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Author/s:
Campbell, Richard
Title:
Secondary Education for Canberra
Date:
1973
Persistent Link:
http://hdl.handle.net/11343/115501
SECONDØ
EDUCATION
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CANBERRA
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Report of the Working Committee on College Proposals for
the Australian Capital Territory
Printed by Вегnaгd, Overman å Neander Pty. Ltd.. 28 Edward Street, Brunswick. Vic. 3056
20 December 1972
The Honourable Kim Beazley, l.P.
Minister for Education
Parliament House
CANBERRA. A.C.T. 2600
Dear Mr Beazley
On 30 November 1971, following the publication by your Department of a planning proposal involving the restructuring of secondary education in the A.C.T., the
Minister for Education and Science at that time, the Honourable Malcolm Fraser,
approved the formation of a Working Committee to examine the issues involved
and to develop a firm proposal that could be put to him. This Committee was to
consist of representatives nominated by the A.C.T. Council of Parents' and
Citizens' Associations, the A.C.T. Secondary Teachers' Association, the A.C.T.
Secondary Principals' Council, the New South Wales Department of Education,
and the then Commonwealth Department of Education and Science. At our first
meeting we agreed to invite a representative of the Canberra Branch of the
Technical Teachers' Association.
Because of the need for early decisions to be made concerning the designing of
new buildings, we wrote to Mr Fraser on 31 May 1972 to convey our initial
recommendations. The text of this letter has been substantially incorporated in this
report (paragraphs 3.34-6, 3.46, 3.49-52, 7.107-8).
Mr Fraser met the full Committee on 8 August to discuss our interim report,
and on 10 August, he announced that he had accepted our main recommendations,
covering the construction of new colleges and new style high schools, and the conversion of two existing high schools into colleges. He said that he had noted the
Committee's other recommendations about the preparatory arrangements that
should be made and had asked his Department to take these into account.
In the light of evidence based on enrolment projections not then available, we
have in this Report varied our recommendation concerning which high school in
South Canberra would most suitably be converted to a college. The matter is discussed fully in Chapter 9. In all other respects, our recommendations are unchanged.
We understand that it is rare, if not unique, for such a major educational inquiry
in Australia to be undertaken by a representative committee of parents, teachers
and departmental officers. We believe that the working of this Committee has proved the value of parents and teachers being involved in educational planning. We
wish to record our conviction that there should be continuing participation by
parents and teachers in the planning of colleges and high schools.
iii
The text of this Report has been agreed to by every member of the Committee,
and we are unanimous in our recommendations.
We have the honour to submit our Report.
Yours sincerely
Chairman
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WORKING COMMITTEE ON COLLEGE PROPOSALS FOR THE A.C.T.
MEMBERSHIP
CHAIRMAN:
Rev. Richard James Campbell, M.A. (Syd.), B.D. (Syd.), D.Phil.(Oxon.),
M.A.C.E.
MEMBERS:
A.C.T. Council of P. & C. Associations
John Walter Nesbitt Riddell, B.Sc.(Econ.) (Lind.)
Kenneth Allison Townley, В.Sc.(Lond.), A.R.C.S., M.Aus.I.M.1.
Hugh Douglas Waring, В.Sc.(Syd.), M.A.I.A.S.
Alternate Representatives
Kathleen Agnes Abbott
James Alan Barnard, B.Еc.(Syd.), Ph.D. (A.N.U.)
A.C.T. Secondary Teachers' Association
Lance Edward Harold Chapman, B.A. (U.N.E.) Alternate representative until 2
May 1972. Permanent thereafter.
Richard Roger Lee, B.A. (U.N.E.)
Milton Edgar March, В.Sc., Dip.Ed.(Syd.)
Peter William Ian O'Connor, В.Sc. (A.N.U.) Permanent representative until 26
April 1972.
Alternate Representative
Barry Price, B.A., Dip.Ed. (Syd.)
Technical Teachers' Association, Canberra Branch
Bruce Campbell Davy, Building Certificate, Building Foreman & Clerk of Works.
Alternate Representative
Donald Bruce Hughes, M.Sc. (N.S.W.)
A.C.T. Secondary Principals' Council
Vivian Arthur Henry Judd, B.A. (Syd.)
Alec Joseph McPherson, В.Sc.(Syd.)
Roy William Wheeler, В.Sc., Dip.Ed.(Syd.)
Alternate Representative
Kenneth George Gollan, В.A.(Syd.)
N.S.W. Department of Education
John Robert Breen, В.Sc., Dip.Ed.(Syd.), M.A.C.E.
Eric Mervyn Dukes, B.A. (Syd.), M.A.C.E.
v
Department of Education
Bruce Charles Campbell, B.A., Cert.Ed.(Tas.).Permanent representative until 12
September 1972.
Neil Russell Edwards, B.A., M.Ed. (Syd.), A.B.Ps.S., М .A.Ps.S., M.A.C.E.
Brian Paul Peck, B.A. (U.N.E.). Permanent representative from 12 September
1972.
Ray Phillip Sadler, B.A. (U.N.E.), B.Ec. (A.N.U.), M.A.C.E.
Alternate Representatives
Reginald Alan Foskett, М .A.(Syd.), M.A.C.E.
Benjamin Ronald Williams, B.A.(Econ.)(W.A.)
SECRETARY:
Linda Margaret Jones, B.A., Dip.Ed. (Adel.) Until 25 August 1972.
Marie Janice Cullum, B.A., T.S.T.C. (Melb.). From 28 August 1972.
vi
Contents
I
Committee membership
v
The Historical Background
1
Il The Changing Social Context
Knowledge
Society
Secondary school population
Schools
8
8
9
16
25
III The College Proposal
Implications of change
Alternative possibilities
Colleges
Functions and purposes
Implementation
29
29
31
34
39
43
IV
Curricula
Introduction
Objectives
Curriculum structures
Outline of curriculum framework
Curriculum Advisory Board
Guidance
45
45
45
47
48
53
55
V
Examinations
What is an examination?
The purpose of examinations
The assessment of examinations
The effectiveness of an examination
The reliability of examination results
The predictive validity of examinations
Effect of examinations on curriculum
Effect of examinations on student and teacher
Effect of examinations on education and society
Alternatives to examinations
Conclusions
57
57
58
58
59
60
61
63
63
65
65
67
VI Government
Introduction
The role of the Education Authority
Membership of councils
The educational program
Financial management
Staffing
Internal administration of colleges
The operation of the councils
71
71
73
74
74
76
76
77
78
v11
Contents
Interim councils
High schools
VII Staffing
Introduction
Staffing and career structures
Special staffing matters
Continuing education of professional staff
The teaching establishment
VIII Educational Facilities
Educational materials and equipment
Relocation of existing resources
College and high school buildings
Resources centre
IX Implementation
80
80
83
87
92
94
97
97
100
101
104
General considerations
Strategies
106
106
110
Summary of Recommendations
115
Appendixes
123
124
126
127
158
180
A. List of submissions received
B. Secondary school student survey •
1. First Report — Canberra students
2. Second Report — Comparative study
C. Staffing structures
1. Extracts from Summary of Recommendations,
Neal Radford Report
2. Submission on possible promotion structures
from T. Bardsley
D. Tables on school populations during transition
vili
78
79
180
181
183
CHAPTER 1
The Historical Background
1.1 For the past sixty years, education in the public schools of the Australian
Capital Territory has proceeded within the framework of an agreement between the
Commonwealth and New South Wales Governments arrived at in exchange of
letters in the years 1912-13 between the then Prime Minister and the then Premier.
1.2 It was agreed that the New South Wales Education Department would continue the administration of education in the federal area by (a) the appointment and
control of the teachers, (b) the inspection of the schools, (c) the maintenance of existing school buildings, (d) the direction of the instruction in accordance with the
New South Wales Public Instruction Act of 1880 and Regulations thereunder. It
was also agreed that the erection, repairs, and maintenance of all school buildings
be carried out and paid for direct by the Commonwealth Department of Home Affairs, a responsibility now carried out by the Commonwealth Department of
Education. The terms of this agreement were restated in another exchange of letters
in 1950, which incorporated a variation in connection with the staff of the new
Canberra Technical College.
1.3 The New South Wales Public Instruction Act, referred to in these
arrangements, has been amended some ten times since 1902, the most recent
amendments being the Education Act, 1961, and the Education Act, 1961-1968.
These Acts followed the acceptance by the N.S.W. Government of proposals for the
reorganisation of secondary education in New South Wales contained in the Report
of the Committee on Secondary Education of 1957'. This committee of ten, whose
membership covered a broad range of educational and community interests, met
over the period 1953-1957 under the Chairmanship of Dr H.S. Wyndham, then
Director-General of Education in N.S.W. Changes thus made within the
educational system provided by the N.S.W. Department have necessarily had
effects on the organisation and educational objectives of schools in the Australian
Capital Territory. The resulting structure accordingly has determined the immediate background to our investigation.
1.4 Since 1962, through the implementation of the N.S.W. Education Acts, 1961
and 1961-1968, public secondary schools in the A.C.T. have become comprehensive
and non-selective, and have maintained their co-educational character. In Form 1
of the secondary school, a course of English, language study, mathematics, science,
social studies, music, art, craft, physical and health education, and guidance, common to all students is designed to provide teachers, students and parents with,
amongst other things, initial means of selecting future courses to meet the needs, interests and abilities of the students. These future courses in Forms 2-4, consist of
two subjects elected by the student as well as further studies in English,
mathematics, science, one of history/geography/social studies, with a variety of
courses within each subject and further experience in music, art or craft, and
physical and health education.
I
N.S.W. Secondary Education Survey Committee (Chairman: H.S. Wyiidhim), (Sydney, 1957).
1
1.5 As a former Director of Secondary Education in N.S.W has said':
. the main organisational effect of the report and consequent legislation was to substitute a
four-plus-two school system for the previous three-plus-two, and the main educational effect
was to adapt the curriculum to the developing needs of the individual pupil. External public
examinations at the end of the fourth and sixth years replaced external examinations at the end
of the third and fifth years. The grouping of pupils according to their needs in individual subjects replaced the former streaming based largely on general ability rating. New syllabuses
were prepared, offering within each subject a variety of courses to suit different purposes, and
each pupil was required to study a curriculum, or collection of subjects, which would ensure a
common basic education, with the option of extra study in areas of special interest.
1.6 The Wyndham Report explained the new four-plus-two structure in the
following terms2:
. the School Certificate is designed to recognise the completion of a sound course of secondary education. There will be some ... who ... will have begun to aspire to some form of tertiary education ... For these pupils ... we recommend that a further stage of two years of
secondary education be provided.
Within this structure, at present in Forms 5 and 6 a variety of courses, with English
compulsory, is made available. Within each subject a number of courses are offered
to suit different purposes; some of these lead directly to further study of the subject
at tertiary level.
1.7 The extra year thus added to the length of secondary schooling was proposed
by the Wyndham Committee particularly `for the minority pupils who wish to
proceed to the university'. Over the past decade the holding power of students into
the senior forms — particularly in the A.C.T. — has grown to a degree not
predicted by that committee. Most students in the A.C.T. now continue on for the
full six years; whereas in 1957 the expectation was that the majority of the students
in the senior forms would proceed into tertiary education, the reality today is that
the majority will not.
1.8 With the rapid growth of Canberra during the 1960s, there has developed a
rising and concerned community interest in education. This interest led to a large
public meeting early in 1967 which established a committee under the chairmanship
of Sir George Currie to consider developments in education in the Territory. This
committee's report was published in November of that year .3 The principal
recommendation was that, after an independent and expert inquiry, there should be
established under an Act of Parliament an autonomous education authority in the
A.C.T. responsible for the system of public education, embracing pre-school,
primary, secondary, and technical education, as well as various specialised fields.
1.9 Since that time, a large number of individuals and associations of people concerned with education in the A.C.T. have been urging that, before a system of
education independent of the New South Wales Education Department is established, a public inquiry should be held to review education and its needs here in toto. In
October 1970, the then Minister for Education and Science, the Hon. Nigel
Bowen, announced that the Federal Government had decided that such an inquiry
would not be held `for the present', and announced the Government's intention to
establish a Commonwealth Teaching Service.
1.10 Despite this, calls for such an inquiry have continued to be made, and it has
i H.L. Yeliand, quoted in G.W. Вasset4
Planning /n Аигггоlгап Едимггол: (A.C.E.R.,
Haм horn, 1970) pp. 70.71.
2 P. 97.
Э
2
An lndep«ndenl Authority jor the Australian Capital Territory: Report oJa Working
Pany (Au't.Nat.University, 1%7).
been put to us from many sources that any decision to restructure secondary education at the present time would be a piecemeal measure, taken in the absence of a
long range plan relating to the educational needs of the community as a whole. It
was submitted that, before any radical restructuring of secondary education in the
A.С.Т. takes place, there should be a widely representative inquiry to determine
priorities, to establish a philosophy and to determine educational aims, to consider
the types of schools required to meet these aims, to plan the administrative structure and the formal relations between the government and non-government school
systems, to consider the impact of transition consequent upon the Commonwealth
Teaching Service Act, to investigate the curricular needs for the A.C.T., to suggest
the types of buildings required, and to state the role in education of the parents and
other interested people.
1.11 Some of the members of this committee have been closely associated with
such calls for an inquiry in the past, and they wish to make it clear that their participation in the present investigation is not to be interpreted as their abandoning
their former position. Nevertheless, we have proceeded with the task given to us,
seeking to locate our discussion against the background of the issues mentioned in
such calls for a general inquiry.
1.12 We understand that the idea of developing institutions other than the existing six-year high schools had been entertained as a possibility within the Commonwealth departments responsible for education in the Territory for a number of
years, and in August 1970 an officer of the Department of Education and Science
discussed this possibility with members of the Parents' and Citizens' Association of
a high school. But it was in March 1971 that the issue gained some prominence in
the community when the A.C.T. Chapter of the Australian College of Education
held a weekend seminar on colleges at Lyneham High School.
1.13 That seminar was an attempt to initiate wider discussions and studies on the
general organisation of secondary schools, in view of the possibility that future
planning for education in the A.C.T. would consider the development of institutions other than the existing six-year high school. Participants in the seminar
came from the parent-community groups, teacher organisations, and the full range
of educational institutions including university and teacher education, as well as the
N.S.W. Inspectorate and the Commonwealth Department of Education and
Science. A summary of papers presented to the seminar was made available by the
Department of Education and Science in June 19711.
