Get funky said Taxi -do you have the same graphs for other public sector workers? Does WA rise dramatically (following the obscene housing 'boom') against other states too? If you don't show the full stats then in isolation they are pretty suss I reckon.
Sure looks sus,
thats why I used the Dept of Education and the original 'Australian newspaper' article to prove the graph is accurate. I only looked for teacher stats but some comparatives would be interesting. However unless you are in mining, construction or finance, the WA (mining) Boom meant an explosion of costs... cost of living, housing, finance etc etc, and 'normal/average' wages just never caught up.
Firiebob said If the pay is so good, how come they have to drop the standard so low to get teachers ?
Not having a go at you Crazy, just a thought, I'm thinking is it now such a poop job no one wants to do it ?
Lots of factors contributed to this mess in the WA Education System and most of them have nothing to do with naughty kids.
Education Dept About 2001 some bright sparks who were so highly educated they were no earthly use, dreamed up new educational concepts- curiculum framework for intergrated teaching blah blah... then they revolutionised with the marking system into a really complex 'Level' system.... Naturally teachers were NOT HAPPY, weird reports or none, made lots of unhappy parents and eventually levels got canned.
But the Curriculum Council kept at it - they changed yr11 & 12 TEE system.... then revised all subjects including names (-now have maths 2a 2b or 3a3b, maths specialized, English 2a etc etc)...these 2009 subject curriculum are very perscriptive AND came out late. The teachers are still angry.
The median age of teachers is late 40s to mid 50s. No one likes change but these changes were mindblowingly difficult to develope, use or sell, so many good teachers retired early, and with every new change more would leave for greenier pastures.
Dont know why, but every year the paper has headlines on teacher shortages, but the letters to editor are from teachers who have applied but not been given a positions. Looks like the Ed Dept contributes to its own problems.
Mining MoneyStories of kitchen hands getting $90,000 saw potential uni students disappear, same with those that jumped into the housing boom construction industry. Also meant big increase of new families and school students coming to WA.
University admissions dropEngineering and mining companies were heavily promoting degrees (engineering etc) that they needed, depriving Education dept of school graduates with science & maths. The uni's are also facing financial problems with low student numbers, so are pushing to take students who would normally only ever come in the backdoor (ie via TAFE or Art Degree.)
Politics and union Terror TacticsThe previous article in the 'Australian' shows how the teachers union used and abused the uncoming state election to further payclaims. Every year a couple of months before the final yr 12 exams the union would start making waves, basicly holding 17yrs futures to ransom. Frankly they went too far this time - even when they got this massive award they debated whether it was good enough.
From my interpretion of events Id say the reason why there was a shortage of teachers in the first instance was the Education Departments continual interference in the class room, number of retirees, compounded by the influx of new students and the dubious organizational skills of the dept.
The uni entrance levels are indictive of the uni's need to put butts on seats as well as a lack of suitable students. And really what 17yr old is going to bust his boiler if knows he doesnt have to...
We do have a problem staffing Kimberley and remote schools. Have friends that teach up there, they love it, but really deserve the extra for the isolation.
. This is partly because I work in the commomwealth sector so things are not so bad as in WA generally - therefore I wear it to some extent.
