Students mix school and work from Grade 7
It’s hard to remember that brief time in history when all students were assumed to benefit from spending time in an institution which required them to move from one place to another on the command of a bell, and sit down and absorb or practice skills in subjects for which they were often disinterested and ill prepared.
In 2020, Victorian students have a very different experience.
From Year 7 they have the opportunity to mix work and study. The low rates of minimum pay, scaled by age, offered to students combined with the automatic “no fault” insurance for workplaces have lead to a big increase in jobs offered. Every young person is guaranteed access to 6 years income support during their life to assist them to complete secondary education regardless of when they choose to take it. Primary education is still mandatory, but some are beginning to develop flexible systems involving a merger of school teachers’ expertise and what used to be called “home schooling”.
All secondary school study is part of a coherent Victorian Certificate of Education
The VCE requires passes in 72 units over 6 years. All units are expected to take about 6 months, depending on student ability and commitment. About half the units are mandatory. Many of the mandatory subjects are arranged in a sequence where success at a prior level is required before enrolment in the next. Students can study any combination of subjects at any time if they can fit them into their week ! Attendance is not a requirement of enrolment. Students can choose whether they learn more in person, on-line or with student study groups. Students enrol in schools so that they can obtain feedback and guidance on their progress, and be admitted to the examinations (some pen & paper, others practical skill tests or performances).
"I went to 3 schools in the same year !"
More and more students choose to enrol in classes from a variety of schools depending on their subject choices, their perception of the quality of the program offered at a particular school, and whether their results in preparatory subjects win them a place at that school. Schools receive funding based on the total number of number of student in all their subjects. All VCE subject content, activities and materials are provided free to students online. Commercial publishers compete and co-operate as they think best to sell updated and improved courses to the Education Department. The market influence of being chosen has been so great that other states are beginning to seek cooperative ventures with Victoria creating a defacto national curriculum. This contrasts sharply with a past where school were at the mercy of frequently changing “blueprints” but were given no “building materials” that coherently fitted together.
EduLibrary – a free gift to the world that has really paid off !
The Victorian government decided early against providing only general guidelines and relying on the hope that publishers would write quality materials for the small Victorian market. They took the approach that “Recipes are a strategy to ensure that the average chef can make an excellent meal”. No teaching “recipe” could smother the creativity of teachers when presented with the vibrant mix inherent in any student group. The government commissioned publishers to work in cooperation with its curriculum writers to prove that the government guidelines could be translated into day-to-day reality. Before the project had got underway, a range of groups tried to join and broaden the task to global dimensions. The government stayed firm, believing that experience of building a real bridge is better than the experience of planning a thousand theoretical bridges.
In the face of Ministerial insistence that all EduLibrary material would be copyright free for all non-commercial use, gifted materials began to flood in from individuals and non-profit educational publishers as well as commercial sources willing to sell materials for a once only fee.
Within 2 years, the EduLibrary has grown to enormous proportions and was beginning to influence the course of educational publishing worldwide. The problems of selecting and sequencing the activities that would be recommended for a course took another 2 years as the public debate raged as to what should be learnt in school. In the past, this debate was always avoided because guidelines could be continually re-interpreted to appease each audience.
Today, the EduLibrary site provides not just one learning pathway, but a rich set of alternate sequences. Each sequence provides detailed activity scripts and final teaching materials for use with students or by students. Individual teachers publish their own materials to the Ministry Website as additional resources for the subject so students can browse the core material as well as the additional materials provided by any teacher in the state. Secondary teachers now emulate the long-standing practice of primary teachers in maintaining a “daily work program record” – only now it is “on-line”. Ministry curriculum writers comb the teacher’s materials regularly, obtaining much new and creative additional materials for the EduLibrary. Attribution is carefully managed and highly valued. Copyright for any future non-commercial use (including the Ministry) is surrendered as soon as the materials are submitted to EduLibrary.