1.14 Then, in November 1971, the Department brought forward for discussion a
particular planning proposal for the introduction of colleges. Two papers received
wide circulation. One set out a method by which colleges could be introduced into
the A.C.T. That paper sought to show that, because of the size and relative compactness of the A.C.T. and the accommodation available and planned, it was
physically and demographically possible to cater for a new system involving
colleges and high schools. A second paper was concerned with background information and with some of the reasons for submitting this proposal for consideration.
That paper outlined the proposal in the following words:
(I) Colleges would cater for the existing Forms V and V1 programs and students and as well,
could provide other culturally and/or vocationally oriented full- and part-time courses. Part of
the background to this proposal is the a areness of the Canberra community to educational
1 Australian College of Education. A.C.T. Chapter. Seminar on Junior Colleges. Canberra. March 1971 (Summary of papers presented).
3
innovation and the above average holding power of high schools, where for planning purposes
it is assumed that about 60 per cent of students who commence form one will pfoceed to Form
VI. It could be that the upper levels of secondary education in the A.C.T. should be provided
in a different way to the present if education to 18 years of age or higher is to be at an optimum
for all those desiring it.
It is felt that a system involving colleges and high schools could be a method of meeting the
educational needs of young people of eadh age group more appropriately than does the present
arrangement. The homogeniety of the Canberra situation and the high numbers in senior
forms throughout Canberra make it simpler to introduce colleges and to have a broad system
of entry to them. In turn this would make it possible for the maximum number wishing to do
so to continue their education beyond high school.
Entry to colleges would not be selective. An essential element of this proposal is that movement from the high school to the college would be at least as easy as the existing requirements
for movement from fourth to fifth form in the comprehensive high school. With the later
broadening of courses available in the college, more opportunities than exist at present could
be available for students to move from high school to college.
(2) An important factor leading to the proposal is the nature of the students themselves. Fifth
and sixth form students at age 17 or 18 are much closer in their needs and tastes to the adult
than they are to the first form student at 12 years of age. The six-year high school, because it is
one institution, cannot completely cater for the varied needs of this age range. In the college atmosphere, it is likely that senior students in the 17-19 years age group can be treated in a more
effective way than is possible in a six-year high school.
(3) A college would do many of the things already done in a comprehensive high school but
because of its different organisation and emphasis a college would provide opportunity to
achieve these things even more thoroughly and in a manner more appropriate to the ages of the
students concerned.
A college would prepare candidates for the academic requirements of tertiary education,
the vocational needs 6f employment or the cultural and recreational needs of modern living; it
would assist to bridge the gap between secondary education on the one hand and employment
or tertiary education on the other.
A college would expect students to accept responsibility for their own actions and make the
exercise of self-discipline a reality. It would provide the opportunity for the development of
student participation in decision making through the formation of a students' representative
council. By allowing students to control some of their own activities it would assist in the full
growth of its students' individualities to a greater degree than currently possible in a six-year
high school.
Further, a college would provide an appropriate institution for the student who, having left
high school and entered the work force, decides to undertake further studies on a part-time
basis.
1.15 Following discussions with secondary principals, with the executive of the
Secondary Teachers' Association, and with members of the A.C.T. Council of
Parents' and Citizens' Associations, the Department put to the then Minister for
Education and Science, the Hon. Malcolm Fraser, a suggestion made at those consultations that a committee be established to investigate the whole matter and
report to him.
1.16 On the 30 November 1971 Mr Fraser approved, as a basis for further action,
the formation of a working committee to develop a firm proposal that could be put
to him. He decided that the committee would initially comprise three members
from each of the parents', secondary teachers', and secondary principals' groups,
together with officers of his Department and the New South Wales Department of
Education. The committee was to decide its own terms of reference, appoint its own
chairman, and at its first meeting decide whether its composition was appropriate
or whether there should be other members. The Department was to provide
secretarial services.
1.17 At its first meeting on 30 November the committee elected its chairman and
decided to invite the Technical Teachers' Association to nominate a representative
to join the committee. It is this committee which is now presenting its report.
4
1.18 During the year of the committee's work, a number of developments have
taken place which have important bearings upon the matters it has been investigating.
1.19 On 15 December 1971, Mr Fraser announced that, in response to a letter
from the Hon. C.B. Cutler, the New South Wales Minister for Education and
Science, who pointed out that the staffing of A.C.T. schools had been an accepted
responsibility of his Department for many years but that this position may change
in the future, he had agreed that discussions should commence between officers of
his Department and those in the New South Wales Department of Education. Mr
Fraser said that Mr Cutler had suggested that two issues should be discussed. The
first of these related to conditions under which a teacher in the Commonwealth
Teaching Service might be appointed to an A.C.T. school in which members of the
N.S.W. Teaching Service were employed. The second issue concerned the likely
numbers of graduates from the recently-established Canberra College of Advanced
Education who may seek appointment in Canberra as members either of the Commonwealth Teaching Service, or of the New South Wales Teaching Service, and the
circumstances and conditions under which such teachers could be employed. Mr
Fraser said that the discussions between officers had already begun.
1.20 On 23 February 1972, Mr Fraser reported to the Federal Parliament that discussions had already started between the two departments on the implications of
the existence of the Commonwealth Teaching Service on the staffing of A.C.T.
schools. He said `the Government has looked ahead to the time when it must take
direct responsibility for the staffing of Government schools in the Australian
Capital Territory'. A Bill for an Act to establish a Commonwealth Teaching Service
was presented to the House of Representatives on 23 February 1972 and was passed
by both Houses of the Parliament in late April.
1.21 In order to assist the Commissioner of the Commonwealth Teaching Service,
when appointed, to determine an appropriate organisational and salary structure
for teachers in the Northern Territory, Professor W. Neal and Dr. W. Radford were
appointed in January 1972 to investigate staff organisation in Australian and
overseas schools and to recommend on this for primary and secondary schools in
the Northern Territory. Although the terms of reference for this investigation did
not include the A.C.T., it was to take account of present and likely future
educational practices, educational and administrative decisions that can appropriately be made by principals and school staff, and the need to develop an attractive career structure for teachers within Commonwealth schools, issues which
impinge on schools in the A.C.T. The report was released by Mr Fraser on 13
August, for study and comment.'
1.22 A major development occurred on 18 July, when Mr Fraser announced the
Federal Government's decision gradually to assume responsibility for staffing
A.C.T. schools and to establish at a date to be fixed a statutory authority to administer government schools and pre-schools. The form the authority should take
and the timing of its establishment is to be decided after an inquiry by the Joint
Parliamentary Committee on the A.C.T. Staffing of primary and secondary schools
in the A.C.T. will become the responsibility of the Commonwealth Teaching Service from the beginning of 1974. This will replace the previously-mentioned
1 W.D. Neal & W.C. Radford. Teaehen jor Commonwealth Schools (Canberra. 1972).
5
arrangements under which the N.S.W. Education Department provided the
teachers and curriculum for the A.C.T. The Joint Parliamentary Committee is yet
to begin its inquiry'.
1.23 It is against the changing background of these developments that we have
carried out our investigation. Working at such a time of flux has proved to be at
once both more difficult and less restricting than if we had to examine the proposals
within the limits of an existing and pre-determined situation. It has proved more
difficult because we have not been able to project into the future existing procedures
concerning staffing and administration. Nevertheless, working at such time has
allowed us to look more radically at questions of organisation, staffing and
curricula in order to see how best to meet the educational needs we have discerned.
1.24 The committee has held thirty-three meetings of the full membership, including some in public, plus numerous sub-committee meetings. We have
endeavoured throughout to keep the public as fully informed as possible on the
matters we were considering and the points which have been made to us, and to this
end, the Chairman has issued regular press releases outlining the content of our discussions. Members of the committee have had extensive discussions with members
of the various bodies they represent. Thus, the teachers and principals on the committee have discussed the issues before us with the members of their own
associations, and the representatives from the Council of Parents' and Citizens'
Associations have discussed aspects of the proposal before us with large numbers of
parents at gatherings of Parents' and Citizens' Associations at various schools
throughout Canberra.
1.25 Members of the committee have inspected schools in Tasmania, Victoria,
and New South Wales looking at different forms of organisation and developments
in curricula. Forty-two submissions were received from individuals and
organisations, as well as numerous papers presented by the bodies represented on
this committee. A complete list of submissions received is appended.
1.26 In addition, we commissioned a detailed survey of secondary school
students' opinion on the college proposal, so designed as to allow those opinions to
be interpreted by relating them to students' social background and vocational
future, and to experiences in school. In this way we hoped not only to provide
students with a means of expressing their opinion on the proposal, but also to dętermine more accurately student attitudes, interests, and needs. This survey was
carried out by the Education Research Unit at the Australian National University,
and the committee would like to place on record its indebtedness to the members of
that Unit for carrying out this major project.
1.27 We have been surprised to learn from Dr. Anderson, Head of the Research
Unit, that so far as he knew this was the first time in Australia that student opinion
had been widely surveyed for comment on a particular proposal before a major
policy decision was taken. We regard it as essential that students in the age range
which would be vitally affected by any change should be given an opportunity to inform us about their reactions to their schooling. The students' responses were
frank, remarkably consistent, and overwhelmingly in favour of the college
proposal. Even more important to this committee than that vote are those detailed
1 Di 8 February. the Minister for the Capital Territory, the Hon. Kep Enderby. announced that the Joint Parliamentary Committee on the
A.C.T. would not now be carrying out this inquiry. On 16 March. 973. the Minister for Education. the Hon. Kim Beuzley. released a dim.
cussion paper outlining a proposal for a statutory education authority fог the A.C.T. prepared by his deportment. and caled for comment
and submissions to be unt to a non-departmental panel he has appointed. This panel will report to him in May 1Ч 73ј
б
reactions, analysed and compared with the reaction of students in different
situations.
1.28 The first report on this survey was presented to the committee on 18 April
1972. Since then additional reports have been received and the Unit has extended
the survey to cover students in non-government schools in Canberra, in the
matriculation colleges and high schools in Tasmania, and in selected high schools in
Sydney and Melbourne. This extension was made in order to obtain comparative
data in the light of which more detailed analysis of the responses of students in the
public high schools in Canberra could be interpreted. The results of this extended
survey appear to have some implications of nation-wide significance. Reference to
the findings of this study are made in later sections of this report, and a copy of the
various reports from the Unit is appended.
7
CHAPTER 2
The Changing Social Context
2.1 That process of initiation of rising generations into the structures and functioning of society which we call education is not confined to special educational institutions. Over the past few centuries, as society has become more complex, we
have established such institutions, or schools, in which children may be taught the
many special skills thought necessary for successful operation within the social context we have developed.
2.2 This process of initiation is complex and many-stranded. Learning is not exclusive to schools, but takes place through the influence of family, friends, peer
group, the media, churches, social organisations and leisure-time activities. As the
Karmel Report has said':
No educational system stands apart from the society which establishes it. It has purposes that
must be achieved if that society is to continue. It is embedded in that society, drawing nourishment from it and in turn contributing to its opportunities for growth and renewal. The establishment of the purposes of its educational institutions, and a constant vigil over both their
relevance and their realisation, ought to be one of the major continuing activities of a society
concerned with the present well being of all its members and with its own steady improvement.
2.3 One consequence of this approach is that education must be regarded as a
process which takes place outside the special educational institutions as much as
within them, and which continues long after a person has left them. A second,
equally important consequence is that this process is very sensitive to, and is thus
deeply affected by, structural changes in society. Nowhere is this clearer than in
such a rapidly changing society as ours, and it is dramatically exemplified in the
fast-growing and highly mobile population of the A.C.T. Accordingly, we have
sought to locate our deliberations within a more general review of this changing
social context. In what follows we describe some of the factors relating to change to
which our attention has been drawn.
Knowledge
Quantitative growth
2.4 The most obvious characteristic of the growth of knowledge is its sheer quantity, vividly illustrated by Mumford in the following passage?:
If as scientists ... thought, knowledge was power, then the surest way to increase external
power was to increase the quantity of exact knowledge. The means for effecting this increase,
Price points out, was a new mode of multiplying and communicating scientific knowledge by
means of a small standard unit, the scientific paper, whereby reports on isolated observation
and experiments could be promptly circulated in scientific journals. This practical device provcd the effective starting point for automation of knowledge. By now its productivity rivals
anything that has been achieved in any other department of mass production. Beginning with a
single journal in 1665, Price tells us that there were 100 at the beginning of the 19th century,
1,000 by the middle and 10,000 by 1900. We are already on the way to achieving 100,000 journals in another century.
2.5 Mumford's ironic description goes on to depict scholarship as drowning in the
I Committer of Enquiry into Education io South Australia, 1969-70, Report (Adelaide, 1971), p. 25.
2 The Automation of ki'owiedge (Professional Reprints in Education. 8011. Charles E. Meri11 Booka Inc.).
в
flood of its own creation. Knowledge is not necessarily power, nor is knowledge
itself simply the accumulation of pieces of information; changing theoretical
frameworks require that past discoveries be re-interpreted. Nevertheless, the quoted
passage graphically illustrates the enormous expansion of the amount of information available to our society. The acquisition of skills and insights to which education is directed is becoming more and more difficult because of the enormous and
indigestible mass of information relevant to them.
Rapidity of application
2.6 Quantity, while the most obvious, is not the only or even the most important
implication for education of the growth of knowledge. As the pace of technological
development accelerates, the interval between the time of a scientific discovery and
its practical application is shrinking.
2.7 This increase in speed of application has implications for education paralleling
the increasing quantity of information. The latter involves a change in degree; the
former a change in kind. Education has always involved a selection of material and
the need for stringency is now becoming increasingly apparent. But educational
planning must now take account of an additional process with respect to the use of
knowledge. New theoretical developments occurring during a student's career will
also be applied even while he is still a student. This means that our educational objectives, as they are embodied in the planning of school programs, must seek to
develop the capacity to face, and cope with, quite novel situations.
2.8 The major emphasis in educational objectives in practice has been the capacity
to retain and reproduce particular facts and skills. Any analysis of school examinations will demonstrate this, and the trend towards so-called objective testing
has emphasised it. Nowadays, the flood of information has been contained by the
development of sophisticated means of storage: written, mechanical, and electronic.
Thus, the ability to obtain and analyse information, rather than to remember it,
gains in importance.
2.9 Further, it is coming to be increasingly recognised that we perceive so-called
facts, to a greater or lesser degree, within theoretical frameworks. The very
linguistic terms in which 'facts' are stated betray the concepts with which we understand and interpret them. The intellectual processes involved here are complex
and not yet fully understood. But this much is clear: our intercourse with the world
results in our forming concepts which in turn are used to evolve theories in terms of
which our experience is interpreted and understood.
