Its not fair that a child (who didn’t choose the “class” in which they were born) should be denied the same benefits as given to Privately Educated Students especially when the Government funding for those schools is potentially on par with Public Schools who don’t see anywhere near the income from levies compared to Private Schools.

While there remains a system of both Public & Private Schools we will continue to see the generational differences in work ethic between social classes… Public Education is the only truly fair system of Education because it is about EDUCATION regardless of social or income status.

Within Schools both Private and Public in Australia the wearing of a Uniform is encouraged… in addition to recognition of the individual school the uniform prevents the incidence of fashion wars between students.

In other words All students are expected to wear the same uniform so they all fit in. One isn’t forced to feel different to the other based on something as simple as fashion…

Philosophically if we had half a school dressed in a Uniform and the other half dressed in regular casual clothes it would be like splitting the class of people between Private & Public Schools. One is always going to feel more superior than the other and this will flow on through work ethic in adult years…

© 2011  Eric J. Smith

Parents are invited to express their opinion only so the Education system can say they have given the family options. The Education system is designed to run in a particular order delivering a particular curriculum to a particular type of student. The school system acts like a sieve to sift out the lumps to ensure it runs smoothly.

Having spent many hours in the Principals office (as a parent, not a student) I can say without doubt School principals and senior staff DO listen to parents. From experience I can say however, this is NOT to enable the implementation of our values as parents, but rather to explain to us why our values are wrong.

Prior to the 2007 Election in Australia the John Howard Coalition Government implemented change in the Industrial relations act giving more freedom to employees and employers. These changes enabled Individual work place agreements to be negotiated between employer and employee. It gave more freedom to both the worker and the boss. The Rudd Labor government overturned the system after the election in 2007.

This “WorkChoices” system failed because it did not accommodate for Greed. This was perhaps the only problem with the structure. Giving Freedom to Individuals rather than a collective body IS a good thing, when implemented with protection for both employer and employee.

The Education system is run in a similar way to the current Union based Industrial Relations system. Everything is done based on a collective criteria and curriculum. The only students who are eligible to receive an Individual Education Program (IEP) are those with higher support needs. Even then, the IEP’s have to reflect Implementation through a collective system.

The Individual as such has no rights under any collective system. The development of which is done based on an assumed majority.

Parental Autonomy does not exist within the Education System as it currently exists.

It’s obvious the system needs drastic change to accommodate the individual more so than the collective.

3 areas needing change are:

1. All students should receive Individual Education Programs.
2. Students from 8 years of age should be encouraged with support, to set their own curriculum based on pre-determined testing criteria to ensure a streamlined Testing program.
3. Parents should be included in the Design, Implementation and Updating of the Students individual education program.

Eric J. Smith

While children in mainstream schools are learning the ABC’s, kids in Special needs facilities are learning to dress themselves, learn to communicate through alternative channels, basic life skills, toileting and the like.

Although Special needs children receive the specialised support they require there are several powerful reasons these Special Needs services to be provided in a mainstream setting.

5 Reasons to Enrol Special Needs Children in Mainstream Schools with full time support:

1. Mainstream Students learn to accept the Child behind the disability. While ever kids are made to feel different or “removed” from society there will always be issues relating to acceptance. Students with disabilities need to learn, fail and succeed like any other mainstream student.

2. Disabled Children develop a sense of acceptance. Removing Special Needs Kids from a mainstream setting for permanent education in purpose built facilities does, by default, give them a sense of not only being different but forced to feel unaccepted by society. Kids from All walks of life are different. Some are Short, Some are black, some have red hair and freckles some are obese. All of these differences does not cause these kids to be treated differently. It also does not force them to attend Specialised Education.

3. Social Interaction becomes a permanent part of the Child’s Education and not a “Special Event” or excursion. Removing a child from society to teach them social skills makes about as much sense as taking the paper OUT of the printer to print a document.

4. Not only do Special needs kids learn about the real world, Mainstream Students also learn about the world of a special needs child. Mainstream kids should be given the opportunity to learn a non-spoken language such as Makaton. It not only allows communication with those who can not speak it is also a powerful communication language for people in noisy work environments.

5. Specialised services become more readily available to other students in Mainstream schools. There will always be students with difficulties in all levels of school. Some students with mild Autism, Cerebral Palsy or ADHD. When students with more severe disabilities are educated at mainstream schools, the services for the less severe disabilities are available on hand rather than by appointment.

