NEW figures showing an increase in the number of students suspended from Western Australian public schools come at the same time as a call by the state’s teachers for more surveillance cameras and a greater police presence.
According to the WA department of education director general, Sharyn O’Neill, the rise in suspensions shows how seriously the issue is being taken as officials look to “send out a clear message” that such behaviour is unacceptable.
The statistics though, certainly make for sobering reading. Total number of student suspensions up to 12,529 and 4.9 cent of the total student population suspended at least once during 2009 (up from 4.5 per cent on the previous year).
Even more worrying was the revelation that, of the 44 student exclusions in WA public schools, 17 were for physical assaults against staff. Teaching is already a hard enough job without throwing poor student behaviour and the threat of assault into the equation.
O’ Neill has reassured teachers that moves are being made to the tackle rising suspension rate and assaults on teachers. “I will do my utmost to ensure teachers are free to carry out the excellent work they do in the classroom without fear of intimidation, threats or violence,” she said.
Most teachers would probably agree that behaviour management takes up a vast amount of their time and energy each day. The knock-on effect of this disruption is teachers often end up having to deal with one disruptive student while the rest of the class misses out on valuable input.
In May, it was announced that Queensland principals will get extra powers to expel or suspend students under new laws due to come into effect in time for Term 3. The issue has sparked debate among readers of Australian Teacher Magazine, with some arguing that it’s a professional development issue and others calling for parents to take more responsibility for the actions of their children.
One frustrated WA teacher contacted us to recount a disturbing week of incidents. “I dealt with a student who refused to hand over a pellet gun (that can intimidate, wound, or deafen), confiscated a knife from another, dealt with an issue of students coming to school with the intent to show others an extremely graphic and grotesque pornographic web site, supported a teacher who was smeared with food stuff whilst on duty, and confiscated a lighter from a student who had set paper alight in an oversized class. Have these students been reported for behaviours before? Yes. Were any of these students expelled? No.”
Principals should be trusted to make decisions on whether or not to suspend or expel students for ‘unacceptable’ behaviour, they are the professionals and they have the expert knowledge. But, from the anecdotal feedback from teachers, the danger could be that serious incidents are gradually becoming ‘acceptable’.
ENVIRONMENTAL sustainability is an area in which schools are setting an example to big business and the rest of the community. Perhaps the most encouraging thing about the projects featured in this issue in celebration of World Environment Day, is that they have all grown from humble beginnings – usually something as simple as a veggie patch has been enough to spark interest among staff and students and set the ball rolling.
Inner-city schools are just as likely to succeed as their rural counterparts and small student and staff communities are making just as much difference as those with larger budgets and several campuses.
Bulimba State School principal, Michael Zeuschner, is Queensland’s School Principal Champion this year and hopes to inspire colleagues to follow his lead and join the push towards greener communities. Zeuschner says, apart from the environmental benefits, setting up sustainable projects can save money. All it takes is an enthusiastic teacher or principal to take the lead – as with the projects featured in Australian Teacher Magazine – and, from there, students will drive the change.
Not content with leading the way on projects from solar power and worm farms to wind turbines and wetlands, school staff at the forefront of environmental education are only too pleased to share their knowledge with colleagues from neighbouring communities and local businesses. The campaign for environmental sustainability still has a long way to go, but for now we should congratulate those schools across Australia who are taking matters into their own hands and leading the way with innovative projects, large and small.
TECHNOLOGY is changing at a frightening rate and the cutting-edge computers of two years ago are struggling to keep pace with new models. The issue of computers in schools has hit the headlines again this month and, amongst all the arguments about the digital education rollout, is the news that Victorian schools are trialling the iPad. We can’t think of another gadget that’s been adopted so quickly. Is this the shape of things to come? Will schools be trialling every new model that comes along? Will students only be motivated by using the latest technology? Sure, it’s sleeker, trendier and a must-have for those who like their gadgets, but should we be spending education funding on getting them into schools?
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written by Meredith, July 19, 2010
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