Schools are smaller and leaner
Secondary schools are far smaller than previously required. Class schedules for all schools with the lesson objectives are on the internet. As “classes” may have up to 50 students, students need to book admission when they decide to learn “in person”. The teacher places class size limits from 10-50 depending on the needs of the lesson objective. Depending on student requests, more classes are scheduled. The total number of students taught by any one teacher is decided by workload agreements, which include a range of other duties. The teachers in highest demand by students can shift their teaching load into the subject at which they are most successful. They also receive various rewards for the Ministry. The administrative load on schools is greatly reduced due to the reduced number of students and teachers on site at any one time. They require fewer site resources and a much leaner management. Discipline problems and student management are enormously reduced. Other reasons for reduced number of bodies (rather than minds) at school include the increase in students who enrol in at least some subjects accredited for the VCE at Technical and Further Education Colleges, industry training courses (such as Cisco computers, Microsoft Engineers, McDonald Catering) and tertiary institutions (a small but growing number of very capable students).
The competition between schools has disappeared in place of competition for a place in the class of the best teachers. Access is controlled by academic results and by preference to students studying more subjects at the school.
Incentives to learn
To obtain the tax-free income support, students must be certified as either attending minimum hours of work and/or successfully completing 6 units every half year. Students passing only 5 units receive 70% income support for the next semester of their study, or (if they do not return to study) have the equivalent payment taken from their pay. Support drops to 60% for 4 units and 50% for 3 units etc. Most students work as hard as they can to ensure that they gain at least a pass in 6 units every semester. There are still some that leave school after failure. Many return to study after a year or two with full support and perhaps a newfound maturity. No students can access unemployment benefits until they have either completed the VCE OR they are over 21.
Students on the streets !
Students are on the streets more than previously, both because they have more flexibility in the amount and timing of their attendance and because so many learning programs encourage and sometimes require students to travel to get information or learning materials. It was this issue above all that drew out the core of the debate on school reform. Students on the street meant crime. Jobs for teachers are threatened if they we take away baby minding as a key role. Who can the parent sue when Jane falls over at the station and breaks her leg ? Unemployment will rise unless you keep students in schools and away from real jobs. Employers will exploit them in dead-end jobs at low pay.
All these eventualities came true to some extent, but were addressed by a range of approaches unrelated to education.
Juvenile crime was shown to be a product of alienation caused by factors such as poor parenting leading to poor behavioural training leading to poor educational outcomes leading to no job and no interest in study. Strategies to address this previously had hoped that schools could be converted from their obsession with education and reoriented to be “one-stop-shops” for parenting and social service provision for an increasingly diverse and troubled clientele. This strategy was at the heart of the enrolment flight to schools that were “independent” of this policy. Once the focus returned to actually addressing the core concerns, great progress began to occur in a wide range of creative approaches:Active parenting guidance programs began with an educational focus; Government funds channelled into encouraging extending opening hours for local libraries as well as their expanded involvement in quality educational video loan; Tightening of video loan and display systems in commercial outlets; Increased funding to local sporting and recreational bodies to lower the financial cost for parents of involvement; Curfews for unaccompanied children of various ages in public places involving police and community service visits to homes to provide strong advice; Mandatory involvement of parents and students involved in crime in parenting and relationship courses; Guaranteed employment for all children up till the age of 18 considered as an educational and social health policy rather than an employment policy etc.
Similarly, reduction in teaching workforce was achieved with less pain that thought possible. A large number of teachers were approaching retirement during this period anyway. This, combined with increased power and responsibility of principals for staff selection and effective strategies for dealing with poor teachers, made plenty of room for rigorous selection of the best teaching applicants – not all of whom were young graduates. Many gifted teachers who had left due to their “temperamental unsuitability” during the roughhouse classrooms of the 80’s and 90’s, applied to return as they saw the changes to the day-to-day working climate in schools. Many teachers discovered that they were interested in a range of new tasks that were created by the changes such as supervising student work placements and working with small groups of struggling students who wanted to achieve a clearly defined goal. Others gained recognition, sometimes from an international audience for their skill in curriculum development. As always most contributed unsung to the most important outcomes within classrooms, where they were able to add power to learning through building a personal relationship with learners and responding flexibly to their achievements and difficulties.
