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Welcome to the Noticeboard which highlights media articles commenting on education and educational leadership.
The Transparency Myth
By Richard Teese, Professor and Director of the Centre for Post-Compulsory Education and Lifelong Learning in the University of Melbourne
The Age - 27 January, 2010
For more than 30 years Australian governments of different persuasions have sought to measure how well our schools work.
However, publishing results at a school level has been resisted as narrow, insensitive, and statistically dubious.
The Australian - 6 November , 2009
Schools rated on students' progress
In an Australian first, parents will be able to see how well their school is teaching their child, with the Victorian government introducing school report cards that measure the improvement students make. The President of the VPA, Ms Gabrielle Leigh was quoted as saying "it was a model they hoped would be adopted in other states to report on the value a school added rather than straight test scores. It gives us really detailed information so we can break down groups as to how kids are performing and work with those schools to get the best possible results. it will assist our principals to help students in their school and provide the tools to do it".
The Fourth Way - Andrew Hargreaves
Successive waves of social and education reform have been fundamentally flawed. It's time for something bolder and better.
Backing for McDonald's role in schools
The Age - 21 October, 2009
Leading educators have endorsed fast-food giants such as McDonald's being more involved in schools - even if it means exposing students to brand advertising - because governments can no longer be solely relied on to boost the education system.
Email boxes full of junk
Herald Sun - 21 October, 2009
An explosion in email messaging is driving workers and managers to despair as computer systems struggle to cope with the onslaught.
Student Engagement Policy template
We thank VASSP for allowing us access to their Student Engagement Policy template.
Rewarding Teacher Excellence Presentation
Blueprint implementation paper.
Launched by Minister Bronwyn Pike, MP in August 2009
Rewarding teacher excellence trials
Frequently asked questions.
Measuring performance fairly
Developing intake adjusted performance measures in Victorian government Schools
National Website Template - Draft School Profile on School Reporting
APPA Newsletter October 2009
See the latest information and newletter from Leonie Trimper, APPA President.
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| Primary schools caught short on $635 million In Victoria, Education Minister Bronwyn Pike is facing a backlash from principals who had planned their 2009 school year based on the money going directly into their budgets. Otherwise, said VPA president Gabrielle Leigh, schools could not be sure the money was being used, as intended, to increase funding for students in prep to grade 6. |
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| The Dare to Lead National Indigenous Education Conference "So what do we Teach?" Friday August 14th 2009 Rydges Lakeside Hotel, London Circuit, Canberra City, ACT |
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| Apply for 2009 APPA International Travel Awards to the value of $10,000 This is a rare opportunity for primary school principals or deputy principals to travel overseas and link with their peers in any of the following countries, United Kingdom, USA, New Zealand or Canada or another destination of their choice. |
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| The Australian - June 12, 2009 - Split on building funds widens VPA chief Gabrielle Leigh said the schools upgrade was a "wonderful program" but it was being marred by the Victorian Education Department's refusal to provide costings on individual projects. "We have asked them for transparency at every meeting we have attended - at least three meetings in the past month," Ms Leigh said. |
| The Transition - A Positive State to School Project The Transition: A Positive Start to School project aims to improve children’s experience of starting school by providing their families and educators with a learning and development statement and enhancing the development and delivery of transition programs. |
| Herald Sun - 31 May, 2009 VPA President, Gabrielle Leigh reflects on the additional needs for some students in light of the higher repeat rate of students in Melbourne's western and northern suburbs. |
| The Age - 31 May, 2009 - The Big Issue - School Funding In response to the article in The Sunday Age, the VPA has developed a position paper which calls on the State Government to address school funding issues. |
| The Age - 26 May, 2009 - Show us the money We are still disappointed that primary funding has not flowed through to individual school global budgets. Our our understanding was that the money would appear tagged in the state budget back-paid to January 1. Primary school principals were expecting to get an extra $100 per student in their global budgets to go towards the specific needs of their schools. |
| The Age - 25 May, 2009 - Nitbusters fight lousy hair days Ms Leigh says anecdotal evidence suggests infestations are increasing. She would like to see the return of the council-run mass screenings that were axed in the 1990s. Such programs helped to contain outbreaks because medical officers from local councils would visit schools, check children for lice and treat them on the spot. |
| Herald Sun - 10 May, 2009 |
| APPA Press Release Eight Safeguards regrading Transparency The Australian Primary Principals Association (APPA) today called for safeguards to be built into the Ministerial Council for Education Employment and Youth Affairs (MCEETYA) recently announced plans to publish the performance of schools on national tests. |
| APPA Transparency and Accountability Position Paper The APPA represents 7,200 Government, Catholic and Independent principals. It supports the adoption of high academic standards, the routine collection of evidence regarding the performance of students in key areas, and the responsible release of information about the resources available to schools and the performance of their schools. |
| APPA Newsletter May 2009 APPA has now completed its position paper on the publication of nationally comparable school performance information and will be releasing it this Friday (8 May). We are supporting the principle of transparency but only if appropriate safeguards are put in place to ensure the release of school data has a beneficial impact in primary education as we do not want to go down the US /UK path. |
| The Age - 8 May, 2009 - Principals question 'missing' million Ms Leigh says the State Government's failure to identify the money in its budget documents meant the money could have been used to fund initiatives for other education programs or sectors. "There is no way we can be confident the money is being used as it was intended, to boost funding for each primary-school child." |
| Herald Sun - 20 April, 2009 - Kids left at school all alone |
| Herald Sun - 5 April, 2009 Two Victorian schools seeking new classrooms as part of the Federal $14.7 billion Building Education Revolution pack say they have been told by the State Education Department officials they will not get them. |
| Herald Sun - 5 April, 2009 - Schools lose out on cash The Victorian Principals' Association also claimed some schools had been asked to sacrifice their funding. The association has released a position paper which demands that each primary school receive a "minimum of 100 per cent" of the Federal Government funding unless an "individual school community has fully agreed". |