Labor Blog

Why the Gonski Report is a good opportunity for my local community

Laura Smyth posted Tuesday, 21 February 2012

Investing in education is critical to ensuring Australia’s future. It’s what we need to overcome the national skills shortage, give our young people the best start in life and build our economy. Our prosperity as a nation rests on having schools that can compete with the best in the world.

That’s why the Labor Government established the independent review of funding for schooling, chaired by David Gonski AC. It has found that current funding arrangements are not getting the best results for students and recommends a new schooling resource standard, setting investment per student and top-up funding to target disadvantage. I look forward to working with local schools, principals, teachers and parents on the next stages in developing a new funding model for our schools.

Labor’s commitment to education is clear. Since 2007, we’ve doubled funding to schools and taken action to invest in teachers, give more power to local principals and provide more information to parents than ever before through the My School website.

This support for education has been demonstrated in my local community. Approximately 61 schools in my electorate have benefited from Labor’s investment in education, including much needed new facilities and infrastructure.

This has provided around $110 million for around 118 projects that have been completed or are underway. Emerald Primary School is just one example of this. Our investment of around $3 million has provided a new library, classrooms and other refurbishments.

My local schools know that there are real and practical commitments being made. Labor’s approach is in stark contrast to the Opposition. Tony Abbott opposed Labor’s investment in schools. And he has indicated that he will slash some $2.8 billion from school education. This is on top of the years of cuts and under-investment over the years of the Howard Government.

And in my state of Victoria, the Baillieu Coalition government has shown a similar approach – slashing $48 million in funding for the vital VCAL program and reneging on election commitments, such as $6 million for Emerald Primary School.

I am proud to be part of a Labor Government which is committed to investing in education and demonstrating this by action.

Tags: Education, Funding, Gonski, Gonski Report

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36 Comments

public Friday, 24 February 2012, 18:24

If you add the next three countries to the list you get for the under 100 million population countries medals per 100 mil of population of:

Stand Dev < 2 [non focus] :
6.4
6.1
5.0
4.6
5.9

Stand Dev > 2 [focus] :
20.1
7.5
21.4
20.1
zedlive from Tamworth , NSW Friday, 24 February 2012, 17:24

On that sample on the topic of few people specialize - yes/no, we can say that:

Of the 6 countries with populations of less than 100 million, those who had standard deviations of medals in each sport above 2 [more focused] had higher meds per pop.
Douglas from Blaxland , NSW Friday, 24 February 2012, 17:24

I agree with Z
The greater the proportion of your populace is exposed to the greatest amount of opportunity, the greater the pool of talent to draw from. Individuals get the most out of life, and we all benefit from getting the best we get out ofthe
zedlive from Tamworth , NSW Friday, 24 February 2012, 16:24

ctnd)
Russia,72,15,0.21,3.24,26181 ,143030106
Italy,28,6,0.21,1.38,80214 ,60757278
United States,110,25,0.23,5.62,136909 ,313064000
Japan,25,7,0.28,2.49,254565 ,127770000
Australia,46,19,0.41,4.56,32761 ,22839186
public Friday, 24 February 2012, 16:24

a),b),c),d),e),f),g)
China,100,12,0.12,2.96,69890 ,1347350000
France,40,5,0.13,1.27,70200 ,65350000
South Korea,31,4,0.13,1.23,37548 ,48580000
United Kingdom,47,8,0.17,2.30,52787 ,62300000
Germany,41,7,0.17,1.34,88512 ,81796000
zedlive from Tamworth , NSW Friday, 24 February 2012, 15:24

Let’s go for:

a) Country
b) Total Medals
c) Most Medals One Sport
d) % Most Medals One Sport V All
e) Stand Dev Medals Per Sport
f) GDP per medal, and
g) Population
zedlive from Tamworth , NSW Friday, 24 February 2012, 15:24

So what about this big population v small population thing?

Let’s take a look at the top 10 medal winners.
zedlive from Tamworth , NSW Friday, 24 February 2012, 14:24

So, firstly, it is more than just people. Secondly, from the difference between correlations of Medals won to GDP per person, and medals won to GDP, there is an influence of scale.
zedlive from Tamworth , NSW Friday, 24 February 2012, 14:24

Well if you take the results of the 2008 Beijing Games, this is what you find.

The correlation between total medals won and:
GDP per Capita -> 0.25
Population -> 0.47
GDP -> 0.83
zedlive from Tamworth , NSW Friday, 24 February 2012, 14:24

What about the pursuit of Olympic medals by the nations of the world – could that tell us something?
[All countries do it; there is an objective universal measurement of succeed. We could argue that there physical aptitudes in educability and sport
zedlive from Tamworth , NSW Friday, 24 February 2012, 14:24

But back to the focus because we are few thing. Do we need to focus.

