- Education
- Economy management
EducationAs we know without education, we cannot get very far in life. We need to know how to communicate with each other and if we know a trade, in any aspect (from Pre Accredited to Doctorate), then so much the better for both, us and the community.
However, how we go about getting people skilled, willing and able to work are another thing together. I know some people want to work, but when you talk to them, it’s a very restrictive work they want – it has to pay at least this amount, only work these hours, and I only want to do this part. Unfortunately the real world does not work that way. I would love if it would, but we all have things that we love and things that we don’t care for in any job no matter who you are.
The two major parties talk about their vision on what they will do for us all in education.
What is the Gonski Review?
It is a national set of agreements and came from recommendations of the independent Gonski Review. The review found that there is an urgent need to invest more in schools and do so by fairer and consistent funding arrangements across the whole of Australia for the next 6 years.
Labour:
Labour’s views on education are below and have been taken from their website.
The Better Schools Plan - introducing education reforms that
evidence shows improve results. These will be in the areas of:
•Quality
teaching
•Quality
learning
•Empowered
school leadership
•Meeting
student need
•Greater
transparency and accountability
•And to
get extra money from the federal government you have to show these categories: o kids from
low income families
o Indigenous
students
o students
with disability
o kids with
limited English skills
o the size
of the school
o attend
rural and remote schools
•Provide
access to new computer and technology equipment for secondary students
For Adults by 2025, they want:
•40 per
cent of all 25-to-34-year-olds will hold a bachelor's degree or above
•20 per
cent of undergraduate enrolments will be disadvantaged students from low
socio-economic backgrounds
•Investing
a record $14.3 billion over the next four years in skills and training like
TAFE in the face of savage cuts by Liberal state governments
Gonski: Labour’s View
- Extra resources to schools – targeting the need of individual students
- More support through literacy and numeracy programs
- Supporting assistance for special needs students
- More attention to every child and not the ones just drawing attention of the teacher
- Each of these above is flexible and can move depending on where the students need the help more
Labour’s views on education are below and have been taken from their website.
- We will put parents, principals and school communities, not unaccountable bureaucrats, in charge of determining how their school will be run to improve performance
- Encourage State schools to choose to become independent schools, providing simpler budgeting and resources allocation and more autonomy in decision making.
- We will support teachers in the classroom by ensuring our curriculum is rigorous without being too prescriptive or overcrowded.
- We will continue current levels of funding for schools, indexed to deal with real increases in costs and we will ensure that money is targeted based on the social and economic status of the community.
- We will make more investment in science education at primary schools. We will restore the Primary Connections science education programme
- We will work together with social media operators, schools, parents and children to tackle cyber bullying and other harmful material and behaviour targeted at individual children online
- We will continue the National School Chaplaincy Programme in Schools to support the emotional well being of students.
- We will ensure the continuation of the current arrangements of university funding.
- We will work with the sector to reduce the burden of red tape, regulation and reporting, freeing up the sector to concentrate on delivering results and services.
- We will review and restructure government research funding to make sure each dollar is spent as effectively as possible.
- We will ensure the sector has a stable, long-term source of infrastructure funding.
We will work with the sector to grow higher education as an export industry and to support international students studying in Australia. - We will boost and retain skills in the workplace and give incentives to employers to take young people and older Australians off welfare and into work.
- Our immigration programme will focus on skilled migrants targeting skills shortages and people who can make a contribution from day one in a job.
- We will work urgently with the States to aim to have 40 per cent of Year 12 students studying a foreign language, preferably an Asian language
- We will establish a new two-way 'Colombo Plan' that doesn’t just bring the best and brightest talent from the region to Australia’s universities but that also takes Australia’s best and brightest talent to Asian universities
- By awarding scholarships to our students and fostering this ‘Asia-capable’ learning and developing these people-to-people relationships in those countries we are really developing the leaders of the future
Gonski: Liberal’s View- We will honour Gonski agreements for the existing time left on the agreements.
- States not signed on would get a portion of Commonwealth funding for 1 year, but they don’t have to put any money of their own in.
- Reduce legislation and reduce federal control on how money is spent.
My View on Education
Upon reading both sides, I can safely say that neither side really calls to me. Anyone who has a teaching degree at all should have the Better Schools Plan and those running the damned thing should a business or accounting background to ensure they meeting budget and allocation just like a business. If they can’t do either of these things, then why are they still operating? Any why should schools get extra income for doing something that they should aim at every year? If kids don’t have a level of English that is required, then put them in a room with likeminded kids, independent of age, and teach them English. I know when I was growing up, I was taken from regular class, put into another class for struggling kids and was taught what I needed to know. I think I turned out fine for having a learning disability. Teach people how to work around their problem area and, as long as they aren’t lazy, then putting back into the main stream. Kids are bored with all the droning that goes on day in and day out in a classroom – I know because I was there. Give them something that challenges them and make it fun and you will get results.
