Australia

Continuous monitoring of background checks to be introduced

The South Australian Government has announced a new ‘real-time’ background check monitoring system that will continually monitor records to more quickly detect offences and update a person’s clearance status. The Advertiser reports that the $6.5 million system is expected to be operating by mid-2017 and will see the names of people who have a valid clearance, or are applying for a clearance, run through the system either daily or weekly.

Queensland Education Department spends more than $500,000 on a fence

The Brisbane Times reports that the Queensland Teachers’ Union has described the Education Department’s decision to approve a $510,000 security fence around a State high school as ‘a necessary expense’ to counter vandalism and drug sales. The fence has been deemed necessary after the school this year has reported 15 break-ins and 100 smashed windows causing damage of close to $100,000.

Asbestos warning for Northern Territory schools

The ABC reports that an asbestos safety alert has been issued after some of the rock samples contained in science education kits purchased by 24 NT schools were found to contain asbestos. The kits have been found to contain asbestos under a variety of names and all Australian schools are advised to immediately withdraw the kits from use. If asbestos material is not disturbed it is unlikely to release asbestos fibres and therefore the potential risk of exposure is low. A link to the safety alert is here.

Victoria approves closure and sale of 10 school sites

The Andrews Government in Victoria has approved the closure and sale of 10 school sites. The Age reports that local governments are infuriated by the decision given the demand for schools that already exists and they’re confused about where the Government plans to build the proposed 23 new state schools to accommodate for ‘unprecedented growth’ in school-aged children in Victoria, if sites are being sold off.

Camouflage-clad gunman sparks security scare for Brisbane schools

Nine News reported that in Brisbane two schools and a childcare centre went into lockdown last week after a camouflage-clad man carrying a replica assault rifle was seen in the area. The police were contacted by a nearby resident. A manhunt was launched and the man, who is understood to be a member of the Australian Army based in Townsville, was arrested. He was charged with public nuisance.

Islamic school suffers student enrolment drop after a year of controversy

The Islamic College of South Australia has been the site of several parent protests this past year, making headlines on countless occasions for all the wrong reasons. The ABC reports that the College has suffered a significant drop in enrolments for 2016 as a result of parent dissatisfaction with the management of the school. The school has gone through four principals in as little as three years.

New funding agreement forces schools to spend before the year is up

The West Australian has reported that from next year, public schools in WA will be forced to spend 96% of their annual budget in the year they receive it. The Education Department has introduced this requirement as a way to counteract the new trend of State schools hoarding their cash in bank accounts rather than spending it on the school and its students.

International

Father sues Catholic school for wrongfully expelling daughter

A father in California has filed a lawsuit against his daughter’s Catholic school claiming that she was wrongfully expelled following false rumours of sexual misconduct and that the school failed to follow its expulsion policy. The LA Times has reported that after the eighth grader had complained to a teacher about her peers spreading false rumours that she was having sex, the principal requested written statements from the bullies. The principal, in a meeting with the father and daughter, disclosed that there had been other allegations of a similar nature four weeks prior. The girl denied the misconduct but was expelled and escorted off campus immediately. The father is seeking $500,000 in damages.

Ground breaking teacher training programme ruled illegal

Stuff.co reports that New Zealand school principals staffing plans for the next year have been thrown into disarray as a scheme that enabled high-achieving non-education university graduates to do an intensive, six-week course before they start work in schools, training on the job for two years, has been declared to be illegal. The Employment Relations Authority held that teacher graduates were illegally appointed to jobs through the programme and created a disadvantage for qualified teachers who missed out on the roles.