Rudd’s Education Revolution—New Spin on Old Policy
February 22nd 2008 01:47
When Gough Whitlam took office in 1972, he stated Labor’s ‘three great aims’: egalitarianism, voter involvement in policy, and ‘to liberate the talents and uplift the horizons of the Australian people’ (Marginson, 1997, p.16). There is an only one way talent, and horizons can be lifted, and that is through education. One of the old appeals of the Australian Labor Party was their common-man policy focus—the worker, and his rights. Gough Whitlam’s charisma and intelligence personified the aspirations of the ordinary Australian. Here was a new breed of Labor politician—highly educated, and willing to put government money behind policy.
In Whitlam’s own words he outlines his laborist/socialist driven agenda: The (quality of life) ‘depends more and more on the things which the community provides for all its members from the combined resources of the community (Whitlam, 1985, p.3). Labor assumed full responsibility for higher education and put government funds behind that assumption, a total of $2.7billion a rise of 176% (Marginson, 1997, p.30). Underpinned by the human capital theory of the 1960s, the Martin Report’s recommendation of providing opportunity to develop talent, which in turn supplied the human capital needed to sustain economic growth, couldn’t be denied (Marginson, 1997, p.36). Here can be seen the symbiotic relationship between citizen training (education), and economic growth. The former feeding the latter.
Capitalism drives Western economies, the reality of which is the unequal distribution of wealth. Certainly, opportunity abounds, but the rich do get richer and the poor get poorer. Naturally, this doesn’t sit well with laborist/socialist policy. In Whitlam’s own words: ‘Education should be the great instrument for the promotion of equality’ (Whitlam, 1975, p.5) Enter the Karmel Report and its ‘radical egalitarianism’ as Marginson terms it: educational equity, equality of opportunity via needs based funding (Marginson, 1997, p.53). However, instead of creating a more level playing field, self-management emphasis had schools doctoring audits to suit their own economic ends. Although the Labor initialised Karmel Report gave more money to government schools (Marginson, 1997, p.69), the private-sector schools ended as the real beneficiaries and citizenship training grounds remained divided: those who could afford it (private school), and those who could not.
Into the 80s, and with the advent of globalisation, Keynesian economic policies were proving untenable. Liberal market reform and the policies of Freedman and Hayek was now the golden goose. Market ruled the state, not state controlling the market. Subsequently, the spotlight turned on government funding to education and the education system itself was economised. The citizen became the citizen-consumer (Axford/Seddon, 2006, p.167). The training ground (education) now had to prepare their charges for a changing game plan, no longer was it sufficient to possess knowledge of the ‘know what and know why’ substance, but also the ‘know how’ (Axford/Seddon, 2006, p.168). The student finishing school and entering the workforce, was being replaced with re-education/further-educatio n, as citizens struggled to keep pace with changing workplace demographics.
Axford and Seddon in their book titled, ‘Lifelong learning in a market economy: Education, training and the citizen-consumer’, using research by Doyle et al. (2000) from the period between 1979-96, contrasts this changing workplace demographic by the use of employment fluctuations. The Farming sector (goods producing, mining) down by 14%, the Factory (goods producing, industrial) down 21%. Whereas the office (high-skilled, management) up by 55%, and the Hospital/Classroom (high-skilled, education, law enforcement, emergency services) up 55%. Axford and Seddon claim that what this boils down to is a ‘remaking of learning (citizenship training) and the learning-spaces (grounds) in which it occurs…’(Axford/Seddon, 2006, p.182).
Government ‘remakes’ citizenship training grounds (education) through policy change. In the era from 1985-95, two undeniable facts concerning Australia’s future were making themselves known: first, the nation’s economic prosperity was firmly shackled to the global community, and second, the reality of multiculturalism. Karin Oerlemans, in her review of the book Education Policy: Globalization, Citizenship, and Democracy (2004), which in her estimation is an ‘advancement of a Foucauldian approach to critical policy analysis’, makes the important observation that although works of this nature are much needed, real benefits lay in the provision of a ‘platform for further discussion’ (Oerlemans, 2006, p.164). In other words, the Australian nation is heading into uncharted waters; ongoing course corrections (policy changes) will be essential in averting another cultural catastrophe, like the treatment of Indigenous Australians, and the Assimilation Policy.
Globalisation of course impacts students in the area of economic curriculum change, whereas multiculturalism can be seen evolving before their very eyes, especially in city schools. Providing cultural equity in education is as complex a problem for government as social equity. The education system now has to prepare the student/citizen for a changing nation, one where heritage values, the essence of Australia itself, are at risk of drowning in a sea of cultural diversity.
