Teachers rally parents to bans
7th May 2010
From the Parliamentary Library
Author: John Masanauskas, education reporter
Publisher: News Ltd
Publication: Herald Sun, Page 4 (Tue 4 May 2010)
Keywords: Martin (1),Dixon (1)
Edition: 1 - FIRST
Section: NEWSTeachers rally parents to bans
TEACHERS are being urged to lobby parents and students at the school gate over their union's threat to ban numeracy and literacy tests next week.
The union's campaign kit also encourages teachers to distribute forms that parents can use to withdraw their children from the tests.
News of the tactics came as the Australian Education Union yesterday came under pressure on two fronts to dump its threatened action.
The Rudd Government's Fair Work Ombudsman launched Federal Court action in a bid to stop the AEU from disrupting NAPLAN testing.
And the state Education Department sought similar orders from Fair Work Australia at a Melbourne hearing.
No rulings have yet been made, but teachers who defy court orders face fines of up to $6600.
The AEU denies it is taking industrial action in its campaign to stop the alleged misuse of test data on the MySchool website.
In a kit issued to teachers, the union said parents could be informed about the campaign in school newsletters.
``Where this isn't possible, the (union) sub-branch should consider handing out the letter outside the school gates to parents and/or secondary-school students,'' it said.
Teachers are also urged to hand out NAPLAN test student withdrawal forms to parents.
Opposition education spokesman Martin Dixon said unions should not lobby for support at the school gate.
``Parents and students shouldn't be used as industrial levers for their cause,'' he said.
But AEU state president Mary Bluett said, ``It's totally appropriate that parents know why teachers and principals feel so strongly that they are taking this action. Because teachers feel so strongly about this they would want to explain it. It's not action they are taking lightly.''
The union's federal president, Angelo Gavrielatos, said, ``This is a heavy-handed and unwarranted response from the (federal) Labor Government to what is a professional matter.''
What the Teachers Union wants
Stop the misuse of student data and the creation of league tables
Improve the reporting of student performance on the myschool website
Explain the results of each school on the website
Allow meaningful comparison of results between schools
Ensure full disclosure of a school's finances
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Martin Dixon MP
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Email: martin.dixon@parliament.vic.gov.au