Society needs to move through generations of change and acceptance before Special Needs Kids and adults will be given some form of belonging to the real world.

Eric J. Smith

The concept of institutionalised care and education is almost a thing of the past. Though some circles still feel special needs kids and adults do not have a place in mainstream society, thankfully these groups are diminishing as the decades roll on.

The placement of Special needs kids in mainstream school has many benefits to the special needs child but also the school community as a whole. Mainstream school kids get to know the disabled child for the person inside the body, not the outward disability. This goes a long way to improving social acceptance of the special needs kids both now as a child in school and later as an adult in the community.

As a parent of a disabled child I often liken the use of Special School facilities to taking a bath without any water or taking a flight in a plane without wings.

Just like we need water to take a bath we also need a “normal” social setting to educate special needs kids about society and interacting in it. The use of Special Education facilities is like taking a mainstream school student to the desert to teach them to swim.

I should pause to explain that this article is written out of frustration due to a long run battle for our child to be accepted at a mainstream school on a permanent basis. The closest we have ever been able to get was 4 days at a mainstream school and 1 day at special education – with this likely to expand each year until she was a permanent pupil at the special education school.

As parents we are in no way against the Specialised Education our daughter requires. We do however, feel this Extra support could and should be made available to her at a mainstream school. She should have the ability to have lunch with her siblings, participate in Lunchtime activities with mainstream kids, Attend sporting events – whether participating or cheering – and generally socialise with her age group peers.

The concept of splitting Education between 2 facilities due to a disability is like splitting a child’s world in half. Its saying “Its ok to be called ‘normal’ a couple of days a week and ‘disabled’ for the rest of the week”.

The teachers call it “getting the best of both worlds”. Unfortunately we don’t live in 2 worlds. We live in one world and we should all be accepted as equal within it regardless of race, colour, ability, disability or orientation.

Teachers tell students to learn from their mistakes, ask for assistance when needed and don’t be concerned about getting something wrong.  “We Learn from our mistakes” is a common Educational theme.

According to the AEU in reference to publishing NAPLAN results – “…league tables are simplistic and misleading…”

In Australia the AFL is followed more religiously than God, unfortunately. 16 teams play each week for a position in the 16 rung ladder. Kids are encouraged to participate in Sport and logically students find themselves supporting a footy team positioned somewhere on that ladder.  Whether it’s a coach training a footy team or a teacher educating a class, what’s the difference?

The AEU, in a letter sent home with students states – “…League tables will force schools to compete and focus more on lifting the schools average score and less on individual learning…”

From what I understand, Students are not taught Individually as it is, they are taught collectively and graded individually.

In Australia the only students who recieve an Individual Education Program (IEP) are those on the high needs disability registar.

Individual students in a mainstream school are unfairly branded if they fail to understand a “collective curriculum”. Now the AEU fears schools will be unfairly branded as failing – where should the priority be?

I’m sure the Education Union in the majority of cases do put students in the priority position but in this instance I feel the AEU is protecting teachers from feeling failure.

Kids today are not given enough opportunity to “Learn to fail“. In fact kids are protected from failure.

Failure is a good thing. Its a sounding board for increased learning.

Winston Churchill was quoted as saying – However beautiful the strategy, you should occasionally look at the results.

He also said – Criticism may not be agreeable, but it is necessary. It fulfils the same function as pain in the human body. It calls attention to an unhealthy state of things.

Maybe thats why he also said…. Never Give up, Never Give up, Never, Ever, Ever Give up!

Like any profession teachers and teacher aides have to work within standards and procedures set out by the department.

In Australia, while the marking procedures have gone through several changes, the overall system remains basically unchanged.

Albert Einstein was quoted as saying “I never teach my pupils. I only provide the conditions in which they can learn.

However, this can only work if the same conditions are reflected outside the school environment.

As Parents we also need to take an active role in this. Teachers are not babysitters.

Going from a labouring job to manager, my salary would probably double.

A teacher is in charge of 20 or more students (Primary school), yet their salary doesn’t change. In fact, teachers are in management positions and probably being paid as labourers.

Teachers have been dealt an unfair hand in the media recently. The Education department (system) are the ones rocking the cradle, because like any government based department, they rule the roost.