How does government provide cultural equity in education whilst maintaining heritage values? Not very well if recent efforts are anything to go by. Marginson states that the Howard Government has created ‘difference without unity’ in private schooling, whilst weakening public schooling efforts at ‘unity without difference’ (Marginson, 1997, p.257)
The Rudd government, like Whitlam before them, does realise the need to address the issue of social equity in the Australian education system, and the impact of globalisation. There plan is:
* Improving access to early childhood education. Working cooperatively with the States and Territories, the Rudd Government will ensure all four year olds have access to 15 hours of fun, play-based early education a week, for 40 weeks a year.
* Ensuring our schools focus on achieving higher standards, greater accountability and better results. Delivering a high quality National Curriculum from Kindergarten to Year 12 will lift the standard of every one of our schools.
* The Government will invest up to $1.5 million per high school, to create trades training centres in all of Australia's 2,650 secondary schools and up to $1 million per high school to allow every Australian student in Years 9 to 12 to have access to their own school computer, with the aim of lifting school retention rates from 75 to 90 per cent by 2020.
* Investing over $1 billion and providing an additional 450,000 skilled training places over the next four years to help lift the productive capacity of the Australian economy and fight inflation.
* Encouraging students to study and teach maths and science by halving their HECS and halving it again if they work in those fields after graduation.
* Keeping our best and brightest in Australia by doubling to 88,000 the number of undergraduate students receiving a Commonwealth Learning Scholarship and providing 1,000 new Future Fellowships for mid-career researchers. (Taken from: http://australia.gov.au)
If Kevin Rudd expects the education system to produce citizens capable of functioning in a global, culturally diverse society, then students must be given the tools. So far, the government seems to be on the right track. Our (citizens’) job of course, is to make sure they stay on it.
References
Axford, Beverley, Seddon, Terry (2006) ‘Lifelong learning in a market economy: Education, training and the citizen-consumer’, Australian Journal of Education, Vol. 50, No.2, pp. 167-182. Retrieved December 22, 2006, from website: Really Long Link
Barcan, Alan (1988) "The campaign for free, compulsory and secular elementary education, 1867-79" in Two Centuries of Education in New South Wales, pp.118-128. Retrieved November 11, 2006, from Macquarie University Website: www.library.mq.edu.au/reserve
Barcan, Alan (1980) "Education for the social and moral problems of a convict colony" in A History of Australian Education, pp.7-22. Retrieved November 11, 2006, from Macquarie University Website: www.library.mq.edu.au/reserve
Doyle, L. Kurth, B. & Kerr, E. (2000) Knowledge work: the rise of the office
economy. Brisbane: Australian National Training Authority.
Marginson, Simon (1997) Educating Australia: government, economy and citizen since 1960, pp. 13-257, Melbourne, Cambridge University Press.
Musgrave, P W. (1994) "How should we make Australians" Curriculum Perspectives, 14:3, pp.11-18. Retrieved November 21, 2006, from Macquarie University Website: www.library.mq.edu.au/reserve
Oerlemans, Karin (2006) Book Review, Education Research and Perspectives, Vol.33, No.1 Retrieved December 21, 2006, from website: Really Long Link
Whitlam, Gough (1975) The road to reform: Labor in Government, University of Melbourne ALP Club.
Whitlam, Gough (1985) The Whitlam Government 1972-1975, Melbourne, Penguin.
Capitalism drives Western economies, the reality of which is the unequal distribution of wealth. Certainly, opportunity abounds, but the rich do get richer and the poor get poorer. Naturally, this doesn’t sit well with laborist/socialist policy. In Whitlam’s own words: ‘Education should be the great instrument for the promotion of equality’ (Whitlam, 1975, p.5) Enter the Karmel Report and its ‘radical egalitarianism’ as Marginson terms it: educational equity, equality of opportunity via needs based funding (Marginson, 1997, p.53). However, instead of creating a more level playing field, self-management emphasis had schools doctoring audits to suit their own economic ends. Although the Labor initialised Karmel Report gave more money to government schools (Marginson, 1997, p.69), the private-sector schools ended as the real beneficiaries and citizenship training grounds remained divided: those who could afford it (private school), and those who could not.
Axford and Seddon in their book titled, ‘Lifelong learning in a market economy: Education, training and the citizen-consumer’, using research by Doyle et al. (2000) from the period between 1979-96, contrasts this changing workplace demographic by the use of employment fluctuations. The Farming sector (goods producing, mining) down by 14%, the Factory (goods producing, industrial) down 21%. Whereas the office (high-skilled, management) up by 55%, and the Hospital/Classroom (high-skilled, education, law enforcement, emergency services) up 55%. Axford and Seddon claim that what this boils down to is a ‘remaking of learning (citizenship training) and the learning-spaces (grounds) in which it occurs…’(Axford/Seddon, 2006, p.182).
