The Victorian government is on a quest to be the ‘education state’. Two discussion paperswere released this week to generate community interest and feedback. The discussion paper on schools is not lengthy but it is revealing.
It reiterates the Victorian government’s decision not to commit to the full term of the six year funding agreement signed with the previous Labor federal government – the so-called ‘Gonski’ funding package. Only the four years to 2017 will be funded; a new funding model is being developed for 2018 and beyond. While this decision has attracted criticism from the NSW education ministerand some of the members of the Gonski review committee, there are good reasons for it. First among them is the recognition that committing future governments to a very large increase in the school education budget is not defensible. In addition, the existing model can be improved, so locking it in for six years would be inadvisable. Funding for disadvantaged and struggling students can and should be targeted more effectively.
Importantly, the document also reveals the Victorian government’s commitment to autonomy and choice in schools. Its case studies demonstrate what can be achieved when schools have flexibility to use their resources to maximise educational impact - for example, electing to have slightly larger class sizes to free teachers for mentoring and feedback. It speaks of striving for excellence in all schools, ‘ensuring that all schools are schools of choice’. Teaching is rightly a focus in the document, but perhaps the most glaring omission is the lack of attention to principals and school leadership.
Federal systems of government are often frustrating, but they are also useful. States can be like ‘policy laboratories’ – if they are successful, other states can replicate their reforms. If they fail, only one state is affected rather than the whole country. The Victorian government’s approach to school education is in many respects quite different to that in other states and territories. No state has it entirely right, but there is a lot to like about Victoria’s approach.
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Victoria’s quest to be the Education State
It reiterates the Victorian government’s decision not to commit to the full term of the six year funding agreement signed with the previous Labor federal government – the so-called ‘Gonski’ funding package. Only the four years to 2017 will be funded; a new funding model is being developed for 2018 and beyond. While this decision has attracted criticism from the NSW education ministerand some of the members of the Gonski review committee, there are good reasons for it. First among them is the recognition that committing future governments to a very large increase in the school education budget is not defensible. In addition, the existing model can be improved, so locking it in for six years would be inadvisable. Funding for disadvantaged and struggling students can and should be targeted more effectively.
Importantly, the document also reveals the Victorian government’s commitment to autonomy and choice in schools. Its case studies demonstrate what can be achieved when schools have flexibility to use their resources to maximise educational impact - for example, electing to have slightly larger class sizes to free teachers for mentoring and feedback. It speaks of striving for excellence in all schools, ‘ensuring that all schools are schools of choice’. Teaching is rightly a focus in the document, but perhaps the most glaring omission is the lack of attention to principals and school leadership.
Federal systems of government are often frustrating, but they are also useful. States can be like ‘policy laboratories’ – if they are successful, other states can replicate their reforms. If they fail, only one state is affected rather than the whole country. The Victorian government’s approach to school education is in many respects quite different to that in other states and territories. No state has it entirely right, but there is a lot to like about Victoria’s approach.
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