Laws did have to be changed removing the state responsibility for children while they were not physically present at a school such as when they were completing tasks that contributed to their studies.
Schools also have far less “co-curricular” activity to organise in competition with or duplication of other community groups. Government support, and much time from many teachers voluntarily, has poured instead into revitalising community groups such as sporting clubs, dramatic societies, scouts, adventurers etc. All enrolled students are physically assessed by the health (not education) department each year for physical fitness. If they fall outside healthy measurement and performance criteria they are compulsorily required to attend physical training programs often involving paid teachers, sport professionals and/ or health workers. “Fit and trim” classes are offered on Saturday mornings at a range of venues with suitable equipment including schools.
Juvenile employment has reduced some employment opportunities for older workers. Most people nevertheless consider that employment experiences for youth are such an obviously beneficial social investment that the opposition has been comparatively muted. Unions have begun to move the debate towards a universal employment guarantee, which in some ways has the potential to merge with calls for “work for the dole” as long as suitable socially productive (if not economically productive) work can be identified.
Teachers do more preparation, teaching and correction than ever before
With reduced student management responsibilities and distractions, the teacher’s role has refocused around time spent on preparation for class (getting materials together, refining the script, planning activities that will involve and illuminate the objective). They have on balance a slightly greater teaching load than in the past, because many tasks that reduced their teaching allotment have been reduced or eliminated. They are encouraged to work creatively to arrange class sizes according to the needs of the program. They can decide whether to present a lesson to 50 students as a demonstration and therefore gain time that can be used to provide small group tuition on another task. Their load is based on the number of students enrolled in their classes even if many do not attend every lesson. If the course involves assessment of practical skills or performances, students will be required to demonstrate them in person.All examinations are conducted in person even in this online world because of the need to authenticate the work as the students own. Work completed outside the teacher’s supervision cannot be considered as part of final assessments in the VCE. Therefore teachers tend to also spend more time on assessment, supervising students while they complete more extended assignments or practical projects.
Fast and accurate correction has become one of the criteria most valued by students in their evaluations. Because students make a preference list of classes with a particular teacher as part of their enrolment process, teachers are far more sensitive to their evaluations than in the past. Student enrolment requests are one component of annual evaluation meetings with principals (where staff receive feedback on their performance and are invited to provide frank and confidential feedback on any other staff, the principal and school effectiveness). Teachers do not “dumb down” their courses to try to win student favour because all assessment tasks are the set state-wide and marked blind (i.e. students do not name the assessments and they are randomly allocated to teachers for marking). Assessment tasks used within the one school are the same although they may differ from another school that has chosen another curriculum pathway from EduLibrary to achieve the same objectives.
Falling through the gaps
With no school taking full responsibility for the “complete” student, the chance that students would just disappear from the system into an underworld was predicted early. Some teachers (especially those with interest in student welfare and careers etc) have transferred to the “Education Guarantee” branch of the government, which has workers in schools, Employment and Social Service Centres. This branch tracks all students for involvement in classes, assessments and job involvement. Action is considered if students are: not attending classes (as seen by the on-line class booking and attendance system), for a week or so; not working (as reported by employers); failing the subjects that they are enrolled in (as seen by performance at assessment tasks occurring at least monthly in all courses). Actions include home visits; interviews with student and family; additional assistance and/ or advice to families (government and non-government agencies); raising or lowering government support to the family; intervention orders etc. etc.
This process is in fact proving far more effectively now that it is integrated into the social service structure and has a mandate to intervene and change the outcomes for the student and the family.
Particularly successful have been the options of employment and extra-curricular social involvements rather than education as change agents for fighting alienation. In the past, these agencies had been mainly concerned with pressuring schools to keep such students regardless of the quality of outcome because they had so few options to intervene in any other way.