2.10 Developing the capacity thus to link experiences, to theorise, assumes special
importance at the secondary level of education. It is the ability to give meaning to
facts through theories which leads to the advance of knowledge and which must
receive greater emphasis in our educational practices. Thus, the faster knowledge is
applied through technology, the more systematically must this capacity be
developed if people are to be better equipped to cope with their future experience
and not be estranged from the developments in their own society. The nature of the
facilities available to schools and of the program through which schools make use
of them must change radically if this is to be achieved.
Society
2.1 1 But it is not only the growth and transformation of human knowledge that
affects our planning drastically; the impact of new requirements from and for our
9
society will be felt at least as much. Social and economic changes are making fundamentally different demands on education from that in the past and call for the
revision of both our aims and our methods. We can illustrate this by considering the
demands generated by some of the fundamental changes in the structure of our
society.
Employnment
2.12 In the first place, the role of a system of education in maintaining and adapting social structures to new conditions means that it interacts with fundamental
shifts in the make-up of the workforce. As the need for a more highly-trained work
force increased, so the education system responded by requiring more advanced
schooling of more children. In turn, these new educational opportunities have made
possible a reshaping of the occupational structure of society, even though it still
remains true that educational opportunity is exploited to fullest advantage by the
children of those in higher socio-economic groups.
2.13 In the years following the end of the Second World War, Australia moved
rapidly from heavy dependence on primary industry to become a broadly-based industrial society. In the last decade Australia has moved a step further, into the
earlier stages of a post-industrial society in which the biggest sector of the national
income (and of the work force) is neither agricultural nor manufacturing, but the
service industries: trade, finance, insurance and real estate, personal, professional,
business and repair services, and local, State, and Federal Government. These
changes are most evident in a city such as Canberra, where the life of the city bears
only distant relations to primary production, and no heavy secondary industry exists. In this, Canberra exhibits the general trend evident in all affluent countries. In
the United States of America, for example, almost two-thirds of the work force is in
the tertiary, or service, sector and in Australia the proportion is not far behind. According to 1971 Census figures, 58 per cent of Australian workers are now engaged
in commerce, community and business services, transport and communication services, amusement, hotels and personal services, and other service industries. Thus,
the emphasis has shifted very rapidly from a production-oriented to a consumptionoriented society. In the A.C.T. management and service occupations account for
almost 80 per cent of the work force.
2.14 This change has occurred very rapidly. In 1947 about one in six Australian
workers was in primary industry, production from which accounted for about onequarter of the national income. By 1971 fewer than one in twelve had rural jobs,
and the gross farm product contributed little more than one-twentieth of national
income. Contrariwise, the percentage of those engaged as professional, technical,
and related workers rose from 5 per cent to 11 per cent. Details of these changes are
given in Table 1 on page 11.
2.15 Though this table is based on only the broadest of the Statistician's
categories, the trends in occupational structure can clearly be seen. Even more interesting is the way in which each trend is exaggerated in the A.C.T.
2.16 The pattern in employment in the A.C.T. differs from that elsewhere in
another respect, not revealed by this table: in the preponderance of the public sector
over the private. In the A.C.T., roughly one in three persons employed come under
the provisions of the Public Service Act, and 62 per cent are employed either directly by Government or in Government instrumentalities and other such statutory
bodies.
10
Table I - Structure of the workforce
Occupation Group
Professional, technical and related workers
Administrative. executive and managerial
Clerical workers
Sales workers
Craftsmen, production-process workers,
miners and labourers (including
transport and communication workers)
Service, sport and recreation workers
Membersofarmed forces
Farmers, fisherman and related workers
Total
Numbers
('000s)
Australia
1947
Australia
1971
A. Г.T.
1971
( a)
5.3
5.6
13.3
8.8
% (b)
10.9
6.9
16.5
8.5
% (h)
18.3
6.8
3L5
6.5
43.2
40.1
22.6
7.4
1.3
15.1
100.0
3.196.4
7.9
1.0
8.2
100.0
5,214.2
7.7
4.9
1.7
100.0
63.7
(a) Based on the Statistician's Report on the 1947 Cenus
(b) Rased preliminary Gguгes from the 1971 Census
N.B. As the categories were detmed somewhat differently in the two surveys, the comparison reveals only broad trends. In 1971. transport
and communication workers were 5.9V, апд 3.7 of the work force in Australia апд the A.C.T. respectively.
2.17 Structural changes in the pattern of employment relate to development in industrialisation. Earlier industrial requirements were for a very large number of unskilled workers, a more limited number of foremen, clerks, etc., and still fewer in
management. This pyramidal shape has changed and is altering towards an onion
or urn shape, with an administrative and technical structure requiring further administrative, co-ordinative, planning, engineering and sales talent of much greater
size and a more limited group for muscular and repetitive tasks.'
2.18 In a way, our educational facilities have already responded and are still
responding to these changes. The extension first to universal primary education and
then to universal secondary education in industrial societies was a response to social
demands essentially based on employment needs. In producing a more highly skilled work force and the possibility of greater specialisation of occupational tasks this
higher level of education has further accelerated the tendency towards technological
advance and lessened the need for large numbers of people to be employed in
production, whether agricultural or heavily industrial.
2.19 Despite the interaction between such developments in education and changes
in the pattern of employment, from time to time educational and economic institutions get out of step, with resulting unemployment. This can and does happen
in two ways. On the one hand, 'over-education' may engender job expectations in
highly-trained people who may for a time find difficulty in obtaining employment
commensurate with their qualifications. On the other hand, new technical
procedures in some segment of industry may create a demand for more highly
developed skills, leaving behind a pocket of unemployment amongst the unskilled.
Job specialisation indeed can reduce the worker to a dehumanised cog in a machine
which becomes obsolete more quickly than the worker himself. A new machine may
require different cogs, and changing technology may leave in its wake the human
and social problem of structural unemployment.
2.20 The rapidity of these changes in the occupational structure means that formal schooling can no longer be conceived in narrowly vocational terms. By the time
a child now beginning school enters the work force, the job opportunities open to
).K. Galbraith; Employment, Education and the Industrial System', in The Social and Economic Impact of Automation und Teгh пi гa/
Change. (proceedings of the International Congress on Human Relations, Melbourne, 1965).
11
him will differ from those now available in ways which can be predicted in only very
general terms.
Competition
2.21 As society has become more complex, and a greater need has arisen for expert knowledge and competence, social status and financial rewards tend to rely less
on established position and more on winning in the open competition for jobs. This
is not to say that certain backgrounds will not correlate highly with the chance of
success. Education may be universal, but having parents high on the socioeconomic scale helps, in Canberra as much as elsewhere, as our survey discovered.
2.22 The high mobility of jobs, and consequent changes in economic status, afforded by this increasingly competitive aspect of society is characteristic of advanced technological countries. Figures taken in the early 1960s show the following
picture':
In Italy the amount of career mobility between non-manual and manual jobs is quite low, in
both absolute and relative terms. Only 7 per cent of men who entered the work force as manual
workers had moved into non-nianuaI jobs by the time of interview, compared with figures of
23 per cent (adjusted figure) in Australia and 31 per cent in the United States. Interestingly
enough, the rate of downward mobility from non-manual to manual jobs is equally low in Italy,
whereas in both Australia and the United States more than one in five men who began their
careers as white collar workers were in manual jobs when interviewed. In the open, competitive
society, the escalators go up and down a little faster and carry more people.
2.23 Of course, some of this mobility is due to the changes in the occupational
structure noted above. Some jobs have simply ceased to be. But even after subtracting these cases of `forced mobility, in Australia and the United States of America
nearly one in four workers has chosen to move into a different kind of job.
2.24 Along with this general situation of high occupational mobility and competition for status, the pressure on students to achieve higher educational levels to
equip themselves well is compounded in Canberra by the high visibility of socioeconomic status in terms of housing and the very public knowledge of salaries.
Promotion in the Public Service at a number of levels depends upon educational attainments. While this factor bears more immediately upon tertiary education, it
helps sustain a climate in which a close association between competitiveness and
formal educational attainments thrives.
As the authors of our students survey report point out:
The occupational structure of the Canberra community is more discernibly hierarchical than
elsewhere. The main avenue of employment is the Public Service which is, of course, visibly
hierarchical in terms of status and rewards. A division of particular significance for education
is the barrier between Third and Fourth Division. Outside the Public Service the main areas of
employment are the professions and manual occupations, both skilled and unskilled. Here
again there is a clear division of prestige and reward which is also correlated with educational
level. These divisions exist elsewhere but the significant thing about them for young people in
Canberra is that here they are more visible and that alternative occupations which do not fit so
clearly into the hierarchy. in business and industry for example, are less numerous. This situation we suggest places Canberra students under even greater pressure to succeed than is the
case elsewhere. Finally. Canberra differs from other communities in the very large proportion
of the adult population which has itself completed secondary schooling and has tertiary
qualifications.
This last point is illustrated by the fact that in the survey 20 per cent of fourth, fifth,
and sixth formers had fathers with a university degree, which is consistent with data
L. Broom & F.L. Jones, 'Career mobility in Three Societies: Australia, Italy, and the United States'. American Sociological Review 34.5
(1969), p.654.
12
from the 1966 Census that 18 per cent of males aged 40 to 44 in the A.C.T. had university degrees, compared with 2.3 per cent nationally.
2.25 The impact of this pressure has registered very clearly in students'
nominations of their likely future careers. If they succeed in their ambitions, 32 per
cent of Canberra high school students will enter the top professional bracket (i.e.
those professions generally requiring a university degree or equivalent as a
minimum qualification); but only 21 per cent have fathers in this category.
Likewise, another 32 per cent of students nominate a lower professional job as their
likely future career, although only 14 per cent have fathers in this bracket. The
social pressure to climb the socio-economic ladder has been internalised by the
students. It seems clear that not all of them will be able to satisfy their occupational
ambitions.
Affluence
2.26 A consequence of our technological development is the greater affluence of
the community. Rising production and increased efficiency in exploiting natural
resources have progressively freed Western man from a dominant preoccupation
with `bread-winning'. The modern average family in Australia is better fed, better
housed, and better dressed than ever its predecessors were; the average house is now
more convenient and its equipment and material comforts have lessened the need
for hard work to run it.
2.27 The tempo of change has not diminished in our lifetime. Thus, even after
making allowance for inflation, the average wage has significantly increased in real
terms over the past two generations. Here again, Canberra shows itself to be
somewhat `ahead of its time'. The average wage earned here is 20 per cent higher
than the national average.
2.28 Affluence raises the question of the use to which our society puts its extra
productive power. To some extent we determine it, through parliaments, in the
form of priorities set by society. To an extent we pay others massive sums to persuade us what we should spend our extra income on — and thereby decide what
form the extra production should take. This in turn leads to manipulation of the
market through the creation of consumer `needs' by skilful advertising.
2.29 Recently-won affluence is reflected also in the length of the working week.
The 40-hour week has for some time been firmly established as the norm in
Australia, and already agreements have been reached in some industries for the
working week to be further reduced to 35 hours. There appears to be some political
contention as to whether this shorter working week should become more
widespread, but there can be little doubt that in the long run the trend will prove
irresistible. This means that the number of hours available to people for leisure time
activities is increasing. Not only that, but more people, by reason of their newfound affluence, can spend their leisure in more ways: a much larger proportion of
the population can now indulge in leisure time activities once the province of the
rich. The creative and satisfying use of this leisure time presents both opportunities
and problems.
2.30 In noting this general trend, we need also to remember that in 1971 about
200,000 Australians had a second job, and that while most of the community enjoy
the fruits of greater affluence, the relative position of a substantial minority is daily
eroded by inflation and rising costs. Thus, in all advanced Western societies there
13
exist, in the midst of greater general affluence, pockets of relative poverty, and in
this Canberra is no exception.
2.31 Some attempts have been made to measure statistically the 'quality of life'. If
the definitions suggested — largely based on ecological and inter-personal influences — are to any extent adequate in effecting such a measure, the indications
are that this 'quality' has now been declining for a decade or more, certainly as far
as Western cultures are concerned. It could be that the style of education
traditionally provided has too frequently ignored these issues. There is growing
concern at the social and ecological costs of affluence. Calls are being made with increasing frequency for more attention to be devoted to the development of social,
civic, economic, and ecological awareness within our educational processes.
2.32 Recent growth in population has meant that one-half of Australia's present
population is under the age of 25. That is, every second person has known only a
time of relative affluence when the characteristics of society noted here have heen
firmly established as basic to our style of life. The rapid movement towards those
goals in attaining which material wealth is important has placed them within reach
of more (though not all) sectors of the community. Especially amongst youth this
has meant that freedom from the direct struggle for existence no longer functions as
a goal to be striven for, but has become part of the background situation against
which attention can be directed to other goals. (See later in this chapter, paras 72 to
76).
The Changing role of women
2.33 The processes of mechanisation and automation have generally meant the
substitution of men by machines — machines often operated by women (for example, in 1947 women accounted for only 22 per cent of people employed in banking;
by the 1966 Census the figure had risen to 36 per cent). In 1971 about one in three
persons at work was a woman compared with only one in five at the end of the Second World War. In the work force women tend to be concentrated in lower-rank
white collar jobs such as typing, office machine operating, and sales work — long
traditional female occupations — but there is also a high representation of women
in the service occupations.
2.34 There has also been a rising tendency for married women to take paid
employment. Between 1947 and 1971 the number of married women employees has
t геЫед; whereas in the past only a minority of working women had husbands or
children, now a majority do. As Jones has pointed outs:
inc
About
in f ve families has at least two 'breadwinners', a fact which strikes at the concept of
the basic wage as well as at the traditional division of male and female roles. There are those
who see in this trend threats towards family life, with an increase in divorce, delinquency, and
materialistic values. But it is inevitable, and indeed desirable, that women freed from a lifetime
of child-bearing, knitting and tea-drinking, should be able to use and develop their capacities
in the work place as well as in suburbs ... However, not all women with children — especially
young children — want to work, and it can hardly be said that routine jobs are in any basic
sense 'self-fulfilling'.
2.35 In Canberra, 44 per cent of married women are engaged in paid work outside
the home. Here again, the pattern of employment differs from that found in
Australia as a whole. For example, in Canberra more than half the women
employed are in clerical jobs, whereas nationally the ratio is only one in three.
с F.L. Jones, 'Australia's Changing Workforå. Currrпry 13,5 (1972).
14
The percentage of women in each occupational category is given in Table 2.
Table 2 — Women as a percentage of occupational groupings
Occupation
Group
Professional, technical and related
workers
Administrative, executive and managerial
workers
Clerical workers
Sales workers
Craftsmen, production-process workers,
miners and labourers (including
transport and communication workers)
Service, sport and recreation workers
(including armed forces)
Farmers, fishermen and related workers
Total Work force
Australia
1947
Australia
1971
А. Г. Т.
