What's newReport on Catholic principals highlights high-pressure demandsPrincipals of Catholic primary schools face a very high level of demands from parish priests, according to a national study. The Principals in Parishes report found that demands extend beyond school operation to a range of community duties that place extreme time pressures on principals and intrude deeply into their personal life. The demands are a strong disincentive for teachers to apply for principal positions, creating a looming crisis in leadership succession at schools. See media release by the Australian Catholic Primary Principals Association (ACPPA) 21 March 2005, and article in The Age 23 May 2005. New website for teacher registration in QldQueensland's Board of Teacher Registration has set up an interim website to help teachers prepare for changes to registration which take effect in 2006. New institute for Indigenous leadershipAn Institute of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Leadership has been set up in Gympie, Queensland. The Director will be Chris Sarra, principal of Cherbourg State School and the Institute will be based at the school. See report in Education Review 18 May 2005 (fee-based access). Read to Your Child CampaignA Newspoll survey of Australian parents has found that almost half do not read to their children on a daily basis. The survey was released by the Dymocks Literacy Foundation at the launch of its Read to Your Child Campaign, which aims to boost awareness of the importance of reading to children of all ages and to raise funds for children’s literacy projects. Teacher to fight Victorian Government on job lossA Victorian teacher who resigned due to the State Government's 'zero-tolerance' approach to child sex offenders is taking legal action against his deregistration. Orbost Secondary College teacher, Andrew Phillips, has taken legal action against the Government, the Education Department and the Victorian Institute of Teaching, saying he should not be banned from the profession under State laws. Mr Phillips resigned this year after police checks found he had pleaded guilty to a sexual offence against a 15-year-old girl, when he was 20 and not yet teaching. See report in The Age 25 May 2005. Major careers summitCareer Summit 2005 – building youth career networks has recently been held in Adelaide for Years 10 and 12 students. The summit aimed to promote vocational education and training, and allow students to meet young people already in the work force, as well as prospective employers. For more information see News Release, 17 May 2005. New Queensland Government strategy to help Indigenous students do betterThe Queensland Education Minister, Anna Bligh, has announced a new strategy for improving the educational outcomes of Indigenous students in Cape York and the Torres Strait Islands. The Bound for Success Strategy will attempt to ensure that young Indigenous children receive the benefits of early education, and that as many as possible complete Year 12. For more information see Ministerial Media Statements, 25 May 2005. 2005 SSTUWA Women's Conference (WA)The State School Teachers' Union of Western Australia (SSTUWA) will hold its 2005 Women's Conference conference on Friday, 17 June at Gloucester Park, East Perth. The conference's keynote speakers are Dr Jocelynne Scutt and Sharryn Jackson, and its workshops will include sessions on classroom strategies for restorative justice, Indigenous issues in the classroom and classroom management strategies. For more information see the Women's Conference section of the SSTUWA website, and Western Teacher, 29 April 2005. |