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ANOTHER 250 teachers and 200 teacher assistants are needed in Tasmanian schools to deliver quality education, says the Australian Education Union’s Tasmanian branch.
The union yesterday launched its Quality Education for All campaign at Clarendon Vale Primary School, one of many public schools the union said was struggling with increasing demands on teachers and teacher assistants.
“Schools are running on goodwill. Teachers, principals and support staff are being asked to do more with less,†union branch president Helen Richardson said.
Clarendon Vale Primary School prep and year 1 teacher Leeanne Clifford said politicians should visit classrooms.
“They would see for themselves there is not enough money being poured in,†Ms Clifford said. “We’re now dealing with domestic violence issues, we’re dealing with children with poor speech so we need more speech and language therapists in our schools and of course we need social workers and school psychologists in our schools.â€
Clarendon Vale’s School Association president Angela Sayer said parents were willing to step in and help where they could, but it should not be up to parents to fill the gaps.
“The Government needs to start listening and actually start helping our kids get the best education they deserve,†Ms Sayer said.
Ms Richardson said the union hoped all Tasmanian political parties, in the lead-up to the State Election, would commit to funding more teachers, teacher assistants and other professionals, and to cutting the administrative load on teachers.
“When you look at the magnitude of education need in Tasmania, as noted by the original Gonski review, that was $85 million over the next two years. That’s 450 teachers into our schools,†she said.
Education Minister Jeremy Rockliff said the Government was supporting Tasmanian students, and had goals to improve the state’s NAPLAN results, and increase retention and year 12 completion rates.
“We have employed an additional 60 full-time equivalent support staff and over 100 more teachers than were employed under Labor — who sacked over 100 teachers when in government,†he said.
Opposition Leader Rebecca White said the extra positions were not enough to plug the holes caused by the Government’s 2014 budget cuts. She said Labor would work with the union and other stakeholders.
Tasmanian Greens education spokeswoman Andrea Dawkins said the state’s schools would “continue to lag ... as long as the Liberals continue to deny them the resources they need, despite the best efforts of teachers and staffâ€.