Category: Funding

This is the first in a series of articles to be published by Save Our Schools on the Turnbull Government’s Gonski 2.0 school funding plan. The next article will examine private school funding.

Gonski 2.0 is not what is seems. It is not a good deal for public schools. Despite the appearance of a large increase in school funding to 2026-27, it will deliver only a miniscule increase in inflation-adjusted funding per student. The increase amounts to only about 40% of the increase planned under Gonski 1.0. Thousands of public schools will get much smaller increases than under Gonski 1.0. Continue reading “Gonski 2.0 is a 40% Gonski”

The Labor Shadow Education Minister, Tanya Plibersek, rejects redistributing funding from well-off private schools to disadvantaged schools. She claims that over-funding of private schools involves “a very small number of schools” and “is a drop in the bucket of the extra money required” to fully fund the Gonski plan.

She is completely mistaken. Thousands of private schools are over-funded by governments. They are over-funded to the tune of $4-$5.6 billion a year. This huge amount of taxpayer funds would be far better used to support disadvantaged students in both public and private schools. It would easily fund the last two years of the Gonski funding plan (originally estimated at $7 billion) which the Turnbull Government refuses to support. Continue reading “Private Schools are Over-funded by $4-6 Billion a Year”

The following is a report by Save Our Schools presented to the Tasmanian Branch of the Australian Education Union on the funding of public schools in Tasmania. It can be downloaded below.

Government funding of private schools in Tasmania has increased by seven times that for public schools in recent years. The Tasmanian Labor Government slashed state funding for public schools between 2009-10 and 2013-14 and the Liberal Government cut further in 2014-15. Overall, public school funding increased slightly but this was due to increased Commonwealth funding and it was far outstripped by a large increase in total government funding of private schools.

Continue reading “Tasmanian Governments Have Slashed Funding of Public Schools”

The Turnbull Government claims that the Budget deficit precludes fully funding the last two years of the Gonski plan. However, the latest Tax Expenditures Statement by the Federal Treasury shows that fully funding Gonski is easily affordable if the Government reduced tax concessions for wealthy. Its failure to do so shows that this Government continues to put the interests of the wealthy above those of disadvantaged students.

Continue reading “Tax Concessions for the Wealthy Deny Adequate Funding for Disadvantaged Students”

A new review of voucher programs in private schools has found that they have failed to make any significant improvements in student achievement, but add to the risks of increasing social segregation and the loss of a common, secular educational experience. It says that there are more effective ways of improving student results than by using voucher programs.

Continue reading “Private School Vouchers Fail the Test”

The claims by the Western Australian Government that it has massively increased school funding in recent years are highly misleading. The fact is that the Barnett Government has taken to the axe to funding of public schools while boosting its funding of private schools. It has abandoned disadvantaged students, the vast majority of whom attend public schools.

Continue reading “The Barnett Govt Has Taken the Axe to WA Public Schools”

One of the most disappointing aspects of the responses to Australia’s 2015 PISA results is the lack of constructive analysis of the factors behind the declining results and low achievement by many disadvantaged students.
This paper reviews the results and discusses the potential influence of a range of factors.

Continue reading “What’s Behind Australia’s Tottering PISA Results?”

Yet another new study shows that increased funding targeted at disadvantaged students significantly improves secondary school results. It found that increases in school funding significantly increase the probability that low achieving students complete high school. It provides further support for increased funding for disadvantaged students in Australia.

Continue reading “New Study Shows That More Money Improves Results of Disadvantaged Students”

An unprecedented unholy alliance between Tanya Plibersek and Tony Abbott on overfunding of private schools was once again revealed this week. Labor’s position on overfunding was exposed yet again as morally bankrupt, cynical and at complete odds with its supposed support for the principle of needs-based school funding.

Continue reading “Labor Again Exposed as Morally Bankrupt on Private School Overfunding”

The Federal Minister for Education, Simon Birmingham was quick to pounce on the PISA 2015 results published in December to put another knife in the Gonski funding plan. He took the opportunity to repeat his highly misleading claim that school funding increases don’t improve school outcomes. This oft-repeated claim serves one purpose only – to justify his Government’s refusal to fully fund Gonski.

Continue reading “Birmingham Misleads on School Funding and Outcomes”