% ( а)
% (b)
% (7)
49.5
41.4
35.6
19.6
45.2
32.1
1I.9
64.2
48.4
10.4
56.5
49.6
12.2
13.2
6.5
43.9
4.7
22.4
56.3
15.4
31.7
38.1
9.4
34.6
1971
( а ) Based on the Statistician's Report on the 1947 Census
(h) Based on the preliminary figures [rom the 1971 Census
N.B. The first categoryincludes teachers. The apparent increase in the number of women in farmjohs.is partly because of a different definition of the work force adopted in the two Censuses.
2.36 It is not only technological developments which have led to this increased
participation of women in paid work outside the home. The extension of universal
education well into the years of secondary schooling has resulted in their attaining
educational standards comparable with those of men, and has led to wider occupational expectations and different conceptions of the social role of both men
and women. It has become easier for women to realise such expectations given the
drop in the size of families which is characteristic of the more affluent communities.
2.37 The changes in the perception of the role of women here illustrated undoubtedly creates tensions and conflicts of interest between home and work. The
resolving of these will have a further impact upon the structure of our society, and
will create new demands. It is perhaps significant to note that in the survey of student opinion, girls expressed a greater desire for change in the educational structure
than did boys.
Communications
2.38 There are implications for education from the communications system which
is acting to shape our society. One effect of this system is that events in other
societies, of which we would once not have been aware, have an immediate and
significant impact from which we cannot be insulated. An even more significant
effect is that the very nature of children's perceptions and understandings seems to
have changed; their life style has become something many adults feel they understand only imperfectly.
2.39 Twenty years ago, Margaret Mead, the anthropologist, noted that':
Because of the fantastic rate of change of the world in which we live, children of five have
already incorporated into their everyday thinking ideas that most of their elders will never fully
assimilate ... Teachers who never heard a radio until they were grown up have to cope with
children who never knew a world without television ... The children whom we bear, and rear,
and teach are not only unknown to us and unlike any children that have been in the world
before, but also their degree of unlikeness itself alters from year to year.
Developments of the last twenty years have tended to widen rather than narrow the
1 M. Mead. The School in American Culture (Harvard University Press. Cambridge. Mass.. 1951), pp. 33-34.
15
range of experiences differentiating the young from their elders, to intensify rather
than diminish differences on which their perceptions and evaluations are based.
Home and school are ceasing to be the primary sources of sensation and influence
on the young; school has ceased to be the main, let alone the only, provider of
necessary information about the world. There is indeed a sense in which the jibe
that school is an interruption to education may well be true. The traditional
curriculum may well seem irrelevant to the real issues of life.
2.40 Similarly, the traditional approach to presentation is severely limited in comparison with the wealth of communication means available. Our students are used
to obtaining information from television, from films, from radio, from cassettes
and tapes. They manipulate a large variety of electronic equipment with an ease
that their parents will seldom equal. This ease of operation in a variety of media,
and the standards of performance, place quite new stresses on the educational
program. It is really quite unrealistic for us to continue to operate in the same way
as before, with heavy emphasis on the lecture and the text-book.
‚t'!igration
2.41 Our Australian community has accepted and attempted to absorb and to integrate in the last 25 years over 2 million immigrants, adults and children. They
have added to the work force and accelerated the rate of development of the country's resources. Because of the different ideas, practices, and cultural background
they have brought with them, they have enriched the quality of our national life.
Nevertheless, having such a high component of overseas-born in the community
produces certain strains and tensions as the process of integration continues.
2.42 The migrant character of the population is intensified in the Canberra community. Thus, the fathers of 37 per cent of senior students were born overseas.
About half, a little over 18 per cent of the total, came from another English
language country (e.g. Britain, Canada, New Zealand, U.S.A.) and 13 per cent
came from a continental European country. The same pattern of distribution was
found in the country of birth of the mothers. Amongst the students themselves, 24
per cent were born overseas: 13 per cent from another English language country
and 7 per cent born in continental Europe. These figures are, of course, considerably higher than the national average.
2.43 But, as well as international migration, interstate movement has contributed
largely to the rapid expansion of Canberra through the 1960s. Thus, the local population has been steadily growing at a rate just under 10 per cent per annum
throughout the past few years. This rate appears to be continuing into the
foreseeable future. Such rapid growth produces problems in Canberra schools in
that even those students who are Australian born have had significantly different
experiences in terms of the schools they have attended and educational systems impinging upon them.
2.44 The high mobility of the Canberra population shows itself yet again in the
fact that, with the constant development of new suburbs and new satellite towns,
there is considerable internal migration even within the city.
Secondary School Population
2.45 The trends in social structure are matched by equally significant changes in
the nature of the secondary school population. These changes can be traced back to
1б
those social developments we have mentioned, but they warrant further attention in
themselves.
Retention
2.46 The extension of formal schooling to all young people well into the years of
secondary schooling is in part a response to the demands of the new technological
society. But it is also the result of social and political pressure. Secondary schooling
has been transformed from being merely a training for a social elite to a universal
right. In this can be seen one effect of political programs which have looked to
education for the means of liberating the working class (or their children) from their
station in life. Both the political left and their moderate-conservative opponents
have regarded universal schooling as providing the way to genuine equality of opportunity to all and as an instrument for social reconstruction. As pointed out,
significant social reconstruction has come about, though perhaps not in the ways
envisaged. Evidence from many studies, including our own, shows a high correlation between the level at which students are performing and the socio-economic
status of their parents.
2.47 In practical terms, this pressure has resulted in children staying on at school
for longer periods. Thus, in Australia over the years of this century the average
length of time spent on full-time formal education has increased in an almost linear
progression, with only slight variations caused by the interruption of the world
wars. That is, every I8 to 20 years one year has been added to the average child's life
in school. Whereas those Australians born in 1900 spent on average a little over 8
years in school, those born in 1951 spent on average about 11 years. If anything, the
trend appears to be accelerating.
2.48 It would be highly speculative to project this trend into the future.
Nevertheless, if nothing occurs to avert it, the next generation — by the turn of this
century — will, on the average, be staying at school for 13-14 years, i.e. to the age of
18 or 19. As that is the average expectation, many will stay considerably longer.
2.49 The Wyndham Report, with its intent of broadening secondary school
curricula, represented a partial recognition of the new situation which had by then
overtaken secondary schooling. But, failing to notice the deep-seated nature of the
trend towards higher and higher retention rates in school, it did not project into the
future to the time when the upper secondary level would itself be overtaken. Accordingly, that Committee recommended the extension of secondary school life for a
fifth and sixth year for only a minority of pupils. As they said in 19571:
The pupils we have in mind are those who propose to proceed to tertiary education directly
from school. Accepting the selective nature of universities in the British tradition, we do not
anticipate that more than about 1 б per cent of any school generation would be involved, even
if all adolescents of the requisite ability had the necessary interests and aptitudes to lead them
on to university studies. On the basis of present secondary enrolments, if all able pupils could
be persuaded or assisted to remain at school, our proposal would affect about 5,000 of the
35,000 in a complete age group in departmental secondary schools. Of that 5,000, 10 per cent
already stay at school until 18 years of age.
2.50 Contrary to these expectations, considerably more than 16 per cent of school
students in Canberra stay on after the School Certificate at the end of fourth form;
indeed the majority of students do so. With the extraordinary movement of population in Canberra, both from outside and internally, described above, it is wellnigh
1 Wyndham Report, p. 68.
17
impossible to extract reliable figures of retention rates arrived at by tracing through
each student entering first form into each year of secondary schooling.
2.51 Figures are available, however, that express the percentage of students
enrolled in higher forms on the base of the numbers enrolled in first form. Some, of
course, leave but are replaced by others coming into Canberra and enrolling in the
higher forms. Table 3 indicates the high numbers in senior forms in Canberra high
schools as compared with those in junior years. This is matched only by relatively
small pockets in the higher socio-economic areas of the State capital cities.
Tai e З - Progress of school generations in A.C.T. government secondary schools
Year of
Entry
Form 1
(a) (b)
Form 2
(a) (b)
Form З
(a) (b)
Form 4
(a) (b)
Form 5
(a) (b)
1962(с) 950 100
1963
1034 100
975 103
1964
1118 100 1081 105
843 89
1965
1186 100 1087 97
934 90
665 70
1966
1340 100 1254 106 1022 91
705
Ь8
402 44
1967
1346 100 1389 104 1107 93
865 77
503 49
1968
1616 100 1444 107 1342 100 1131 95
657 59
1969
1716 100 1710 106 1398 104 1221 91
833 70
1970
1823 100 1840 107 1630 101
1346 100
817 61
1971
2087 100 1878 103 1758 102 1508 93
968 72
1972
2217 100 2141 103 1817 100 1657 97 1032 64
Form 6
(b)
(a)
436 46
532 52
681 61
770 65
755 56
864 64
Enrolment at August
Percentage of enrolments from initial intake year
lal The first year in which enrolling students entered the six-year course.
lal
(b)
2.52 Another way of looking at this is to consider the proportion of young people
of senior secondary school age who are enrolled at school. Table 4 indicates clearly
both the high percentage of 16 to 18-year-olds in the A.C.T. who remain at school
and their increasing tendency to do so.
Table 4 - Percentage of certain age populations enrolled at school
Year
Age
16-18
inclusive
15
16
17
18
87.3
73.6
58.5
43.3
20.6
23.36
2.8а
п.а.
27.0
85.2
77.7
70.9
48.3
42.9
25.06
7.7а
na.
43.0
93.0
80.5
68.9
51.2
50.6
27.8
17.3
7.7а
45.1
Aust.
1966
А.С.T.
Aust.
1968
A.C.T.
Aust.
1970
A.C.T.
1971
A.C.T.
94.7
81.0
75.5
53.2
47.3
28.6
12.6
7.5а
42.5
Aust.
A.C.T. (с)
88.2
73.9
52.0
14.0
46.0
1972
(4) includes some aged 19 or over
(bl Includes some aged 18 or over
lc) All these percentages are based on provisional age estima1a of the population. No figures are available yet for Australia.
N.B. Some minordistortion is introduced by comparing ages of school enrollees as at August with ages of population as at 30 June. It is unlikely that the distortion is more than one percentage point.
SOURCES: Calculations from S&hods and Estimated Age Distribution of the Population. Commonwealth Bureau of Census and Statistics.
18
2.53 The age of students in fifth and sixth forms in Canberra high schools at present ranges, with a few exceptions, from 15 to 19, the bulk being between 16 and 18
years of age inclusive. The distribution of students of different ages is given in Table
5.
Table 5 — Age-Grade distribution of students in A.Г.T. government high schools. August 1972
Age last Birih'j'ji
FornГ
11
Girls
Form I
2
12
12
..
632
4
.
5
Ь
Ungraded
Boys
Form I
2
3
7
..
5
Ungraded
з
4
19
..
3к
596
35
431
604
31
з
2з
..
..
17
18
19
20
and
Al/ Ages
11а8
..
..
..
5
з
629
4
..
416
100
517 496
4
..
45
9 536 487 49 6
.
30 512 307 15
.. ..
2
..
25 472 Э42 28
..
25 316 1 К4
8
..
..
9
8
6
I
526 1071 1077
863
701
1149
13
1054
298
15
I
..
..
228
501
27
I
..
22 338 134 5
..
.. .. .. 45 254 94 4 I
852
..
7
46з
959
..
21
4
I
..
Ь
864
869
..
..
533
27В
155
11
1
466
24
490
165
11
I
4912
..
7
..
72
6
..
з0
605
I
56 973 570 55 3
..
47 654 318
13
13
..
11
788
499
398
20
4860
1087
2217
2141
1817
1657
83
..
16
95Э
1069
1132 918
65 1116
5
Ungraded
1б
8
Ь
Total
students
Form I
2
15
636 1098 1 112
..
12
4
Total Boys
14
огег
з
а
Total girls
13
66 532 249
4
..
15
..
2
864
44
15
2
9772
1032
Total
students
19 1162 2169 2189 1715 1330
906 265
This age-grade distribution is but a cross-section of a steadily changing trend. In
1962, 752 students, or 16 per cent of the total high school population in Canberra
were 1 6 years of age or older. In August 1972, the respective figures were 3,650 and
26 per cent. By 1,980 it is estimated that there will be 8,000 students 16 years of age
or over still engaged in secondary schooling; that is 30 per cent of the total secondary school population.
2.54 Together with this increased retention rate into the senior secondary years,
we must consider how many proceed to university and other tertiary institutions.
The last survey of school leavers in the Canberra-Queanbeyan area elicited
responses from 72 per cent of all those leaving school in 1971. Of these respondents
19.5 per cent went on to tertiary educational institutions, whether full-time or parttime study: 9.0 per cent at the Australian National University, 5.3 per cent at the
Canberra College of Advanced Education, and 4.9 per cent at tertiary institutions
outside the A. С.Т.
19
2.55 It is therefore clear that we now have in the upper years of Canberra high
schools a large number of students who would not have been at school at this level
15 years ago and for whom the Wyndham Committee made no special provision. It
is significant that, within the overwhelming vote by students in favour of the college
proposal, the greatest desire for such a change was expressed by precisely these
students. It would appear that the current curricula for fifth and sixth form levels
available in our schools with the need in mind to satisfy matriculation requirements
are not adequately geared to the particular needs and abilities of many of the
students we now find in our high schools at the senior level.
2.56 The trend to increased retention rates at school must be seen as a direct function of social change. The abolition of selective entry to secondary education and
the raising of the statutory school leaving age were at first seen as the results of
purely legal changes. They have proved not to be. The proportion of students continuing school until they are 16 years old in different parts of Australia bears no
relation to the various statutory leaving ages of the States. We have seen how small
is the number of students who leave school at the age of 15 in the A.C.T. Retention
rates represent a reaction to social pressure.
2.57 It would be too easy to attribute the tendency of students to continue with
full-time formal education for longer and longer periods simply to the ambitions of
parents for their children. It is true that for some students the pressure to remain at
school for longer periods comes to them immediately from their parents, but that in
turn is but an expression of social pressures which are much wider and deeper than
a particular parent's ambitions for his children. This tendency is rooted in the
developments in knowledge and technology, and their social effects, described
above.
Adult roles
2.58 At a time when society is imposing a longer economic dependence of students
upon parents than ever before, other developments are requiring adolescents to
assume adult roles earlier than before. One striking manifestation of this is the
much earlier sexual maturity of the population. In developed countries as a whole
there has been a consistent change: for example, the average at which girls commence menstruation has decreased by about four months per decade in Western
Europe over the period 1840 to 1960.1 The trend appears less marked in the case of
non-working class girls; for both groups in Europe menarche now occurs at about
age 13. Some American data show even earlier ages at menarche, and significant
differences in the rate of physical development between second generation United
States immigrants and those who remained in the country of origin. Parallel trends
towards earlier maturation in height and weight can be discerned.
