make lesser beings respectful toward them. It will make the average teacher angry. Let's not go back to pet projects like in the Howard and Rudd eras.

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Education

Rabu, 19 Januari 2011

History Wars Argument Ends With Labor Cutting Educational Curriculum Off at the Knees

In a move to take the politics out of education the Labor Government has literally taken politics out of education. Retired Prime Minister John Howard's attempt to relinquish all blame for all Australians for persecution of Aboriginals has caused this. The Labor Government has hit back in kind, taking out all teaching relevant to the development of Liberalism in Australia.

Note we have a Liberal party in Australia that is really a far right conservative party. A touch of welfare, a lot of big business, but essentially no change should occur unless it is to collect more tax from the ordinary taxpayer. Stop the new tax on mining companies and stop the new National Broadband Network Though this hatred of the new NBN is due to Labor doing it not them.

No education system should be without instruction on how the market economy formed. But this argument over the true "facts" of history goes very deep indeed, so Labor puts a red pen through curriculum covering "free" markets just out of spite really.

It is notable that the struggle for individual freedom is included. Only from 1945 though. It is much easier that way, with the UN institutionalizing it in that year. The fight for rights by minorities is emphasized in support, of course, of Labor's side in the history debate. Labor as been so harsh as to remove the word "entrepreneur' totally from the whole syllabus.

It is unfortunate that the actions of one man, a very influential man at that, John Howard, could intervene in a debate among historians and change the course of political history of a nation. People are what they are taught and the baby has surely been thrown out with the bathwater.

~~~~~Politics Education~~~~~

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Rabu, 05 Januari 2011

The eBerry Computer Is Too Costly for Indian Students

The new computer aimed at "poor" Indian students will not be successful. It is like the current craze for eBooks - why buy a machine that is built mainly for reading copies of the written page when you can buy a normal computer for a little bit more? eBooks and the student computer will end up in the bin in time.

Few students will be able to buy the new eBerry laptop because it is too expensive. It comes with a package of student related software. The manufacturer says it will be fun to use a "virtual classroom". Yes, it can also fun playing games on your computer after doing your homework. Another problem is that the eBerry locks you into homework mode. Only teachers and parents will have the password to access the Internet per se.

At $811 it is an incredibly high price for third world consumers. Openwiis in the Netherlands offers a much cheaper alternative. It provides computers to children in developing countries and it doesn't seek a profit. People buy a computer and another one is given to a needy child.

~~~~~Education~~~~~

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Jumat, 21 Mei 2010

Gevernment Funding of Private Schools Should Be Reduced

Why should ordinary people support private schools? Taxes are taken from everyone so parents who choose to send their children to private schools should pay the full cost. Children are sent to private schools because funding is redirected to support these schools. Take the money away and let all children have an education on a level playing field.

A review of school funding is about to begin. The fat coffers of private schools need to be curtailed. One time head of the NSW Education Department says that the support of private schools is a misplaced belief in "neo-Darwin free-market forces". He goes on to say that the system panders to "an exclusive clientele identified by religion, ethnicity or some other dimension". He is correct in claiming that this gives some an "exclusive education". Income of private schools must be taken into account before money is allocated. The books should be reviewed and openly published by the Government. A school that has money coming out of its ears should certainly be penalized.

The current practise means public schools are starved of funds while many private school do it easy. Money per student in a government school is $12,639 while a student in private school receives $ 6,606. It is incorrect to say that every student being educated in a private school saves the taxpayer 6,033. Wealthy parents would continue to send their children to private schools if no funding was available. The fall in money to the non-government sector since 2003 of 0.6 percent is trivial. It needs to be so much more. Barriers also exist. Public schools have to take a student. Apply for entry to a Catholic school and admit that you are Protestant. You will not hear from that school again.

There is no doubt that the present system of gaining a tertiary education favors the wealthy. The young person from a high-income family can certainly find a place in a university somewhere in the country even if minimum entry academic achievement is not met.

Disadvantage lies in the public school sector so rationally this is where funding should go.

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Minggu, 09 Mei 2010

Literacy and Numeracy Skills Are Low in Australia

You would think that with the Internet communication skill would be better than ever. This is clearly not the case. Forty six percent of Australians don't have adequate numeracy and literary skills in order to cope with modern society. Australian industry has called for a literacy entitlement to improve the skills of those in vocational study. Employers aren't getting sufficient numbers of new workers who can read and write to a "normal" level.

Despite Australia's fifth ranking among other countries for education, this problem persists and is getting worse. Even though Australia is developed it appears children are "falling through the cracks" in education. Oddly, a 2009 UN paper put Australia's literacy rate at 99 percent. This is just plain wrong.