Well lets see if we can find some insights somewhere.
zedlive from Tamworth , NSW Friday, 24 February 2012, 14:24

[I mean imagine if the mentors (in the 4 corners program) mentored the teachers who mentored the the kids teaching the other kids ...]
zedlive from Tamworth , NSW Friday, 24 February 2012, 14:24

One way to change that, alongside leveraging up higher educational experience from within local schools, looped back into local educational experience with “teaching others” efficiency, thus reducing cost to educate, as described below, is focus.
zedlive from Tamworth , NSW Friday, 24 February 2012, 14:24

Less people mean’s a lower probability of world class innovation unless we change the game.
zedlive from Tamworth , NSW Thursday, 23 February 2012, 08:23

Why can't schools be the same, where your path to more elite and accelerated experience is your involvement with the local school. Where you earn the right to access higher stuff by being a member of a school, and where you bring that experience back
zedlive from Tamworth , NSW Thursday, 23 February 2012, 08:23

If a kid turned up and didn't have the fee for the gear, the hat would be "passed around" or some team kit would get "donated". No one who turned up was excluded on the basis of inability to fund participation.
zedlive from Tamworth , NSW Thursday, 23 February 2012, 08:23

Your right to play representative sport was your involvement at the club. No involvement at the club no representative sport.
zedlive from Tamworth , NSW Thursday, 23 February 2012, 08:23

You played representative sport, you got better as you tested yourself and got access to accelerated training technique, but you always took that back to your club.
zedlive from Tamworth , NSW Thursday, 23 February 2012, 08:23

As you went about playing for your team in a comp you were eligible to get selected to play representative sport.
zedlive from Tamworth , NSW Thursday, 23 February 2012, 08:23

Competitions were all based in districts - parts of big cities, all the smaller cities, rural regions.
zedlive from Tamworth , NSW Thursday, 23 February 2012, 08:23

Clubs could form and apply to enter the competitions the other clubs were in.
zedlive from Tamworth , NSW Thursday, 23 February 2012, 08:23

Where there was more than one team in an age then two or more teams were created.

As you got older those teams were graded and played in higher divisions.
zedlive from Tamworth , NSW Thursday, 23 February 2012, 08:23

Good points Order and Gavin.

Take sport.

When I grew up you had a clubs based in suburbs. Anyone could play. If more turned up that could fit it was first in best dressed or extra teams were added.
orderinchaos from Stirling , WA Thursday, 23 February 2012, 07:23

I went to a private school and outcomes were terrible - we came bottom in the state in the league table, and many able kids could not get into their uni courses. It is not a magic bullet, state schools deserve to get more funding to deliver quality.
GavinH from Macgregor , ACT Wednesday, 22 February 2012, 23:22

50% high school students in ACT go to private schools. I have been warned by a teacher in the public system not to send my child to the local public school due to misbehavior, bullying and poor teaching outcomes. Move to vouchers, KIPP school please
zedlive from Tamworth , NSW Wednesday, 22 February 2012, 20:22

If that is the case, and the famous research by Edgar Dale determined that it is, then why don't we have gifted kids being taught by floating specialist teachers across the entire school system, for those kids to then instruct their mates?
zedlive from Tamworth , NSW Wednesday, 22 February 2012, 20:22

If you want your kid to learn a lot and quick, get them into a situation where they are demonstrating and teaching other kids a topic.
zedlive from Tamworth , NSW Wednesday, 22 February 2012, 20:22

This would require a transitioning associated with acceptance of the required government funding criteria for the next intake year, with funding remaining in place for the current enrollments.
zedlive from Tamworth , NSW Wednesday, 22 February 2012, 20:22

The fundamental setting at the heart of a community sharing a geographical area cannot be getting further by cutting adrift a subgroup. The way forwards must be defeating the challenge of taking those struggling with you. To more as a whole.
zedlive from Tamworth , NSW Wednesday, 22 February 2012, 20:22

However, if I want to group together with other people and have a non-lottery process of excluding kids from the school my kids go to, then our school should not get one cent from government.
zedlive from Tamworth , NSW Wednesday, 22 February 2012, 20:22

That is the basis for determining which students attend in over subscription situation should be on the basis of a lottery.
zedlive from Tamworth , NSW Wednesday, 22 February 2012, 20:22

Schools should be attached to particular catchment areas. Schools that take students only on the basis of residence in a catchment area, and where over subscribed take students on the basis should be eligible for government funding.
zedlive from Tamworth , NSW Wednesday, 22 February 2012, 20:22

Therefore there is no reason why we shouldn't expect the same level of accounting for income and expenses that all business must engage in.
zedlive from Tamworth , NSW Wednesday, 22 February 2012, 20:22

Schools are very large businesses in the local community. The person hours put to schooling is huge. 500 students and 20 people is a lot of people. The land, buildings and facilities is a large amount of capitol.
GNCORP from melbourne , victoria Wednesday, 22 February 2012, 15:22

$5bn will have to come from somewhere! So do you cut funding and services from other parts of the system or do the most logical and realistic option of cutting all funding to private schools!
GNCORP from melbourne , victoria Wednesday, 22 February 2012, 15:22

All students should be in the same environment and be given the same chance and opportunities so Australia gets the best and not the wealthiest to be leaders of the future. If the ALP wants to make a difference then stop funding the private schools!