2.59 While the causes of such a significant biological change are no doubt complex, one important factor is clearly the rapid rise in the standard of nutrition and
consequently of the general health of the community. As indicated, there are population differences probably due to differences in health and social expectations.
How closely Canberra conforms to the American findings would depend upon the
degree of similarity in such factors.
2.60 This earlier sexual maturity has come at a time when society as a whole is not
providing clear answers to the questions of sexual behaviour. This combination of
I 1.M. Tanner. Education аnд Physical Growth, (London, 1961). Ch. 7.
20
factors places new strains on the adolescent and thus on the secondary school.
2.61 In accordance with this biological development, adolescents are tending to
assume some of the adult social roles earlier. In part, this relates to legal matters.
For example, by the age of 18 a young person can enter into hire purchase contracts, drive a car, get married (with permission), buy a beer, pay tax, see restricted
films, and now (in some States) vote in Parliamentary elections. Other legal moves
are already being forecast in some States which will have the effect of extending all
adult rights to people 18 years of age. In all probability this will become general
within a few years.
2.62 Perhaps of greater significance than the legal recognition of adulthood has
been the emergence over the past decade or so of the teenager as an identifia Ыe consumer with his or her own clear sub-culture and market preferences. Such independence in patterns of consumption is only made possible by the new-found
relative affluence in the community and is widely reflected in current advertising. It
provides a potent initiation into adult roles in a consumption-oriented society, and
in turn generates a higher expectation of adult rights such as is now becoming
characteristic of a younger age group.
2.63 A sign of this expectation as it affects school organisation can be seen in the
strong desire expressed by students for more say in the determination of school
policy. Ninety-four per cent of Canberra fifth and sixth formers wished senior
students to be represented on a school governing council, while about 60 per cent
agreed that most discipline should be handled by some form of student council.
Also the strong interest expressed in the possibility of part-time work/part-time
study (47 per cent agreement against 42 per cent disagreement) probably represents
in part a desire for greater economic independence.
2.64 In addition to these social factors, mention should also be made of the increasing complexity of the content of schooling in the earlier forms. Where once
primary education tended to emphasise the `three Rs', now set theory, evolution
and drug abuse are discussed. As a result, by the upper years of the present high
schools, many students have acquired knowledge and developed an intellectual outlook which often surpasses that of their parents.
Alienation
2.65 The picture which emerges from the trends reviewed in the last two sections
points to students at senior high school level being in a situation of severe conflict.
On the one hand, the rising demand for more advanced formal education for more
of the population implies a prolongation of the dependent status of childhood and
of economic reliance on parents which necessarily retards full maturation. On the
other hand, the earlier attainment of adult functioning, both biologically and in
some social roles, implies that young people of this age cannot be treated as
children in a basically protective and custodial environment. In many respects the
adolescent at school, though looking more like an adult is treated more like a
dependent child than an adult who has personal autonomy.
2.66 This problem, whose origins lie in the social developments sketched earlier, is
aggravated by the way the objectives of schooling and of the content of curricula at
this level continue to be conceived in terms appropriate only to that small proportion of students with high academic ability. To the others, who will not be
proceeding to university-level studies, much of the present material covered can
г1
only be seen to have a point in terms of prescribed obstacles to be overcome on the
way to getting the formal qualifications necessary for climbing the socio-economic
scale. But even students of higher academic ability are finding difficulty in seeing
the relevance of traditional syllabuses.
2.67 Where social pressure in this way imposes a deferment of the assumption of
full adulthood (as worker, as citizen, and as spouse) at the very time when the attaining of psychological and intellectual capabilities and some adult roles is moving
down the age range, and where mastering the content of schooling has to be
motivated extrinsically, students can be expected to show signs of disorientation
and dissatisfaction. So it has proved to be wherever in Australia students are, in
response to these pressures, staying on longer in a traditional school atmosphere.
Our survey revealed a quite striking and disturbing degree of antagonism and
alienation' amongst students in Canberra, Melbourne and Sydney (see appendixes).
Fifth and sixth formers are, on average, a little more favourably disposed to school
than fourth formers; amongst the latter there are more students with a low-status
background who derive little satisfaction from their schooling and wish to leave.
Even amongst those who stay on in a traditional school there are very many for
whom school is distasteful or at best a mixed experience. The most outstanding exceptions to this discovered by our survey are the students in the matriculation
colleges in Tasmania. By contrast, Table 6 summarises the attitude of Canberra
students to school, rating them on the basis of their own free comments.
Table б — Ratings of Canberra go'ernment school students attitudes to school
Hates school
Tolerates with difficulty
Ambivalent
Generally favourable
Likes it very much
Total
4th Form
5th Forni
6th Forni
%ó
%
io
9
17
37
35
2
100
5
15
41
37
4
100
4
18
33
41
5
100
2.68 This low morale showed through in evidence from all schools, and all forms,
and can be seen in their overwhelming vote in favour of the colleges proposal, in
their responses to attitude questions, in the discrepancy between how they believe
teachers should be and are, and above all in their marginal comments and answers
to open-ended questions. The sociological conditions which are in Canberra
superimposed on the normal adolescent inclination towards rebellion are likely to
cause aggressive responses — of which there were a very large number in the survey
— or alienation involving sometimes a 'switching off' from the values of adult
society and the seeking refuge in a peer group sub-culture. Again, there was considerable evidence of this response in the survey.
2.69 The problems confronting A.C.T. adolescents are accentuated by the social
structure, mores, aspirations, and mobility of the population. Some students feel
temporarily lost because they have been uprooted from friends, relatives, and
schools when their family moved to Canberra. Others came from homes 'broken' or
1 An alienated person's relationship to society is characterised by a sense of isolation and powerlessness associated with feelings that life is
meaningless, that there are no reliar a norms guiding human behaviour. and that ones own behaviour is inconsistent with ones true self.
In the school context. the term'alienation has been used to describe students who cannot or will not respond appropriately to the values,
the rewards, and the expectations that combine to form the culture of a school.
22
under stress due to excessive career striving (perhaps by both parents), marital discord or financial problems, sometimes complicated by alcoholism. Non-Englishspeaking children may suffer social non-acceptance, academic problems, and
poverty. Some children of successful', highly intelligent parents are under pressure
to reproduce their parents' academic orientation and performance.
2.70 The overwhelming desire for change exhibited by the senior secondary
students in Canberra coupled with their negative attitude towards school appeared
to educational researchers to show more evidence of hostility and alienation than
was expected to be typical of this age group of the population at large. This raised
the question of the extent to which this was due to particular social conditions in
Canberra, to the particular form of social organisation of the schools, or to the particular teaching service supplied by the New South Wales Education Department;
'or whether indeed what was being seen was broadly representative of Australian or
Western youth in general. Accordingly, comparative data were sought in the second
stage of the survey from other Australian States, and in particular from Tasmania,
where matriculation colleges have been operating for some time.
2.71 The evidence emerging from this comparative study suggests very strongly
that the coupling of negative attitudes towards school with a strong desire for
reforms in the structure of schooling is characteristic of students from higher status
backgrounds. It appears that students with poorer backgrounds and educational attainments do not so readily see reforms in the educational structure offering them
the same benefits. It also emerged that differences in the school structure and in the
teaching service are also significant factors affecting students' reaction to their
schooling. It cannot be said that the negative attitudes expressed by the Canberra
students are simply typical of adolescents in general. The detailed complaints of the
Canberra students, repeated even more strongly by the matching sample from the
Sydney North Shore area, centred particularly around an authoritarian relationship
with their teachers and a restrictive social organisation of the school.
Values
2.72 There appears to be a common set of themes in the attitudinal responses of
youth to current social conditions in advanced technological societies around the
world. There are few such countries where some form of student unrest has not
been felt, and the forms of dissent which have been most evident in university
groups are now becoming characteristic of a younger age group. Studies of these
movements of dissent have usually uncovered a set of common themes which
should become more evident in Australia in the near future as the social consequences of uncontrolled technological advance emerge from their embryonic stages.
Amongst the common themes are a tendency for students to identify with an international body of young people with similar humanitarian values, a departure from
the values of materialism towards those of aesthetic and expressive appeal, a feeling
of alienation, a greater potential for conflict in educational institutions which have
a strong academic and authoritarian outlook, the perception of a discrepancy
between a liberal arts education and the vocational realities of an industrial society,
widespread feelings of apathy together with retreat from public involvement in
reaction to stress, a search for authenticity in interpersonal relations and perception
of oneself, and a tendency to reapply and extend the personal social values of
parents from the interpersonal field to broader social and political concerns. These
23
themes are typically coupled with a movement away from an emphasis on rationality towards one of passionate commitment and immediate experience.
2.73 To a large extent these movements in youthful consciousness express a rеa сtion against the impersonalising effect of social and commercial institutions which
have adapted to the requirements for technological development. In so reacting,
young people are seeking to emphasise those humanitarian values which are deeply
embedded in the personal and inter-personal morality of Western culture, and to
find ways of asserting them on a wider scale. Some students (teachers estimated 510 per cent out of one A.C.T. sixth form in 1971) expressed this by deliberately rejecting what they see as the `academic Tat-race', an aspect of the 'soul-less, hypercompetitive, materialistic ethos of capitalism'. Others conform rather more but display their commitment through their enthusiastic participation in community-aid
projects. It could be that attempts to inculcate a conformist attitude in the young,
giving rise to inevitable comparisons of the `standards' being advocated with those
exhibited, bear a close relationship to expressions of concern with issues of `quality
of life' and of the dissatisfaction expressed in dissent, delinquency, and vandalism.
2.74 The converse of this affirmation of personal values is a rejection of
authoritarian situations, i.e. of relationships so structured that it is probable that a
command with a given specific content will be obeyed by a given group of persons.'
When asked what they like least about school, an extraordinarily high number of
Canberra students gave answers which fell into the one category of comments on
authoritarian discipline, lack of freedom, and school rules; 42 per cent of the
students were classed as liking school least in this respect. In contrast, only 23 per
cent of Tasmanian students were classed as liking school least in this respect, while
Melbourne students fell midway between the two.
2.75 It would appear that this questioning of imperative authority is relatively
new. Part of the reasons for it no doubt lie in the trends already traced, but this
questioning attitude of young people has also been partly due to the educational
system itself which has in recent years placed increasing emphasis on the need to
question attitudes and values and to examine statements before accepting them at
face value. Further, the impact of advertising through the mass media has inevitably led to a hardening of response by a generation that is being constantly cajoled, invited, and enticed to indulge in all sorts of impossible pastimes and spending sprees. Youth today knows that it cannot believe many of the claims with
which it is bombarded by adult society: `whitest ever', 'biggest value', `greatest
saving', 'most attractive', etc.
2.76 The impact of this questioning of imperative authority on schools is obvious.
It necessarily leads to a rejection of traditional discipline, that is, of the probability
that by virtue of habituation, a command will receive prompt and automatic
obedience in stereotyped form, on the part of a given group of persons (in this case
a substantial minority of school students). In place of such discipline, students are
seeking ways for greater self-determination, as noted above, and friendly relations
between teachers and students. A number of students also expressed a desire for
greater autonomy in learning, in which the student would take more initiative and
the teacher become more a resource person.
Cr.
24
M. Weber. The
Thiry
of Social and Economic Organisation (New York, 1947), p. 152.
Overt dissent
2.77 A complex community problem is caused by a very small number of children
whose pattern of social behaviour is so aberrant as to exceed bounds acceptable to
the school and the community. Included in this group is the habitual truant, the disruptive child who effectively blocks the learning process for himself and those about
him, the uncontrolled and excessively aggressive who accepts no curb and remains a
physical and psychological danger to his fellows.
2.78 These students do not respond to the efforts of teachers, counsellors, welfare
officers and (outside) experts to whom they are referred. The trouble is not confined
to the school; it also occurs in the home and the community. It does not necessarily
start at high school age; indications usually appear earlier.
2.79 The problem for the school seldom goes beyond the junior forms. These
students either leave school on reaching the age of 15 years or are earlier taken into
the custody of the courts. Since the causes are, no doubt, complex and deeply
rooted, and not necessarily related to the school situation, we cannot be confident
that a restructuring of secondary education will solve the problem although it might
well assist.
2.80 Schools are not content that their sustained efforts in dealing with these
students meet with only limited success. We must be realistic and recognise the
problems of the incorrigible child and the negative impact of that person on the
remainder of the school population.
2.81 In the A.C.T. the present arrangements for treating this group are less than
adequate and we therefore make a recommendation on this matter in Chapter 6.
Schools
2.82 Changes in the structure and pressures of Australian society and in the secondary school population have inevitably led already to many changes in schools as
they have sought to adjust to the new situation. The Wyndham Scheme represented
a broadening of curricula in the lower years of secondary schooling in response to
formal education at that level becoming universal.
2.83 Some adjustments have been made at the upper level also. Schools differ, but
in some Canberra high schools, at least, seniors attend sport voluntarily and choose
from a much wider range than juniors, account for their own absences, use a
separate library and common room, with smoking rights in the latter, conduct their
own separate socials, choose a senior uniform, distinctive but still tax-deductible,
leave school freely at lunchtime, drop a subject in Form 6 to gain time for selfdirected study, and determine the shape and, largely, the content of the annual
school magazine. Three factors merit special comment.
Size
2.84 The tendency in some countries (often justified on the grounds of economy)
towards the growth of larger schools and universities has meant that students have
become further divorced from those in positions of authority, and communications
between then have broken down. Closer to home, the transition from selective to
comprehensive high schools, with their increased retention rate at the various levels
and the diversification of courses at the upper level, has increased substantially the
size of the secondary school. In order to retain viable class sizes for a wide range of
courses at the upper level, schools have grown to well over 1,000 students.
25
2.85 There has been a good deal of controversy concerning the merits and
demerits of large schools. The hard evidence available some time ago was in relation to two factors. On the one hand, a large school permitted a concentration of
facilities: assembly hall, playing fields, library, etc. Secondly, investigations of
scholastic achievement showed no loss as size increased. On the other hand, there
has been a strong feeling amongst teachers that large schools are not desirable and
evidence is gradually accumulating to support this judgment. One source of
evidence comes from the subjective reports of teachers who indicate that nervous
strain is greater, problems of discipline more intense, as schools grow in size.
