Yes, it's the teachers again.
In an industry crippled by lack of performance, they have divided yet another day of not turning up at work is somehow going to help kids get ahead in the world.
Our email came through yesterday morning saying that the strike that was on, was put off, until it was put back on again after the latest pay offer was rejected.
Say whatever you want about ACT, but they are at least consistent in their general view of life; and that is, we need to be better.
In too many aspects of life these days we are haphazard, if not lackadaisical, if not outright abysmal.
Their argument is that the 439 schools that haven't bothered to report their attendance data to the ministry should lose their funding until they do.
Attendance is a crisis. As I told you the other day, they are worried in NSW about attendance rates dropping below 80 per cent.
We are at 49 per cent.
And while we are at 49 per cent teachers think it’s a great idea to keep withdrawing their labour.
So, by the time you get the industrial action, the holidays, the teachers only days, the paid union meeting days, half days, the absenteeism and the minister leading the way with her disgraceful performance in the house around attendance figures, you have yourself a pretty dire ol' set of circumstances.
As I mentioned at the start of all this industrial action, most of us have sympathy with the teachers plight. Most of us get that the good ones are shockingly paid. But that starts to wear thin after a few too many days off and a bit too much inconvenience.
I also mentioned the other day that there is a practical solution to the problem - performance pay. Unions don't want it and most teachers don't want it because, heaven forbid, you'd actually find out who was up to it and who was there merely making up the numbers.
And so a large grouping expects more money, not for more performance, or better outcomes. But merely because the cost-of-living is a mess, and they inconvenience whoever they want, until they get what they want.
Once again, the kids stay at home. History will show that this current crop of students was let down shockingly.
Between Covid, the lockdowns, the piecemeal credit giveaways, the abysmal test results around numeracy, literacy etc, and the seemingly never-ending strikes, it doesn’t get a lot worse than what they are having to put up with.
It’s a rare old day that a system that fails so badly, has the temerity to inconvenience so many for their own ends.
Mike Hosking is a New Zealand television and radio broadcaster. He currently hosts The Mike Hosking Breakfast show on NewstalkZB on weekday mornings.
Their argument is that the 439 schools that haven't bothered to report their attendance data to the ministry should lose their funding until they do.
Attendance is a crisis. As I told you the other day, they are worried in NSW about attendance rates dropping below 80 per cent.
We are at 49 per cent.
And while we are at 49 per cent teachers think it’s a great idea to keep withdrawing their labour.
So, by the time you get the industrial action, the holidays, the teachers only days, the paid union meeting days, half days, the absenteeism and the minister leading the way with her disgraceful performance in the house around attendance figures, you have yourself a pretty dire ol' set of circumstances.
As I mentioned at the start of all this industrial action, most of us have sympathy with the teachers plight. Most of us get that the good ones are shockingly paid. But that starts to wear thin after a few too many days off and a bit too much inconvenience.
I also mentioned the other day that there is a practical solution to the problem - performance pay. Unions don't want it and most teachers don't want it because, heaven forbid, you'd actually find out who was up to it and who was there merely making up the numbers.
And so a large grouping expects more money, not for more performance, or better outcomes. But merely because the cost-of-living is a mess, and they inconvenience whoever they want, until they get what they want.
Once again, the kids stay at home. History will show that this current crop of students was let down shockingly.
Between Covid, the lockdowns, the piecemeal credit giveaways, the abysmal test results around numeracy, literacy etc, and the seemingly never-ending strikes, it doesn’t get a lot worse than what they are having to put up with.
It’s a rare old day that a system that fails so badly, has the temerity to inconvenience so many for their own ends.
Mike Hosking is a New Zealand television and radio broadcaster. He currently hosts The Mike Hosking Breakfast show on NewstalkZB on weekday mornings.
3 comments:
What has not been appreciated is that the latest strike action is not resulting in any loss of pay by the striking teachers. The strikes are partial strikes where they wont teach certain years but will teach the others. This Labour Government scrapped the right for employers to deduct monies from striking workers who strike action is not a complete withdrawal of labour.
The previous legislation gave the employer the right to deduct at 10% or higher if the employer could show a greater loss of productivity. The teachers can keep this going forever effectively as there is no loss of pay.
Increasing teachers' pay will do nothing to improve our awful standards on international and national tests. What is needed is a complete overhaul of the entire education system ,changing the teaching methods to ones that are based on real and rigorous science not ideology as they are know.
There needs to be a concerted effort to educate the public and teachers of where things have gone wrong. The fault lies not with teachers but in the ministry and academic world of woolly ideas and other nonsense.
This would produce great happiness all round in teachers, students and parents. Teaching would be more like a mission not just a job with enormous rewards in not just financially ways but in also seeing , fewer in prison, economic growth ,children reaching their full potential and most likely encourage children back to school.
Sound like fantasy , No not really because that is how it used to be close to before all the crazy theories took over.
How can I convince the kid that turning up to school is important when this is the fourth year in a row when there’s been precious little school to attend?
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