Next page . . . . Previous page . . . . Speeches . . . . Contents . . . . Debates(HTML) . . . .
Legislative Assembly for the ACT: 2003 Week 7 Hansard (24 June) . . Page.. 2404 ..
MR PRATT
(continuing):mechanisms. I regularly receive complaints from constituents about our teaching staff being overworked, undervalued and not respected. Mr Speaker, I recently received a letter from a constituent concerned about the circumstances of her friend, and I wish to quote from it now:
As a background, my friend is currently in her fourth year as a classroom teacher, and is regarded as an excellent teacher by her peers and her principal. She works hard, is always at school early in the morning, and is often still at school long after her students and other teachers have left in the afternoon/ evening.
May I claim my next 10 minutes, please, Mr Speaker?
MR SPEAKER
: The member's time has expired. Yes, a further 10 minutes, Mr Pratt.MR PRATT
: She goes on to say:She sometimes spends several hours at home in the evenings and on weekends preparing for her classes. She is caring, disciplined, and committed to the schools and the children that she teaches.
She goes on to say:
She is also exhausted and unhappy from several years overwork, too little classroom assistance, too much responsibility, and a lack of professional and career support and development. Whilst my friend loves teaching the conditions under which she has to work on a daily basis, makes it more difficult for her to sometimes see a future for herself in classroom teaching, and not surprisingly, she has already started considering alternative career options.
That's something that we've heard a number of times, Mr Speaker, and it's becoming an even more critical issue now that we are approaching that time when the cohort of those in their early 50s is declining. What strategies does this government have in place to keep those teacher numbers up? We don't see too much evidence of what they have in place to take care of those issues.
The author of this letter goes on to point out the problems which her friend has faced since she commenced her teaching career.
Mr Speaker, good teachers are deciding that our education system is not offering the support mechanisms which they need. It is not focusing on their professional development; they are not being rewarded for excelling in their positions; and they are leaving. The PD program was a good start, but it needs a lot more bolstering. There are not too many more-
Ms MacDonald
: Well, it's more than you guys gave.MR PRATT
: We started that program. Research your history rather than just speak rhetoric.
Next page . . . . Previous page . . . . Speeches . . . . Contents . . . . Debates(HTML) . . . .