2.86 Another more recent source comes from the investigations of researchers like
W. J. Campbell. His investigations suggest that smaller schools show the following
benefits:
* greater external pressures aimed at increasing participation in extra-curricular
activities;
* a greater sense of personal responsibility associated with extra-curricular activities;
* a larger number of school settings resulting in individual performance;
* a higher level of satisfaction associated with acquiring knowledge and developing intellectual interests, developing a self-concept, physical well-being and zest
for living;
* a greater range of activities leading to personal participation.
As Campbell remarks :
. if, as the research evidence suggests, the negative relationship between school size and individual participation is deeply based, and difficult, if not impossible to avoid, it may be easier
to bring specialised and varied behaviour settings to small schools than to raise the level of individual participation in large ones.
Instability of staff
2.87 The rapid staff turnover in recent years has seriously affected high schools,
heightening student insecurity and hindering the development of personal relations
between teachers and students. In recent years it has become not unusual for
Canberra high schools to turn over one-third of their teaching staff from year to
year. Indeed, changes of up to 20 per cent of the teaching staff have occurred during
the year. The strong pull exerted by promotion opportunities and salary incentives
in the Commonwealth Public Service has drawn off many career-minded male
teachers in their late twenties and early thirties, and about half the male assistants
who remain have five years' experience or less. Female assistants now conspicuously outnumber males, and many of them are employed on a short-term basis. Gifted
sons of working-class parents no longer rely so heavily on teaching in order to
break into a profession. Teaching now attracts too few males — a fact ameliorated
by the extremely high quality of some women entrants.
2.88 The underlying causes of teacher dissatisfaction have been listed in the
U.S.A. as lack of teacher autonomy, excessive bureaucracy in school administration, lack of adequate grievance machinery, misassignment of teachers outside their
own special subject areas, excessive workload, too many extra-curricular duties,
lack of ancillary staff, and one that has no equivalent here, lack of security in some
school districts2. In England, teachers have complained of obnoxious interference,
W.1. Campbell (ed.). Scholars in Context:The Effects of Enwwnmrn's on Learning (Sydney. 1970), pp. 67-80, 185-196.
Cf. also R.G. Barker & P.V. Gump. Big School. Small School (Stanford U.P.. 1964).
2 V. Burke. 7fachers in nomad (Hammondsworth. 1971).
26
that is, of lay control and administrative interference reducing their autonomy, of
out-of-date and badly equipped schools which make modern methods almost impossible, of too many non-teaching chores, of having too little collective responsibility in their schools, of too much authority being vested in the headmaster and
of lack of adequate opportunities for in-service education. It would appear from
many sources that Australian teachers are nursing similar grievances.
2.89 Poor morale amongst the teaching staff can more than outweigh the contributions of those committed and dedicated teachers also to be found in our
schools. The different perceptions teachers have of their roles and behaviour are not
the result of perverseness or wilfulness; they stem from the immensely difficult task
of adjusting their own professional aspirations to the organisational constraints of
our centralised educational systems at a time when social changes are affecting both
their own status and the educational task.' These changes have produced deep uncertainties concerning much of the educational program which are disruptive of
smooth organisation. No examination of the future of an educational system can ignore the problems thus raised.
Social issues
2.90 As curricula have both broadened and lengthened, so the school has turned
its attention to a wider range of social issues. Within the limits of centrallyprescribed curricula, schools these days attempt to supply the student with some
understanding of his place in society, the geographical and economic structure of
that society and a little of the technology and sociology which supports it. Schools
try further to develop a basic appreciation of the art, music, drama, and literature
through which society. expresses itself. Add to this programs for physical development and handcraft skills and the modern school becomes an intricate educational
complex.
2.91 Society continues, however, to make greater demands on its schools. They
tend to become purveyors of moral standards. They are asked to provide vital instruction in such areas as sex education, attitudes to alcohol and drugs, driving
habits and techniques. There have been recent moves in the A.C.T. for churches to
pass on to the schools the task of imparting religious instruction as well. In short,
the school is being asked to assume an ever-increasing number of the tasks of the
parent, the policeman, and the preacher.
2.92 It is paradoxical that at a time when the community calls upon its schools to
assume more responsibility for preaching conformity to its codes of civic, ethical
and religious morals, society itself is becoming increasingly permissive and divided
or unsure on how those codes apply in specific situations.
2.93 Further, this is happening at a time when the role of the school as the principal conveyor of knowledge and culture is diminishing, so that it is being increasingly asked to reinforce established social mores precisely when it is becoming
less effective in doing so. Again, teachers are finding themselves called upon to
assume these new roles without specific training in how best to structure learning
situations in which students can grapple with these social issues.
2.94 It is clear that even the most obvious aspects of our technological society
I
Cr. M.C. Grwüc,'The Principal — Manager, Manipulaior or Mes'iah?, Inside Едцгct!оп. Zvi, 2 (1972).
г7
raise questions that are not technological at all. Our education system, in preparing
its youth for such a society, is concerned not only with a changing technology but
even more with questions of the purpose and use of technology. The implications of
technological development for the use of human abilities and the fulfilment of
human aspirations raise profound questions which are in the end moral in
character. Education cannot ignore such questions. We cannot avoid the need to
widen our aims and make our methods consistent with this extension, to consider
the questions of value which are inseparable with technical change in our society.
2.95 For this reason, an education system cannot take an ethically neutral stance
on questions of social and political change. Many thinkers have pointed to the
darker and morally questionable character of a mass society in which those in
positions of power create artificial needs through the reinforcement of a set of
values compatible with a consumer economy, protected by its affluence from the
harsher realities of life and death.
2.96 The need to encourage a realistic awareness of the forces at work in social
and political change and to deepen the perception of the moral constraints
necessary for creating a more just and humane community becomes even more
pressing as these trends gain momentum. Learning to practise such restraints may
be necessary for survival in the increasing competition for scarce resources within a
fragile social order. Any system of education which in practice aims simply at
providing quiescent but well-trained functionaries, who can then be manipulated in
the service of those locked in a struggle for power, is ultimately doing a grave disservice to human society.
2.97 We expect that education will continue to be an area of public controversy
and ideological conflict; it is impossible for those engaged in the processes of education to abstract themselves from these questions of value. Means of effective community involvement in the development of policy will have to be determined in the
light of the requirement for critical attention to be given to such moral issues whilst
protecting teachers, students, and administrators from manipulation by vested interests.
28
CHAPTER 3
The College Proposal
Implications of change
3.1 In the previous chapter we have reviewed some of the factors which determine
the demands of society upon its education system and the social factors affecting
students in our particular setting. A number of implications emerge from this
review which must be taken into account in any attempt to assess the 'appropriateness of the proposal before us.
3.2 The growth of knowledge and the rapid changes in the content of various disciplines which may be expected in the life of a student require that learning
programs will need to emphasise the discovering, organising, evaluating and applying of knowledge in the context of human action rather than the mere acquiring of
information. This is not to deny that many of the traditional basic skills will still
need to be taught, but it is becoming even more urgent to ensure that the skills
relate, and are seen by the students to relate, to the kind of complex social situation
in which they will be needing to draw upon available knowledge and skills.
3.3 Our emphasis here calls in question to some extent the present subjectcentredness of school curricula, particularly evident in the present high schools. The
development in other States, especially in Victoria, of school programs centred
around general studies bespeaks an awareness of a move towards a genuinely
problem-centred core-curriculum, rather than the `core proposed by the Wyndham
Report, which has turned out to be simply a grouping of certain traditional subjects.
3.4 The increasingly rapid turnover of jobs in our society, and the well-founded
expectation of new kinds of jobs being created by technological advance, requires
that students should be assisted by their schooling to become as adaptable as possie. The conception of schooling as fitting a child for that occupation which he will
follow for the rest of his working life is becoming increasingly irrelevant.
3.5 The rapid development of technology means that those processes at work in
society which to greater and lesser extents determine the form of peoples lives are
becoming more complex. The initiation of rising generations into our society thus
needs to provide them with a deeper understanding of and familiarity with these
processes. Only in this way will people develop the sense of using technology, rather
than being used by technology. Unless this is done, the feelings of estrangement and
alienation, which were reflected in the students survey and which to some extent are
found in society at large, will increase. By exposing students to a wider range of experience, not only their work but also their leisure would be more likely to become a
period of active participation in a wide range of satisfying activities. The desire of
students for such wider experience was reflected in the emphasis they gave to having
'more subjects useful in a job' and social science-type subjects. How to achieve this
closer integration with work experiences while adhering to the recognition of the inappropriateness of narrowly vocational training in schooling is a major educational
problem.
29
3.6 There is a growing need for our educational systems to place more emphasis
on the development of personal responsibility, both for the general conduct of one's
life and for one's study and work. A point constantly urged upon us in favour of the
college proposal is that it would enable the senior students to develop much further
their personal responsibility, and that if such a change is made it would also have
the effect of requiring more leadership from students in the high school, especially
at the fourth form level.
3.7 The importance of developing intrinsic motivation within learners has been
impressed upon us. By this is meant motivation for learning in which the rewards
sought are obtained through exploration of the subject matter itself rather than
from some distant consequences of that learning. It was pointed out to us that it
does not develop under an authoritarian type of instruction. Neither does it develop
well where there are strong feelings for success in competition with some externally
established standard. On the other hand, intrinsically motivated learning does not
follow from an undisciplined careless acceptance and encouragement of diversity
of any sort but from the gradual development of confidence in processing small discrepancies in information received against a relatively constant and well-ordered
background. We understand that research in this area is still proceeding, but it does
appear that allowing for learners to choose from a number of tracks of progress and
to choose between different instructional methods is one way of fostering learning
by this kind of motivation.
3.8 We whole-heartedly agree with the point put to us in a number of submissions
that it is not only a matter of humanitarian values but also of practical, indeed
national, importance that people learn how to learn and learn to love learning in the
context of new experiences. In a rapidly changing community, which all advanced
industrial societies have become, continual relearning of work skills and a renewed
understanding of the world we live in are necessary conditions for participation by
the population at large in what the nation has to offer and what the nation may
become. If the artificial but nevertheless real separation of school from the community is to be overcome it will be necessary to develop stronger links between the
home, the school and the community with more interchanging, mutual awareness,
and co-operation in administration, use of facilities and program design.
3.9 In the light of this, we recognise that the provision of educational facilities,
particularly those above the elementary level, must be placed in the context of the
continuing education of the community at large. For a society changing so rapidly,
we have to think less in terms of educational and non-educational institutions, more
in terms of developing the potential of all organisations to provide better learning
environments. This does not imply the dismantling of schools, colleges and universities, though it does imply that they should become resource centres for learning
rather than providers of prescribed and often lock-step courses. Particularly beyond
the years of compulsory schooling, our educational institutions must be designed so
as to provide a facility to the whole community in its need for lifelong learning.
3.10 We have already mentioned the need for students, especially those at the
senior level, to be exposed to a wider range of experience than our present high
schools provide. This need is made even more pressing by the much larger number
of students seeking formal education after obtaining the School Certificate. In fact,
we have now to deal with a substantially new secondary population. Our
curriculum, our structures and (perhaps even more important) our hidden assump30
tions have in the past been on the basis of a highly selected upper secondary group,
with a high verbal intelligence, a home background which pre-disposed them to use
books and to be prepared to pospone instant satisfactions for long-term goals. The
schools find it difficult to accept and adjust to populations with differing abilities,
expectations, motivations and values.
3.11 The consistent pattern of a rise in retention rates of students at school raises
the question as to whether this trend will continue. Indeed some people have interpreted the college proposal as implying that the school leaving age will increase to
about 18 years of age. It was put to us that this would be socially and economically
undesirable. It is clear that the situation of conflict described earlier resulting from
a prolongation of a student's dependency in a protective and custodial environment, coupled with the earlier attainment of full adult functioning, both biologically and in some social roles, could well produce justifiabl a dissent. In order to avoid
this, we might envisage secondary schooling being shortened, not lengthened. An
ending of such schooling after fourth form could provide students with a decision
point which might indeed be welcome to many of them. Our task is to find a way of
avoiding prolongation of dependency while still providing appropriate facilities for
people to avail themselves of further learning:
3.12 Given the deep-seated nature of the trend towards increasing retention, it is
likely that the social pressures which have produced it will continue, and that no
mere legislative action short of highly restrictive entry would serve to prevent
students staying on for formal education for the most of their teenage years. If that
is so, and we would be opposed to any attempt to introduce restrictive entry to the
upper years of present secondary schooling, then it becomes necessary to devise a
different kind of educational institution which will provide some new approaches to
the problems we find ourselves faced with.
Alternative possibilities
3.13 While these considerations point towards the college proposal as providing a
more flexible opportunity to grapple with these problems, we have examined other
patterns of school organisation in order to see whether they might suggest even
more effective ways of meeting the new situation before us.
3.14 The nearest systems to our own are the British, on which essentially the
Australian educational systems seem to have been based, and the American, which
is rather further from our basic concepts and therefore not perhaps immediately
applicable. Nevertheless, the American experience of junior and senior high schools
is obviously relevant to some degree to our own investigation. Most of the European systems do not helpfully bear upon the proposed development being considered here, being developed from different antecedents, and being informed by
different educational concepts from those which moulded the New South Wales
system from which we must build any new departure. For example the new system
in Holland appears to be the establishment of parallel severely restrictive and
vocational high school systems, artisans systems, and so on but with a flexibility
added by reason of the possibility of vertical and horizontal transfer from one
system to another! This obviously is not in line with the concepts which have framed our own system and therefore would be at too great a distance for useful comparisons to be drawn.
Netherlands Ministry of Education and Science. Summary of the Post Primary Education Ас in the Netherlands (The Hague. 1968).
31
3.15 The system in Sweden has some relevance to the college proposal. The
Swedish comprehensive school covers the whole period of compulsory schooling
from ages 7 to 16 in three stages or departments of three years each. Beyond 16 in
Sweden comes the senior secondary school with a variety of courses ranging from
two through three to four years in length. This was developed from the old 'gymnasium or Swedish grammar school and in some ways is not unlike the English
sixth form college. One of the advantages of the Swedish arrangement is, of course,
the integration of the program right through the nine years of compulsory education.
3.16 The various alternative structures relevant to British developments were laid
out in Circular 10/65 of the Department of Education and Science, although in fact
earlier experiments such as that at Mexborough in Yorkshire were already in being.
