The information in the Weekly Wrap is aggregated from other news sources to provide you with news that is relevant to the education sector across Australia and worldwide. Each paragraph is a summary of the subject matter covered in the particular news article. The information does not necessarily reflect the views of CompliSpace.
According to The Educator, Year 12 is a stressful time for every teenager, but teachers who think that they are acting in their students’ best interests by emphasising the stakes of the exams may only be increasing anxiety for the students and themselves in the process. Professor Viviana Wuthrich and Dr Jessica Belcher carried out a study of 367 Year 12 students and 96 teachers from seven public and private schools across the Greater Sydney area to assess the effect of using fear appeals on stress levels in students and teachers. Professor Wuthrich says that fear appeals at school often begin with “the talk” given at the start of Year 12. “The principal emphasises how important the year is, that it’s the summation of their education and critical for their future career, so they need to make the most of it,” she said. Professor Wuthrich says that a two-pronged approach is required, focusing on increasing students’ self-efficacy and supporting teachers.
According to The Conversation, teachers are increasingly copping abuse from parents and it’s undermining their desire to stay in the profession. A 2020 Australian Catholic University/ Deakin University survey of more than 2,000 Australian principals found that 83 per cent had experienced bullying, the threat of physical violence or physical violence in the past 12 months. The survey reported a significant increase in parental engagement due to the pandemic. About 28 per cent of surveyed principals said that they were spending an extra two hours a day dealing with parents. The survey’s researchers also recommended having recorded, online parent/teacher interviews to minimise exposure to “offensive behaviour”. This has not escaped the attention of policymakers. From Term 3, the Victorian Government introduced powers to ban parents from school grounds for threatening behaviour and bullying towards staff. Western Australia has a similar ban in place.
According to The Educator, the Federal Government’s Institute of Health and Welfare reports that an estimated 380,000 (10 per cent) of all Australian students aged 5-18 have a disability. While principals and department heads are mindful that these students need additional supports, research shows that schools are struggling when it comes to supporting their needs. Matthew Johnson, president of the Australian Special Education Principals Association (ASEPA), said that the number one challenge for ASEPA principals has been the ability to access and guarantee stability in their teaching workforce. Johnson also pointed to the issue of “serious and ingrained inequity” with regard to funding across Australian schools. Johnson said that special education leaders cannot be expected to continue to manage never-ending new processes, implementations and polices without the commensurate administrative and wellbeing support.
According to ABC News, the lesson planning time expected of Australian teachers would take an extra year of work, leading to widespread teacher burnout, a new report says. Damning new Grattan Institute research shows that a lack of curriculum detail and inadequate support is leaving many teachers drowning in a "near-impossible" amount of lesson planning. It found that less than a fifth of teachers have access to a common bank of pre-prepared high-quality curriculum materials for their classes. "Even more troubling, teachers in disadvantaged schools are only half as likely to have access to a common bank as teachers in advantaged schools," the report said. The research said that the gap created a disjointed "lesson lottery", where teaching quality varied greatly, depending on the level of planning support. The report suggests that governments work with schools to develop high-quality, sequenced curriculum documents that teachers can then adapt for their classes.
According to The University of Sydney, religion-based bullying is increasing in Australian schools. Jewish, Hindu, Muslim and Christian school students in Australia are experiencing increasing bullying and discrimination in locker rooms, playgrounds and classrooms, a new report suggests, with children who followed religions with outward symbols being the most targeted. Students reported being bullied for wearing a hijab or being subjected to Nazi salutes and highly offensive antisemitic slurs online or in graffiti. The report, called Exploring the Value of Special Religious Education in Australia, urges the importance of Special Religious Education/Religious Instruction (SRE/RI), known colloquially as scripture classes, to improve understanding and respect towards religious diversity and cultural practices.
The Australian Federal Police (AFP) is urging parents and guardians to be aware of their child’s online activities, with AFP investigators seeing evidence of extremist groups accessing popular online games in a bid to recruit young Australians. The AFP has seen a concerning trend of members and associates of extremist groups targeting young people to expose them to dangerous content – including violent recreations of actual terrorist events – across online gaming platforms. AFP Acting Assistant Commissioner Counter Terrorism and Special Investigations Command Sandra Booth said that spreading extremist content on online gaming platforms was a serious concern for law enforcement agencies in Australia and around the world. “We know that nationalist, racist and violent extremist content in online games is almost certainly part of a radicalisation process for some young people,” she said.
According to the NSW Department of Education, on 30 September, National Cabinet announced that from Friday 14 October 2022, people who test positive to COVID-19 do not need to isolate. In line with this announcement, the NSW Department of Education has worked with NSW Health to support all schools to adapt to this change while continuing to prioritise student and staff wellbeing by minimising the risk of COVID-19 transmissions. Students, staff and visitors should only attend school when they are symptom free. The Department strongly encourages all students, staff and visitors to follow the guidance issued by NSW Health and will continue to send home students or staff displaying symptoms. Anyone who believes that they have been exposed to COVID-19 is strongly recommended to monitor for symptoms and test if they have any concerns, as well as wear a mask.
