Give teachers additional time

Teachers need more time, former chair of the NSW Educational Standards Authority, Mr Tom Alegounarias told the “Valuing the teaching profession — an independent inquiry” on 2 September.

The inquiry panel is conducting the first of its hearings this fortnight to hear from expert witnesses on a range of issues pertaining to the nature and value of teachers' work and how problems facing teachers and principals could be addressed.

Citing as an example the expectation that teachers develop an individual learning plan for every student, Mr Alegounarias said the demands placed upon teachers were “unrealistic” given the current structure of their working days.

He noted that contemporary circumstances in teaching were very different to previous decades and expectations “unsustainable”.

Following his appearance before the inquiry, Mr Alegounarias took to Twitter saying: “The gap between expectations of teachers and what can be done on a sustainable basis is huge and growing. We need to re-conceptualise teaching around: time for research and analysis, as well as presenting and assessing, for a range of students.”

“Planning and preparation is core business if we are going to be effective,” Mr Alegounarias told the inquiry panel.

Rethink teachers’ schedules inside the school gate

Instruction time for students should be reduced and given over to teachers for other activities such as collaboration with colleagues, Gonski Institute for Education professor of education policy and deputy director Pasi Sahlberg advocated before the panel in Wednesday afternoon’s inquiry hearings.

Professor Sahlberg was able to offer an international context in his evidence, guiding the panel through a series of recommendations related to improving the status of teachers in NSW.

In addition to the teaching profession having rights and responsibilities to be heard in the arenas of policy development and implementation, Professor Sahlberg said it was important for teachers to have a “public voice”. He said that principals and teachers informing society about what goes on in schools would assist with the positive perception of teachers.

“If we don’t have teachers’ voice in the rethinking of education, we won’t get it right,” Dr Sahlberg warned.

When the central duties and tasks of teachers shift focus to what’s at the heart of the profession their status would elevate to that of doctors and lawyers, he also said.

The government also has a role to play in building confidence in the public education system, he said.

The inquiry heard evidence about the complex nature of teaching in NSW, including research from the Gonski Institute for Education that the numbers of students with emotional and social challenges have increased, along with the number of students who need support.

Dr Sahlberg outlined the following five recommendations for the NSW public school teaching profession:

1. Comprehensive public policy reform to address current and emerging inequalities in education

2. Strengthen the engagement and voice of the teaching profession in policy development and implementation

3. Restructure daily schedules in schools to make more time for teacher collaboration and learning

4. Invest in pedagogy before technology

5. Build public confidence in public schools and trust in teachers