Circular 10/65 was designed as a guide to local education authorities on the
possibilities of change open to them. It adumbrated six schemes as follows:
(1) all through comprehensive schools for ages 11 to 18 years;
(2) tiered schools where all pupils transferred at 13 or 14 from lower tier to upper
tier;
(3) parallel tiered schools where only some pupils
(a) choose, or
(b) are selected for transfer to upper tier;
(4) tiered schools where all pupils
(a) choose, or
(b) are selected at 13 or 14 between long course and short course upper tiers;
(5) 11 to 1б schools
(a) followed by a sixth form college, or
(b) followed by a junior college, or
(c) co-existing with 11 to 18 schools
(6) middle schools straddling the age of 11, e.g. 8 to 12 or 9 to 13, leading on to
variants of schemes (2), (4) or (5).
3.17 Of these alternatives, we set aside any which reflect a continuing dichotomy
of education between what was in England before that time the grammar school
and the secondary modern school. The move from a system of parallel selective
schools to a system of comprehensive high schools offering secondary education on
a universal basis followed the recommendations of the Wyndham Committee, and
we have heard no arguments in favour of reversing that decision. For basically the
same reason, we reject the alternative in 5 (c) because it seems inevitable that there
will be a splitting of academic ability between the two; the 11 to 16 schools will tend
to retain the less academically able whereas the more academically able would move
on to the 11 to 18 school.
3.18 The alternatives thus narrow down to a choice between what is the present
six-form high school, a splitting of secondary education into a four-form high
school followed by a college, and a more drastic restructuring involving raising the
age of entry to a high school to 13 or 14 (perhaps with a split in primary education
in order to establish a middle school).
3.19 The suggestion of a middle school would involve those students who in our
present system would be in fifth and sixth class at primary school and first and second form at high school. In the U.S.A.' such a three-fold system appears to be
I W.M. Alexander e, d. 7t е Emergent Middle School (2nd Edn. New York. 1969).
32
gaining support. To the extent that it is attracting advocates, this support appears
to stem from dissatisfaction amongst American educators with the junior high
school/senior high school pattern. As Alexander et al. state:
During these 50 years, that is since the last survey of junior high schools was made, the purposes of the junior high school have been altered. In addition to its original function of
providing secondary education for youngsters at an earlier age, the purpose of thejunior high
school was to provide:
(1) a bridge between the elementary school with its self-contained class room and thě highly
specialised program of the senior high school;
(2) exploratory experiences for its students in order to allow youngsters to sample various
subject areas before making a commitment to a specific program in the senior high
school;
(3) guidance services as an aid in academic, vocational and personal matters.
Had the junior high school really achieved these purposes and had the elementary school
program provided adequate adaptations for its older pupils, the six-three-three plan might
have had little challenge; but today the plan is being challenged and its inadequacies in practice are being exposed.
3.20 We may summarise the inadequacies stressed by Alexander et al. as being
that the program of the junior high school mimics that of the senior high school.
The name itself, they say, implies that if there is a junior version of an institution
there must also be a senior counterpart. They allege that this mimicking applies in
organisation, in curriculum, in type of teaching, and in social activities, and
therefore it is inadequate to the different needs of the twelves to fifteens and the
fifteens to eighteens because they are given no evolving or expanding educational
horizons.
3.21 It is important to note, however, that this dissatisfaction is due not to imperfections in the pattern itself, but to imperfections in the carrying out of the
organisational and educational implications of such a pattern. Undoubtedly, the
system incorporating a middle school has much to recommend it. Both Benn and
Simon in the English context', and Alexander et al. in the American context, devote
much time to establishing that, given the necessary educational freedom in planning, this can be a more satisfying and more comprehensive and universally
applicable system of education than either the 11 to 18 comprehensive or the high
school/college pattern.
3.22 This sort of plan would involve a reorganisation not only of secondary
schooling but also of primary schooling. Formidable difficulties confront such a
massive reorganisation. It is difficult enough to convince a community and the
educators within that community that a single step such as separating out the senior
years from the high school into a college can be taken without completely breaking
down some of the standards which they have come to expect. It would be next to
impossible to impose such a large and revolutionary change on the community at a
single step. Moreover, the accommodation as well as the staffing and curriculum in
all our schools would all have to be changed at once. There would be major
economic repercussions in terms of the buildings for schools. Almost all existing
school buildings in Canberra would either require modification or have space unused. The benefits to be gained would be at a substantial cost. All in all, we consider
that a restructuring which involved altering the relationships between all levels of
schooling at the same time would be too disruptive and costly to be justifiable.
3.23 Nevertheless there are advantages to be gained in a system which inserts a
middle school between primary and high school. It is arguable that the years 9 to 13
1 C. Вепп & В. Simon, Haljway Vier« (McGraw-Hill. London, 1970).
33
or 14 are more psychologically homogenous than the years 12 to 16, and with both
middle and high schools spanning four years of a student's life, it would be easier to
distinguish quite different approaches to learning at the two kinds of school. Some
moves are being made already away from inflexible grade stratification through the
introduction of open-plan primary schools in the A.C.T., and we envisage flexible
groupings of students at the secondary level later in this report. If these new
patterns become more securely estabI ished, at a later date it may be possible with
less disturbance to adapt the system further to incorporate more of the middle
school features.
3.24 We also considered retaining a two-tier structure, simply raising the age of
entry to high school. This would help overcome some of the problems of the present
age spread (from 12 to 19) within the high school, thus allowing more realistic accommodation to other variations, but only by shifting that problem to the primary
school. In view of the fact that the age of puberty is dropping, not increasing, this
seems to be a move in the wrong direction. If they had to choose, it appears that
many teachers would favour lowering rather than raising the age of entry to high
school. This proposal would also pose accommodation problems for the existing
primary school buildings. Accordingly, we have rejected this alternative.
Colleges
3.25 We have already spoken of a different kind of educational institution being
required which would provide new approaches to the problems we have discerned.
We regard as grave the situation of conflict produced by the complex and at times
contrary trends in society in which an increasing number of students at senior level
find themselves. Given our elimination of other alternatives, the question is whether
sufficient changes can be made within the existing structure, or whether a restructuring somewhat along the lines of the proposal immediately before us would afford
greater opportunities for meeting these needs.
3.26 The following difficulties and objections to the college proposal have been
brought to our attention:
(1) Any restructuring along the proposed lines is an infringement of the
professional autonomy and responsibility of teachers; changes of this kind
should not be imposed from above but arise from the decision of those concerned at the local school level.
This argument seems mistaken. Not only is there a proper concern of society at
large with the broad issues of educational provisions; there are some questions, of
which this is one, whose scope extends beyond the range of choice open to those
whose work lies within the limits of an established structure. Further,teachers in the
A.C.T. have, through their representatives on this committee, been intimately involved in all stages of our work.
(2) The Wyndham Committee itself considered and in its report rejected a similar
proposal in the following words': 'An institution such as the American junior
college, which had been commended by certain of our witnesses as a satisfactory link between secondary school and university, would, in our opinion, be
likely to lack the tradition and background of either'.
We have made clear the way in which our situation has come to differ from that envisaged in that report. It could equally well be contended that the time has come to
Wyndham Report. p. 68
34
adapt old traditions in the light of social change.
(3) Our schools have constantly to resist the danger of impersonalisation, of
processing students through a system of institutions which do not correspond
to genuinely human communities of interacting interests. To further fragment
these institutions could lead to even more rigid compartmentalising of the
students regimented through them.
This objection is serious and we are fully aware of these dangers. However, the
forces which need to be resisted are present in any event, and we do not regard it is
inevitable that breaking the present six-year high school in two will aggravate this
problem. On the contrary, structural change could make possible more flexible and
human educational facilities. The experience of students in the matriculation
colleges of Tasmania suggests that such a restructuring need not lead to alienating
regimentation.
(4) The two years students would attend a college is too short. This is insufficient
time for staff to get to know them as completely as they can in the six-year high
school and for students to relate meaningfully to their fellows and to the college
itself. Related to this, a break at the end of fourth form would mean that
teachers could not exercise pastoral care of students right through their six
years of secondary schooling.
The force of this objection is somewhat blunted by the instability of teaching staff
referred to earlier. Nevertheless, the disadvantages are real, and could only partly
be overcome by consultation between the staffs of colleges and their feeder high
schools and by the fact that a student would move into a college with many of his
high school friends. Hopefully, overlapping guidance services could partly mitigate
this problem.
(5) Junior students would lose the example, leadership and guidance of senior
students; arrangements whereby the latter take responsibility for activities and
for their younger fellows are beneficial to both juniors and seniors.
An objection so formulated assumes that the `example, leadership and guidance' of
senior students is predominantly beneficial. While older students can lead and guide
younger students towards adult patterns of behaviour, the results are not always
beneficial. There is some counter-balancing evidence to the effect that fourth form
students respond with a greater degree of responsibility, and grow accordingly in
stature, when they become the senior students in a four-year school. Eighty per cent
of Canberra students surveyed thought the college proposal would be an advantage
to students left in Forms 1 to 4, and the Tasmanian students, who have experience
of such a break, confirmed this. We might expect leadership to be encouraged at all
levels.
(6) The need to change schools at the end of Form 4 could deter some students
from proceeding to fifth and sixth forms, and thus discourage them from continuing their education.
We have already pointed out how some students might welcome such a decision
point. Further, the need to decide whether to proceed to a fifth and sixth form
college or to a technical college in order to continue their education, could well lead
to an upgrading of the esteem in which technical colleges are held. It would no
longer be necessary for a student to `drop out' from school in order to take a course
at a technical college. In general, if colleges offer an attractive and satisfying
35
program of study, we might expect those able students who at present leave school
dissatisfied to be more likely to continue.
(7) Teachers in colleges may be seen as having higher status and more pleasant
working conditions than teachers in high schools so that they form an elite
group to the detriment of the morale of the high school and the teaching profession as a whole. High school students might thus be deprived of the benefit of
being taught by effective teachers.
If the college proposal is adopted, we are agreed that positive steps must be taken to
ensure that the twin dangers of elitism developing in college staffs and of high
schools being deprived of effective teachers are guarded against. We will be discussing this matter in greater detail later (Chapter 7); we are agreed that both colleges
and high schools would have to be treated equally in determining the provision of
staff, and their conditions and salaries. However, such administrative provisions
cannot guarantee that elitism of the kind feared will not develop. To a considerable
extent, the matter lies in the attitudes of teachers themselves. If they ignore the fact
that all stages of education make full demands on the skill of teachers and regard
teaching positions in a college as superior posts, the resulting stratification can only
diminish the status of all. A professional approach to the educational task in the
high school could find it just as challenging and satisfying.
(8) The actual mechanism of a changeover to a college/high school system will
cause considerable dislocation to students and staff and in the general organisation of the schools involved.
The question here is whether the unavoidable disruption which a changeover would
involve is sufficiently grave to outweigh the benefits of doing so.
3.27 On the other hand, restructuring secondary education along the lines envisaged in the college proposal would have a number of advantages:
(1) It would greatly reduce the spread within a secondary school. At present the
age variation within a single school can be at least from 12 to 19. Students at
these different ages have different abilities, interests and needs. Within a single
institution, there is a natural tendency, difficult to resist, to treat all alike. This
means that the custodial relationships important at the lower levels at the present high school tend to persist at the senior levels, where they are inappropriate. The present statutory school leaving age is 15 years. Up until that
time schools have a clear custodial function. But beyond that time such a function would be no longer appropriate and difficult to justify. A break at the end
of the fourth form would mean that all college students would be freed from an
institution that has such a custodial function.
(2) Accordingly, the introduction of colleges could permit the development of
more responsibility for those students. Further, as we have remarked, students
in high school could be encouraged to develop more their own leadership
potentials. We continually ask that students exhibit more responsible
behaviour but are reluctant to pass down the decision-making power which can
permit real growth. The sorts of institutions we envisage could do this more
evenly over the secondary age span and more realistically and comprehensively
than could large widely-ranging schools.
(3) Introducing such a change could provide an occasion for involving the community more in discussion on the goals and methods of schooling. The development of new institutions with a new rationale could provide a stimulating set36
ting for more meaningful community participation.
(4) Colleges could make it easier for students both to leave and to return to formal
education. The increase in the period of uninterrupted schooling does not suit
all students at all periods. More variety should be possible.
(5) The consolidation of students within the one college could enable the development of programs which are suited to a variety of needs, motivations and
abilities and which recognise the personal and social problems of adolescents
preparing to be citizens. Thus the colleges would be able to provide a much
wider range of courses than is possible within the present six-year schools. The
choice from which students may select their own courses, however, will be
restricted if an external public examination continues to constrain the
curriculum.
(6) The concentration of all fifth and sixth form work into a college is more efficient and conserves scarce resources, both of staff and of facilities. A study
made of staffing requirements on the basis of merely amalgamating fifth and
sixth form students into a college revealed that such an arrangement could
provide more effective distribution of staff resources in that there could be
slight reduction in teaching loads or class sizes, or a broader range of courses
without incurring additional staffing costs. It further emerged that in a college
situation the preservation of subjects studied by only a few students is much
more likely. Another significant gain would be that classes which at present do
not receive the full number of teaching periods per week laid down in New
South Wales syllabus requirements, because the class is less than 12 in number,
could under the proposed arrangements receive the full amount of tuition. In
Forms Sand 6 at the four north side high schools alone, in 1972 there were 44
such small classes.
(7) A major change in educational structure would provide an opportunity to
develop a greater variety of methods and groupings within the school. Instead
of the predominance of class groupings, a variety of individual as well as small
and large group activities could be planned for particular purposes. Likewise,
such a change could be accompanied by more flexibility in staffing. It would
provide an opportunity for individual schools to be given the freedom to
develop, within an overall framework, a variety of staffing structures.
(8) Such a change would enable the development of viable secondary schools of a
more suitable size. In order that some breadth of choice in courses (including
those with low demand) should be available in the last year of a six-year school,
high schools have grown in size to well over 1,000 students. The evidence
suggests that these are too large and that organisations on a more human scale
are necessary. If the restructuring took place, it is educationally desirable that
the new institutions not go beyond 650, or 800 at the outside. The four-year
school as well as the two-year college could benefit greatly from this reduction
in size.
3.28 It could be argued that some (though not all) of these benefits could be
achieved without a major restructuring, and there is no doubt that conservatism has
its own appeal. On the other hand, we find ourselves in sympathy with the point put
to us that 'if changes are going to be made there is probably little point in making
only the minimal changes; given the opportunity of setting up new institutions and
the inevitable fall back towards a more traditional position, it would be well to set
37
out in the first place to take more than one step in the direction of growth in
maturity'.
3.29 In considering what kind of new educational institutions would be appropriate, we have become convinced that it would be altogether the wrong move to
try to establish narrowly-conceived matriculation colleges whose program would be
directed towards the preparation for university entry. The study we have made of
the character of our secondary school population makes it clear that to do this
would be to continue a situation inimical to the interests of a great bulk of the
students.