According to the Australian Financial Review, the NSW Teachers Federation has been fined $60,000 over strikes that “plainly and deliberately” breached orders banning industrial action on the same day that it protested against NSW Government plans to lock in a new three-year award that they say is a tangible wage cut. The Industrial Relations Commission on 29 November 2021 restrained the Federation and its members from taking action. At the time, it was expected that it would hear an application for a new award for teachers and related staff in May this year. In the NSW Supreme Court recently, Justice Christine Adamson fined the Federation $60,000 after finding that the orders were breached on nine days between 26 April and 26 May. This included a 24-hour strike and multiple rallies across NSW on 4 May as part of its “More than Thanks” campaign for better wages and working conditions.
ABC News reports that the Victorian Government has announced that a derived ATAR score will be used for students who have been impacted by flooding in Northern Victoria. Students eligible for derived examination results will have their final ATAR calculated based on earlier test results. Premier Daniel Andrews said that the Government will work with schools to identify students to ensure that they are not disadvantaged. "Obviously it is going to be incredibly difficult for students who can't be home, and they can't remote learn either because teachers are being flood affected as well," he said. "It means your results will reflect your level of achievement, hard work and skill, and not these challenges that you are facing right now," Premier Andrews said. VCE students can contact a dedicated hotline for support on 1800 717 588 or 2022VCE@education.vic.gov.au.
According to 7NEWS.com.au, a student from a high school in regional Victoria has been seriously injured following an explosion at the school. A male student from Bairnsdale Secondary College had to receive medical treatment following a recent fuel drum explosion, the Country Fire Authority (CFA) said. The teenager suffered serious upper body burns, according to Ambulance Victoria. He was airlifted to the Royal Children’s Hospital in a stable condition. “Support is being provided to other students and staff,” a spokesperson for the Victorian Department of Education and Training said. According to a statement from the school’s principal, Trudie Nagle, the incident was contained quickly. “There is no danger to students or staff, and classes are continuing as normal,” she said.
The Sydney Morning Herald reports that a mathematics teacher at a public school in Perth’s south allegedly punched two Year 8 boys in the face after one attempted to throw a chair at her. Radio 6PR reported that the female teacher punched one of the 13-year-old students in the face before he managed to fling the chair, knocking him to the ground. She then allegedly pinned him to the ground. One of her other students tried to intervene, and he was also punched by the teacher in the process. No charges have been pressed by either of the boys’ parents, but a school newsletter revealed that there was “an incident in a class between a teacher and student and I wanted to let you know we are investigating it and have referred the matter to the Department.” Figures released in Parliament in May showed that attacks against staff at Western Australian public schools had increased by 25 per cent in the past five years, with 2577 attacks recorded in 2021.
ABC News reports that, during a coronial update provided to the families of the children killed or injured at Hillcrest Primary School in December last year, counsel assisting the coroner, Leigh Mackey, told the court that the event could be described as "a mini tornado, a wind devil, or similar". "It appears to have been powerful and concentrated," Ms Mackey said. Coroner Olivia McTaggart is leading the investigation into what happened, describing the event as "catastrophic". On Tuesday, she provided details on what evidence has been collected, including details of the injuries suffered, and the next steps towards a public inquest. "I recognise that this event and the deaths of the children has greatly affected so many people," Coroner McTaggart said. "It's an event that has touched and saddened the whole Devonport community, and it's had such an impact on Tasmanian citizens as a whole." The investigation process was described as "intensive" and "complex".
ABC News reports that at least nine students in southern Cambodia, who were crossing a river on their way home from school, have died after the boat that they were on capsized. Four people – two students and two of the boat's crew – were rescued after the accident last Thursday night on the Mekong River south-east of Phnom Penh, and two students were still missing on Friday. On Friday, Major General Chhoeun Sochet – the chief of the Kandal provincial police – said that the boat was overloaded and carried no life jackets. The students – who were aged between 12 and 14 years – lived on an island in the river and used the ferry for transport almost every day in the rainy season. The students were on their way home on Thursday evening around 7pm when the boat capsized. Police chief Am Thou said that the boat's owners, who were its crew, were admitted to hospital after the accident but would face legal action. He did not say what charges they would face.
The Guardian reports that a primary school whose top management were paid £1.49m last year has become among the first to use strike-busting legislation allowing them to hire agency workers to replace striking staff. Temps have been brought in to break a strike by 10 support staff at Drapers’ Pyrgo primary in Romford, east London, who are protesting against cuts to their wages and working hours. It is believed to be the first use in schools of a new law that allows agency workers to be brought in to replace striking workers. In a letter sent to parents on 31 August, principal Louise Fisk wrote that the school would exploit the new legislation to cover the gaps. She said, “A change in legislation in July means that schools can now use agency/temporary workers to cover the work of striking employees. This change in legislation allows the school to manage the impact of the strike days more effectively and, more importantly, we can fully continue with the educational service.”
According to The Mandarin, school district leaders across the US are discussing switching to a four-day week in hopes that it will help them save money, recruit teachers and prevent the ones they have from burning out and quitting. In the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, officials at schools of all sizes are debating the change. Earlier this month, the schools superintendent in Hillsborough County, Florida – one of the United States’ largest school districts – said that it’s worth considering. This academic year, 27 districts in Texas moved to a four-day week. More than 1,600 schools in 650 school districts were using the schedule as of the 2018-19 academic year, the most recent year for which data is available, according to a 2022 study published in the Economics of Education Review. Scholars are still trying to understand the impact of cutting school schedules by one day a week – usually a Monday or Friday, so that educators and students have three-day weekends.