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Every election, state and federal, is an opportunity to draw attention to the gross inequity of Australia’s bizarre schools funding system. No other developed country funds schools the way we do. We are the world leader when it comes to giving public money to private, fee- charging schools. And we languish near the bottom of international rankings when it comes to the percentage of education funding we give to our public schools.

Last year saw a succession of headline- grabbing climate disasters, from unprecedented heatwaves drying Europe’s rivers to catastrophic floods in Pakistan and Australia and the most powerful storms to hit Cuba and the USA

We had the most incredible year in 2022 with one of toughest and most unusual General Agreement processes I can recall.

As the new school year dawns upon us I am delighted to take up the position of your new SSTUWA senior vice president. I am excited and looking forward to representing all of our members, and advocating for public education, working alongside the senior officer group which comprises of SSTUWA President Matt Jarman, General Secretary Mary Franklyn and Vice President Sharmila Nagar.

Did you know the words you are reading are printed on recyclable paper? We did the maths to ensure we made the paper choice with the smallest environmental footprint for our magazine, using a Perth-based printing company to reduce transportation mileage.

The State School Teachers’ Union of Western Australia welcomed the announcement of a new Education Minister in December’s cabinet reshuffle, with the division into separate ministerial portfolios of early childhood education and training suggesting the state government is giving education a higher priority.

The state government’s desperate plans to fix the state’s teacher shortage will not address the underlying issues in the public education system, according to the SSTUWA. The union said the government’s plan to send under qualified teachers into short- staffed schools (announced late last year) was a short-sighted move which had the potential to cause more harm than good.

NSW needs to recruit a minimum of 11,000 teachers by 2031 to meet record enrolment growth and the number rises to almost 14,000 if the student to teacher ratio is lowered to the national average, new research recently released reveals.

Challenging gender stereotypes, embedding positive role-modelling in schools and promoting gender equality are some of the ways the education system can help prevent gender-based violence, according to new reports from anti-domestic violence campaigners Our Watch.

The AEU has launched a new campaign calling for federal politicians to ensure every school is provided the resources it needs to ensure every child gets the best education, regardless of their background or circumstances.

In September 2019, 70 additional Instructional Intelligence Facilitators, from 20 different schools, began their exciting 10-day journey with Professor Barrie Bennett. These participants would be trained as Instructional Intelligence practitioners, presenters and follow-up support providers for their own schools. This group, known as Cohort Four, joined a total of 270 previously trained Instructional Intelligence Facilitators.

The Australian Education Union has welcomed a new report from UNSW’s Gonski Institute for Education proposing a NAPLAN replacement that puts students at the heart of assessment.

Research shows more than three quarters of Australians are worried about climate change. Recent bushfires and widespread floods in the eastern states have highlighted the urgent need for action, which is backed up by a new United Nations report on climate change.

New data from the Australian Education Union has highlighted the Morrison Government’s failure to take responsibility for TAFE.

Normally we don’t make specific recommendations about voting to our members. The State School Teachers’ Union of Western Australia is a diverse organisation. Our members are intelligent and make their own decisions.

Term 4 is one of the busiest of the school year. There are so many to-do list items that need to be checked off. It is easy to get lost in the frenetic pace of the term, so planning your time is very important.

Education International (EI) recently hosted a consultation event to provide feedback into the 2023 Global Education Monitoring Report on technology and education.

The authors are cultural men who have undertaken learning on and through Country with Elders in NSW, Queensland and the Northern Territory. This piece is the product of their own experience and understanding and is not intended to represent the views of all Indigenous people.