Government ‘remakes’ citizenship training grounds (education) through policy change. In the era from 1985-95, two undeniable facts concerning Australia’s future were making themselves known: first, the nation’s economic prosperity was firmly shackled to the global community, and second, the reality of multiculturalism. Karin Oerlemans, in her review of the book Education Policy: Globalization, Citizenship, and Democracy (2004), which in her estimation is an ‘advancement of a Foucauldian approach to critical policy analysis’, makes the important observation that although works of this nature are much needed, real benefits lay in the provision of a ‘platform for further discussion’ (Oerlemans, 2006, p.164). In other words, the Australian nation is heading into uncharted waters; ongoing course corrections (policy changes) will be essential in averting another cultural catastrophe, like the treatment of Indigenous Australians, and the Assimilation Policy.
Globalisation of course impacts students in the area of economic curriculum change, whereas multiculturalism can be seen evolving before their very eyes, especially in city schools. Providing cultural equity in education is as complex a problem for government as social equity. The education system now has to prepare the student/citizen for a changing nation, one where heritage values, the essence of Australia itself, are at risk of drowning in a sea of cultural diversity.
How does government provide cultural equity in education whilst maintaining heritage values? Not very well if recent efforts are anything to go by. Marginson states that the Howard Government has created ‘difference without unity’ in private schooling, whilst weakening public schooling efforts at ‘unity without difference’ (Marginson, 1997, p.257)
The Rudd government, like Whitlam before them, does realise the need to address the issue of social equity in the Australian education system, and the impact of globalisation. There plan is:
* Improving access to early childhood education. Working cooperatively with the States and Territories, the Rudd Government will ensure all four year olds have access to 15 hours of fun, play-based early education a week, for 40 weeks a year.
* Ensuring our schools focus on achieving higher standards, greater accountability and better results. Delivering a high quality National Curriculum from Kindergarten to Year 12 will lift the standard of every one of our schools.
* The Government will invest up to $1.5 million per high school, to create trades training centres in all of Australia's 2,650 secondary schools and up to $1 million per high school to allow every Australian student in Years 9 to 12 to have access to their own school computer, with the aim of lifting school retention rates from 75 to 90 per cent by 2020.
* Investing over $1 billion and providing an additional 450,000 skilled training places over the next four years to help lift the productive capacity of the Australian economy and fight inflation.
* Encouraging students to study and teach maths and science by halving their HECS and halving it again if they work in those fields after graduation.
* Keeping our best and brightest in Australia by doubling to 88,000 the number of undergraduate students receiving a Commonwealth Learning Scholarship and providing 1,000 new Future Fellowships for mid-career researchers. (Taken from: http://australia.gov.au)
If Kevin Rudd expects the education system to produce citizens capable of functioning in a global, culturally diverse society, then students must be given the tools. So far, the government seems to be on the right track. Our (citizens’) job of course, is to make sure they stay on it.
References
Axford, Beverley, Seddon, Terry (2006) ‘Lifelong learning in a market economy: Education, training and the citizen-consumer’, Australian Journal of Education, Vol. 50, No.2, pp. 167-182. Retrieved December 22, 2006, from website: Really Long Link
Barcan, Alan (1988) "The campaign for free, compulsory and secular elementary education, 1867-79" in Two Centuries of Education in New South Wales, pp.118-128. Retrieved November 11, 2006, from Macquarie University Website: www.library.mq.edu.au/reserve
Barcan, Alan (1980) "Education for the social and moral problems of a convict colony" in A History of Australian Education, pp.7-22. Retrieved November 11, 2006, from Macquarie University Website: www.library.mq.edu.au/reserve
Doyle, L. Kurth, B. & Kerr, E. (2000) Knowledge work: the rise of the office
economy. Brisbane: Australian National Training Authority.
Marginson, Simon (1997) Educating Australia: government, economy and citizen since 1960, pp. 13-257, Melbourne, Cambridge University Press.
Musgrave, P W. (1994) "How should we make Australians" Curriculum Perspectives, 14:3, pp.11-18. Retrieved November 21, 2006, from Macquarie University Website: www.library.mq.edu.au/reserve
Oerlemans, Karin (2006) Book Review, Education Research and Perspectives, Vol.33, No.1 Retrieved December 21, 2006, from website: Really Long Link
Whitlam, Gough (1975) The road to reform: Labor in Government, University of Melbourne ALP Club.
Whitlam, Gough (1985) The Whitlam Government 1972-1975, Melbourne, Penguin.
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