By the way, a chaplaincy programme seriously? If they need to speak to someone, then someone should be there in another capacity, but does it really need to be a chaplain? Unless you have an agreement that they only come in when needed and then it would have to be something pretty severe.
As for Adults, they are only talking about restructuring, which means reducing jobs placed upon them, and not increasing anything except for what they want – results. I think in this area they both fail.
As for the truth?
I think they both believe, to a certain point, their ideas, but I think they are in the world of Charlie and the Chocolate factory.
Economy management
Labour says they will help us all by doing the following for jobs and the economy:
Growth and Opportunity
- Jobs program - grow the new jobs and build the new industries of the future
- Protections for conditions like overtime and penalty rates that can’t be stripped away by having the Fair Work Commission
- Major advances in equal pay have been made
- Workplace health and safety laws are being improvedo safe rates reformso a right for victims of workplace bullying
- Superannuation going from 9 per cent to 12 per cent on 1 July 2013
- Low and middle-income workers are paying less tax
- improved parental leave arrangements with more flexibility, the right to request flexible work or allowing agreement on individual flexibility arrangements
- Labor's Paid Parental Leave Scheme - New mums can get up to 18 weeks' pay at the national minimum wage and eligible dads and same-sex partners can receive an additional two weeks' of government paid leave at the minimum wage All this being said, you have to keep in mind the MPs received a pay rise this year. However, the first time the MPs tried to have a raise, Kevin Rudd blocked a pay rise in 2008 but MPs voted this year to give away the power to veto a pay rise and in giving away that power, they voted for and received a pay rise.
Then you have ways the current Federal Government is [has] wasting $1.3 billion a year on prescription drugs and cabinet ministers should not have a say in which drugs are listed on the PBS. Further, there has been a Little Book of Big Labor Waste, but keep in mind, this was put together by the Liberals which is opposition to them.Liberal:
Liberals say they will help us all by doing the following for jobs and the economy:
• Build a stronger economy• Scrap the Carbon Tax• Help small business grow• Build a diverse 5-Pillar economyo Manufacturing Innovationo Advanced Serviceso Agriculture Exportso Education and Researcho Mining Exports• Generate two million jobs• Liberal’s Paid Parental Leave Scheme – This has just been announced and I cannot find anything online.Of course, then you have what was said by Tony Abbott, when the MPs received their pay rise this year. “I think that the average Australian, those people who work hard and struggle to meet their bills at the end of the week or month, they want politicians to make their burdens easier, not heavier.”Then in the way they plan on keeping waste of monies under control they keep referring to the “Our Plan" document released by the Federal Opposition leader and its wording confirms undertakings given by the Shadow Assistant Treasurer, Senator Mathias Cormann, around concessional contribution caps and excess contributions but remains very unspecific on the key issues.
My View on Economy management
When I first heard this term, I thought, what the hell are they getting at. However, once you sit down and take a look at what they are actually saying to what they are actually have done, it’s like a siren going off for not one party but for them both. They say they want to build a stronger economy by increasing jobs, but how???The Liberal government have tried to say where they are building the economy, but I think they have it all wrong. Manufacturing is almost all out the door, just look at the recent closings of many of the factories here in Victoria. Then you have to figure out what Advanced Services are because nowhere is it outlined. Agriculture Exports – try again as the farmers are being run off their land by either prices or overseas buyers coming in and paying money for the land that they will sell and make millions so this won’t really be here after a while. Education and Research that he’s not increasing any funding for and on the website says “We will continue current levels of funding for schools”. Mining Exports is the last on the list and that is slowing down as we all know.The pay rise has already happened, but I have to say at least Rudd stopped it the first time, but Abbott seems to think struggling Australians won’t get hit with these extra costs and that does make our burdens heavier, so he couldn’t be any more wrong. However, if another pay rise is asked for, will it go through again? I don’t think there’s anyone there to stop it, unless someone who feels like Rudd did the first time, says no and vetoes it.Finally, on last issue is the issue on extra spending. I think this is a complete tie with lies for either party. They both are going to be spending extra but neither is saying how they will be paying for it and what they will be increasing.
As for the truth?
I think they will spin each of these sections however they want them to look. If they want them in a positive light, then they will spin them that way, if they don’t then it’s the other direction.My overall thoughtsIt seems like Labour’s ideals are the better on paper. That being said, we have seen what the past years have been like by them playing who’s in charge. Further, I’m not sure if they can and will keep their spending in control. I think each party’s policies old and new have enough holes in them that they make Swiss cheese look like a full piece of cheese.
Future Blogs
For the next few weeks – until the election on 7 September- I’ll be covering each of these topics I have mentioned in the 11 August 2013 blog.
Next week’s topics to be covered will be next week Australian Federal Election 2013 – My View on- Infrastructure & Health, so come back then when I tackle these 2 topics.
I have had problems with the formatting, publishing and saving this week, which is why the page is so weird. I apologize. I am thinking up a new format that is shorter for the next blog post as this one seemed really too long.
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