A test was developed that covered people's interaction with newspapers, consumer information articles, finance graphs, medicine labels and so on. Calculating interest on a loan or understanding a workplace agreement, for example, was way beyond the ability of the majority. People are very skilled in covering up their shortcomings in numeracy and literacy skills. Many, in fact, become highly skilled orators, while they rely on friends and family to organize the filling out of forms. The main difference, usually, between those who can read and write well and those who cannot is income. Though there are a few illiterate millionaires. Most of those in financial trouble do not understand why.

A Canadian study showed that spending more money on raising the skill levels of people at the bottom of the scale significantly reduced the amount spent on welfare and improved employment. It is not children of immigrants who have problems it is the children of third and fourth generation Australians whose parents have had financial or social problems. Teachers cannot do it alone. They need help from government and the community.

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Rabu, 21 April 2010

Universities Want "Automatic" Visas for Post-Graduates

Universities are suggesting that post-graduates from other countries who qualified in Australia be given Australian visas in order to secure permanent residency - all of them! Talk about setting up rules to benefit one section of society, namely, universities. Even with the new skill-based points system for immigration it is doubtful if everyone with a post-graduate degree will be accepted. If post-graduates are given visas that easily what about ordinary graduates. Surely they must have the same right.

Let's face it post-graduates in history may have something to contribute but their services are not in demand. Masters and doctorates in science and engineering could prove useful. What about MBAs? They are two-a-penny anywhere in the world.

The Government is listening. Though it appears consideration is to be given to post-graduates in certain fields. The reality is Australia doesn't train enough people to fill all university positions - teaching is an "innate"skill. This is not a great problem, however. It is common practice for universities to secure the services of people trained in other countries. It gives an "international" feel to campuses. A staff with many overseas trained people allows for differences in opinion in teaching. This is good for students. It gives them a "rounded" education.

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Selasa, 16 Maret 2010

Too Many Curriculum Changes Are Destroyng Western Education

Peter Freebody advisor on the national English curriculum is completely wrong when he says we shouldn't be looking back to a golden age of literacy when everyone could read. He says look at the over sixties and see that most cannot read and write. What absolute rubbish. The baby boomer generation is this golden generation that could read and just as importantly - add up. Few over sixties cannot competently write a letter and this is what they were taught to do. Unfortunately, the current generation is not taught to do such mundane things. They are taught to do "an in depth analysis of modern literacy as it relates to the widespread phenomena of the Internet" or some such gobbledygook which is foisted upon them by so-called experts in academia.

It is university educated advisors that have ruined prospects for a literate society. Get back to basics and start teaching rote again, because that is where the mistake is being made - the absence of rote learning. Ask a youngster today to reel off the arithmetic tables and he/she cannot do it. Children don't learn to add up correctly by messing around with pieces of wood of different colors and lengths. Teaching children to sort things into sets will not get them anywhere in real life.

Another thing Mr Freebody goes on about is lack of access to education, but children from all social strata can find a school to go to. It is the methods used that are wrong. For example, teaching trigonometry at high school is putting something in the curriculum that should not be there. This belongs at college level and above.

The problem is in making schools too academic. Teach children how to do arithmetic not mathematics. When you build a table you don't need maths. You must measure and cut to length. That is arithmetic. Three levels of mathematics are offered at high school when most pupils have not mastered arithmetic. You cannot run until you can walk. All schooling must return to English, Arithmetic and History and these must be compulsory. Concentrate on these three and leave the rest for college and university.

Curriculum, curriculum, we must change the curriculum - that is all you hear decade after decade. Too much change has sorely damaged Western education systems. Peter Freebody's statistics are wrong. He says people have never been more literate. Just ask an employer and he will tell you how literate! People cannot add up a list of numbers correctly, nor read written instructions. It went down hill when calculators were allowed into schools. It is like saying give all Australian children a computer and they won't need books. What rubbish. The Internet is no good for doing assignments because everything is brought down to a page, a paragraph, a sentence then a word. Go to Encyclopedia Britannica and look up "Australian History". A paragraph gives the whole history of a nation. Search for "Ned Kelly" and all the sites give the same paragraph.

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Rabu, 24 Februari 2010

Australia Will Only Let Professionals Stay

Australia is planning to introduce new laws that will discriminate against skilled people in "ordinary" occupations such as motor mechanics and school teachers. It will favor those with high academic degrees like university professors and architects. It is not that Australia really needs these people. The country is finding a way of keeping immigrants out.

In the past there have been drives to get more doctors to work in rural areas. But what do they do when they have been here a few years? They move to the cities. Engineers are in short supply worldwide, so there is no opportunity of attracting them. Education systems in most countries have stopped students learning engineering due to wrong public policies. Societies are overloaded with people trying to work in finance.

The Australian Government has had several high level complaints about the changes to immigration. People have spent a lot of money and have been patient waiting in line to be accepted. "The new policies will favour applicants who score highly in an English language test" and it will give people "who are eligible to migrate a better chance of gaining employment." This has been said about past schemes.