Variety is the spice of life
Local students no longer have a right to enrolment at the closest school although this continues to be a strong enrolment pattern. Secondary schools must offer all mandatory subjects but can choose which other subjects to specialise in. In the early years, excessive specialisation in some schools led to large variations in enrolments from year to year. Schools tend to offer a balance across all major traditional optional subject categories (e.g. arts, technology, social education etc). Nevertheless, most schools have also chosen one or more areas where they attempt to shine. This can arise from chance grouping of teaching excellence or be seeded by a school funding grant to kick-start a particular learning area. Such specialisation has been shown to give schools a generalised sense of achievement across all areas without unbalancing the whole school structure. Schools are often able to create specialisations because, with an approx 30% reduction in student presence, there is more physical space available that can be made exclusive to a particular curriculum specialty.
The disappearance of the standard classroom
In most schools the standard classroom with about 25 chairs is now the minority. Most classrooms accommodate only about 10-15 students and are used exclusively by a particular teacher who has filled them with teaching resources that enable rich and flexible teaching approaches. In older schools this has been achieved easily at very low cost through the splitting of older existing classrooms. At various times, a larger or specialised space is needed either due to equipment requirements of the activity, or the teacher’s decision to hold a lecture or demonstration lesson of up to 50 students. A range of larger and more specialised rooms are available for the teacher to book. Some hold large numbers of computers, and/ or have large screen multimedia displays, or lab equipment etc.
Money makes the world go around
Facilities development and maintenance are some of the many decisions made at the local level as part of the total annual budget allocation to the school. The principal is the principal decision-maker after being required to listen to formal advisory bodies (staff council & community council).
The local school budget does not include any component for staffing as staff are provided based on enrolments average over the current and previous years. The principal has discretionary staffing funds available to provide rewards to teachers based on their performance, and in a very limited range of cases to hire external staff to provide special programs.
Virtually all the additional tasks that used to detract from the teaching load (and professional focus) of teachers have disappeared or are completed by ancillary staff – Lockers, Timetable, Bus Maintenance, Drama Production, Camps Program, Student Discipline/ Welfare (previously a huge and growing staffing commitment).
Principals, Teachers and Education Guarantee staff encourage students to become involved in a range of community “extra-curricula” activities in the sure knowledge that they contribute to better socialisation, skill development and mental and physical health. In many cases, staff are involved to some extend in a voluntary capacity in these programs. Teachers have always enjoyed working with students in spheres of sport, drama, music, camping etc. In some, cases these are now paid positions funded by the education Guarantee, or a sporting club, or a charity.
Reality is more challenging than rhetoric
Many “boffins” who railed against the current system of schools either had no coherent vision to back their criticism – or were too timid to share it. Without a vision of “what success will look like”, we would never have been able to make the paradigm shift required to rethink schools as smaller and eventually fewer, but more vibrant as educational institutions, contributing to a common good rather than competing for fewer and fewer students at any cost.
Eventually, the school might merge into other learning institutions such as public libraries, Universities/ Training etc. This will be a minor change compared to our achievement so far which has been to disconnect schools from the industrial task of keeping students out of the way, and to re-establish the primacy of learning.
Stephen Digby has taught for 20 years in primary, technical and high schools in Victoria, Australia. His roles include administrator, teacher, consultant in computer education, maths and science. Career highlights include developing a Computer Education Teacher Training Centre; working as a curriculum writer for the Information Technology Study of the Victorian Certificate of Education; and working in Ohio as a Maths Teacher during and International Teaching Fellowship. Stephen currently teaches mathematics and manages the Learning Technologies at Cheltenham Secondary College, Melbourne, Australia.
No comments:
Post a Comment
Comment or Send a Message
You can use this form to send a message OR make a comment as your contribution is NOT published automatically, but sent to Stephen for
consideration.
You can select "anonymous" from the drop down menu below if you do not have a google account.