If you are a blue collar worker Australia doesn't want you, full stop. This is despite the mining industry crying out for welders.

Cherry Louise Thurgill from England said Australia was an easy place to get into. Now all that has changed. She believes Australia is doing the right thing putting forward the case of England as being an example of leaving the door open too wide for too long. New people from overseas push wage rates down. Things are good for employers but not for paid workers.

Australia claims that people already with jobs in other countries will be attracted, not just those with recent qualifications. This is absolute rubbish. There is no evidence to support this view. Why would a person leave a good job as a doctor in a major hospital overseas to work in the bush where life is tough, dull and expensive.

There is a solution - pay people higher wage rates for working in the bush. Rural mechanics for example already charge more for their services than city mechanics. Competition in cities drives the price down. Many country towns have one car repair shop. Either pay or walk. Surely medical people should expect more, as well.

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Sabtu, 06 Februari 2010

Australia Fails Tests to Meet Demands of the Modern World

A majority of Australians lack the minimum reading, writing and problem-solving skills to cope with life in the modern world. Just under half of Australians struggle to understand the meaning of newspaper and magazine articles or documentation such as maps and payslips. Over half failed the minimum numeracy and problem solving tests. The US rated much worse when the tests were applied to Americans. Switzerland and Norway did better. In Australia, women were stronger at understanding written material than men, but males were better at understanding documents such as maps and dealing with problems of numeracy.

The Australian government has not improved the education system over the last decade to meet changes in societal demands. It is an opportunity missed. If you don't make relevant public education interesting, exciting and a way to get into the modern world, you will slip back - and that's what's happening to Australia. We will look back over the last 10 years and realise with some horror how much we overemphasised the value of the individual and overlooked the common denominators in our society.

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Minggu, 31 Januari 2010

Schools Charge for "Free" Computers

When schools got new computers for their student the last thing you think would happen would be school charging a fee to use them. But this is what has occurred. What are the schools thinking of? A public school is asking parents to buy the computers for $1200. Another is trying to lease them for $1400. It boils down to a technicality. Schools are saying computers must be left at school. There will a charge if they want to take them home.

The ridiculous thing is after paying for a computer a student will still not actually own it. Computers will have to be taken back for use by other students. What a rip off. Over Years 9 to 12 a school will receive $1460. A good laptop can be purchased for $795 anywhere.

Just what is the Federal Government thinking of? It says schools can charge if they want to. Surely this negates the free computer promise. It wasn't voted in to do this. Education Minister Julia Gillard says Schools can arrange for home use as they see fit. The Government should have said providing computers was just a way of giving schools more funding because that is what has happened. Again children from poorer families lose out. It has brought further inequity with some states not charging.

The Labor Government is obviously in league with schools. It is trying to force parents to buy computers by making rental extremely high, so the Government will meet its target of every child having a computer by default.

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Rabu, 27 Januari 2010

Stop Funding Private Schools

The Australian Government is ignoring the protests of teachers and going ahead with publishing a list of schools ranked by proficiency. There are problems in how this ranking is done, what criteria it is based on and what parents can do about it. Teachers say the tests on students are not fully relevant to measuring how well schools "produce" good students. The rules of the test need to be explained to parents. If a parent finds his or her child does attend a poorly ranked school how can a change be carried out if, in the bush for example, another school is a hundred miles away?

Low wage earners do not have the choice of paying for their children's education so the list for them is irrelevant. Suggestions that parents take their custom elsewhere is not a luxury they can afford. The Government has made mistakes in allocating resources to schools. Yes they continue to do this. Too much is dished out to schools who then send parents unregulated bills to educate their children. Education is being treated like a business when it shouldn't be. It should be a right irrespective of income. These schools choose students based on their own criteria. A couple took their children to a Catholic School and admitted they were Protestants. They never got any correspondence from this school again. It is rubbish to say parents have a right to choose.

The website will show that schools in disadvantaged communities will be ranked low. You don't have to be an expert to know this. The allocation of money is the problem. It always had been. It is ridiculous to give schools money then allow them to charge as well. Cut all funding to private schools except to those who cater for teaching of rural students who have to live away from home. Cut funding and watch parents move their children out of private schools, ranking or no ranking. The cost of keeping them there will be too high. Let's face it private schools are subsidized by the taxpayer.

Ranking will let parents into the big secret of under-performing schools. And when they know there will be a reaction. The Government will not have to wait long for this. The Government will then try to quietly close the website citing a "technicality", like a review of the ranking system.

The truth is described by Judy Crowe of Melbourne Girls' College. She says that the school spends $20,000 per student which is three times the average spent on students in public schools. Parents who send there children to private schools are not upset by the ranking, because they will see their choice justified - carry on paying and get a first class education subsidized by the state.

Correct the disjointed funding problem. It is skewed toward the rich. Give to the poor.

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