3.30 We find that the conception of colleges outlined in the original departmental
paper (see Chapter 1) anticipated many of the points which have emerged. For example, the emphasis on the provision of culturally and/or vocationally oriented
full-time and part-time courses showed an awareness of the need for a much more
broadly based curriculum. Again, the expectation there mentioned that college
students would accept responsibility for their own actions and develop a pattern of
self-discipline, and the emphasis on encouraging the full growth of the students' individuality, is in accord with conclusions we have reached ourselves. Further, the
provisions there envisaged for part-time study and the re-entry of students at an
adult age provide some means for closer community orientation of a college
program. It is clear that such provisions would necessitate a much freer and more
adult atmosphere, which would be in accord with the direction in which we have
come to believe moves should be made.
3.31 We have also sought opinions from those involved in the non-government
sector of education in Canberra concerning the impact of such a change upon their
schools. It was the opinion of Mr P. McKeown, Headmaster of Canberra Grammar
School, that the effect would be slight if independent schools were able to offer the
range of subject choices that the colleges provide, but some children would naturallу leave at the end of the fourth form to go to colleges where they could do subjects
and combinations of subjects that they could not get at their original schools. The
Right Reverend Monsignor J.P. Kelly, of the A.C.T. Catholic Education Office,
drew our attention to factors which do not apply to government schools, such as the
attitude of the religious congregations which staff their schools, the larger catchment required to yield adequate numbers, and questions of financing, staffing, and
administration. The principals of A.C.T. Catholic secondary schools were of the
view that `changes as fundamental as those under discussion must call for a certain
adaptation of Catholic schools while the implications of such changes would extend
to all A.C.T. Catholic secondary schools, the major impact would be on new
schools yet to be planned, rather than on existing ones'. In his submission, Monsignor Kelly expressed the view that `until the picture becomes clearer as to any
change in the A.C.T. education authority, and whether, and to what extent, colleges
are introduced in the government schools system, we clearly cannot make firm
proposals either as to what is desirable or what is possible, in the case of existing
schools or in the case of schools yet to be established'. The Association for Modern
Education, which is planning to undertake secondary teaching, did not make a submission. We believe that the effects of the college proposal upon non-government
schools are not sufficient to constitute grounds for not implementing it for the
public schools of the A.C.T.
3.32 What has emerged from our study is a vision of a community-centred college
38
in which students would move freely in and out of the wider community, thus overcoming the separation mentioned earlier of school from society, such as at present
prevails. To a lesser extent, we feel that this artificial barrier, and its consequent
isolation of school students from the full life of the community, needs to be overcome in appropriate ways at the high school level also, and we intend to make
recommendations concerning this later in this report.
3.33 In arriving at this view, we have been equally mindful of the needs of students
at the high school level. It is important that the high school should be freed from the
demands made upon senior students which often reflect right down through the
present six-year high school the structures appropriate to the present matriculationoriented Higher School Certificate. It is perhaps in the high school that the greatest
need for radical change lies.
3.34 As a result of our investigations, we are unanimously agreed that the needs of
secondary students would be better met by establishing separate educational institutions for the senior students. Therefore,we recommend that secondary schooling
in the А . С. Т. be restructured, in ways to be further specified, along the lines of fouryear high schools and colleges having at least those functions and purposes defined
below.
3.35 Among. the fundamental considerations which moved us was a sense of
urgency arising from our recognition of the social pressures exerted on today's
school-age child and of the fact that adolescents at different stages of development
have significantly different social, psychological and therefore educational needs.
Subsequent recommendations are about ways in which problems may be met.
Functions and purposes
3.36 In arriving at our recommendations, we have sought to define more closely
the functions and purposes of the proposed colleges. The following account is not
intended to be exhaustive and will be further specified later. But this account
provides the basic definition of what we have in mind, such that any substantial
departure from it would be inconsistent with what we are recommending, and could
lead to the failure of what we envisage.
(1) Colleges would offer a wide range of courses tailored to the differing interests
and abilities of students. In this way they would offer an opportunity to any
student who desires it to obtain a fully comprehensive education.
(2) The entry to colleges would be non-selective on academic grounds. In this we
endorse the contention of the original departmental paper that it was an essential element of the proposal that movement from the high school to the college
would be at least as easy as the existing movement from fourth to fifth form in
the six-year conprehensive high school. Colleges would embody the concept of
free education. Rejection, suspension or expulsion of any student would be subject to appeal. The entry of mature-age students should be permitted, and even
encouraged, from the outset.
(3) Each student in the college would be given the maximum opportunity for individual development and excellence, both academically and socially. To
achieve this, courses must be so devised as to extend fully students within their
chosen courses.
(4) Vocational guidance and pastoral care would be inherent to the structure of
these new institutions. To achieve this in an institution in which many students
39
will be involved for only two years, a close relationship will need to be main-
tained with the high schools from which students enter a college. To this end, in
addition to encouraging the pastoral responsibility of each teacher, colleges will
need to retain staff at a senior level with these guidance matters as their main
responsibility and who will be required to maintain close relationships with the
high schools from which students will come.
(5) Colleges would not be organised or staffed in such a way as to inhibit the offering of a sound education in high schools. The principle of equal regard for all
phases of formal education should be taken into account when considering the
relationships between colleges, high schools and primary schools. (We shall
later be recommending that secondary teachers' early training should be such
that the teachers gain an appreciation and knowledge of all three types of
school.)
(6) Colleges would become responsible for their own methods of assessment, appropriate to the needs of their students and the different kinds of courses they
are pursuing. Accordingly, the external-examination-oriented nature of secondary education should be phased out as quickly as is practicable. So long as external examinations and tertiary entrance requirements dominate the
educational planning of high schools and colleges, the possibilities for flexibility and diversity in curricula will be severely restricted. The implications of this
are examined later (Chapter 5).
(7) It is fundamental that both schools and colleges be encouraged to assume a
greater degree of autonomy than at present to devise, within broad, accepted
educational objectives, their own particular goals, structures and curricula. In
achieving such autonomy, teachers, schools and colleges will need the
assistance of an expert Curriculum Advisory Board, to be constituted on a permanent basis and with some full-time members, to help them establish, evaluate
and amend curricula designed to attain these broadly specified objectives.
(8) The accent in colleges would be on freedom, self-development, self-motivation,
self-discipline, and student management of student affairs. With students encouraged in this way to accept the responsibility of their own actions, the
custodial functions of such an institution would be kept to a minimum. On the
other hand, while colleges would thus facilitate transition towards tertiary
education and the working world, they must not be modelled on universities.
They would need to develop approaches to learning, policies of government,
ethos and mores of their own, suited to the needs and age of their students.
(9) In the making of arrangements and in the content of curricula, colleges would
aim at a closer integration with the life and work of the community as a whole.
Through regular contact with both the world of work and the range of social institutions operating in the community, students would be encouraged to gain
an understanding of the processes and problems of their society.
(10) Teacher training recognised by the profession would be a prerequisite for all
teaching staff in colleges and high schools. Procedures will have to be devised
whereby exceptional cases can be dealt with and recognised by the profession.
(I I) Colleges should be planned for a maximum of 800 full-time students with an
optimum of 650. For staffing purposes, class sizes should be calculated in accordance with the recommendations of the Scott Committee.'
1 Report of N.S.W. Committee appointed to investigate and advise on class size ond teaching loads in government secondary schools in N.S. W.
(Chairman: Sir Waiter Scott) (Sydney, 1969).
40
It is colleges so conceived whose establishment we are recommending.
3.37 Clearly, many of these points of definition have implications which extend
into the areas of curricula, staffing, government, organisation and the provision of
facilities at both the high school and the college level. No doubt, many of the details
consequent upon our proposals will need to be worked out in the light of experience; others fall within the competence of those who have special expertise in
the particular areas. Nevertheless, we believe that we would be remiss in investigating the matters before us if we do not explore some of the ramifications of
our proposals. To this task we turn in the chapters following.
3.38 One outcome we expect to follow from both colleges and high schools exercising their autonomy is that a measure of diversity will develop amongst them,
both in details of curricula and of internal organisation. While encouraging this
diversity, without loss of comprehensiveness, we see a consequence of it being that
students should have some freedom of choice concerning where they enrol.
Already, students are not completely restricted to attending the high school in the
area where they live. With greater diversity emerging, we believe that further relaxation of catchment areas will be necessary.
3.39 We have mentioned how the provision for part-time study in the original
departmental proposal provides one means for closer community orientation of a
college program. One striking finding of the student survey was the strength of their
desire for greater integration of work and study; 47 per cent of Canberra students
agreed that there should be opportunity to work and study part-time at a normal
school, while 42 per cent said they would prefer to be doing that at the present time.
In order to identify the sources of this preference, we requested further analysis of
the responses. It emerged that the preference is strongest among those from nonprofessional families and those lower in the academic streams. It is strongest among
those who expect to enter manual or the lowest level of white-collar occupations,
whilst 37 per cent of those who expect to enter the upper professional group of occupations said they wished they were working part-time. It is clear that refusal to
allow such a possibility would be to act against the expressed wishes of those in the
`lower' classes of socio-economic status.
3.40 It is probable that one important factor leading students to seek this opportunity is the desire for greater financial independence from their parents. With an
increasing proportion of students caught in the conflict between earlier maturity
and prolonged dependence, the possibility of part-time work and study offers a
tempting way of reconciling these opposed pressures.
3.41 On the other hand, we recognise both administrative and educational difficulties associated with the entry of part-time students within the day-time functioning of a college. Accordingly, we have sought to ind out whether in fact there
would be large numbers of students seeking to enrol part-time if they were permitted to do so. It appeared to us that the pattern of employment in Canberra
would offer few opportunities at present for part-time work to young persons still
studying at this level. Council members of the A.C.T. Employers' Federation interviewed agreed with this impression. Unfortunately, repeated written requests to the
Department of Labour and National Service for information on this matter failed
to elicit a reply.
3.42 Reviewing these considerations, the majority of this Committee came to the
opinion that in the early years of college operation the number of students seeking
41
part-time enrolment is not likely to be so large as to cause serious disruption of the
new programs. Some members of the Committee strongly maintain that colleges
should operate for some time to achieve the function and purposes listed above
before considering the admittance of part-time students. The majority, however,
believing that limitations on opportunities for part-time work and study will be imposed by existing employment conditions, see the opportunity for such enrolments
as one important way of expressing the closer integration with the community we
seek. It became clear to us that under the more flexible course arrangements we envisage there could well be difficulty in drawing a non-arbitrary line betweén fulland part-time students.
3.43 Despite this difference of opinion, we have agreed that at least some colleges
should admit part-time students, although the extent to which this happens will
have to be judged by those responsible for the policy-making of the colleges, a function we later recommend should be exercised by councils. Therefore. we recommend
that in principle the enrolment of part-time students should be permitted from the outset. but the final decision should be made by the college council.
3.44 In connection with these considerations, it became clear that the daily
program at a college needs to be quite flexible, and the possibility of the college
opening from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. was explored, on the understanding that the time
span of a teacher's attendance, as well as his teaching load, would have to fall
within defined and reasonable limits. We consider that the administrative difficulties involved in such an arrangement are not insurmountable, and it could well
be possible. and is desirable, that the college program be `opened-up in this way. It
is clear that our conception of the wide range of courses a college might offer will
prove illusory if the overall timetable only admits thirty possible teaching hours a
week.
3.45 If the hours of operation of a college are extended in this way the present
arrangements for adults to return for further secondary education at an evening
college will be called in question. It should not be presumed that the present evening
colleges will continue; they might well be absorbed into the new colleges. The issues
raised by this prospect will need to be resolved through consultation between the
education authority and the local college councils.
3.46 We have also considered the relation of the new colleges to the existing
technical college. We received submissions from its representatives and have held
discussions with the Canberra Technical College Advisory Council. We see
technical colleges as basically post-secondary institutions, with largely vocationallyoriented objectives, which satisfy some but not all of the features we envisage for
the new colleges. We believe that in the interests of both institutions they should not
be functionally associated at the outset by being located on adjacent sites. Once the
new colleges are established, students leaving high school will be confronted with a
range of colleges with different emphases but of equal esteem from which they can
choose that offering courses most suited to their interests. The question of closer
relationship between some of the functions of a college and of technical colleges
should be further considered in the future. It is possible that a college will seek to establish liaison with a technical college for the use of specialised courses or facilities,
but that would be a matter for the college.
3.47 We have given considerable thought to finding a suitable name for the
proposed colleges. The word `college' itself is a generic term, covering technical
42
colleges, colleges of advanced education, teachers' colleges, etc. as well as these new
institutions. On the other hand, we believe that the term 'senior high school',
which has been suggested to us, is inappropriate; it too readily suggests that the
'junior high school' would mimic at a lower level its 'senior' counterpart. We
believe that some specifying adjective is necessary. Some of us favoured the name
'secondary colleges', others 'community college'. We recognise that the term
'secondary college' might carry implications of a custodial responsibility; on the
other hand, 'community college' might suggest a stage of development in
relationship with the community which would be the result of evolution rather than
a characteristic which we could hope to establish in the earliest years of their
development. In the light of these considerations, we have decided to recommend
that the term 'secondary colleges' should be used when general references are be
ing made, but that this adjective not appear in an individual name.
3.48 We recommend that these colleges be named generically as 'secondary
colleges', but that each be known by its individual name together with the word
'college', e.g. 'Dickson College'.
Implementation
3.49 We have been informed that the earliest date at which new college buildings
could become available for occupation, and the conversion of any existing building
could be completed, would be at the beginning of 1976. This date has therefore
become the focus of our deliberations concerning implementation. We have given
considerable attention to the question of whether the restructuring we are
recommending should be applied over the whole of the existing secondary school
system in the A.C.T., and have decided to recommend that it should, although we
anticipate that further developments in the future, emanating from forward planning, from experience gained as a result of the kind of restructuring we are
recommending, and from the exercise of local autonomy, would fruitfully introduce
greater diversity in the nature of high schools and colleges.
3.50 At this stage, however, we are convinced that appropriate curriculum
programs should be devised before any college opens. Likewise, removing the upper
two years from the present high schools calls for rethinking the curriculum suitable
for a four-year self-contained high school. At the same time, we have already expressed our strong commitment to the view that it is fundamental that both schools
and colleges be encouraged to assume a greater degree of autonomy to devise their
own educational aims and structures. It follows from these two points that certain
of the staff will need to be appointed well in advance of the opening of a college to
participate in preliminary planning. So that this can be achieved, and with the opening of new colleges in 1976 in mind, we recommend that colleges whose functions and
purposes include at least those defined above (in para. 3.36) be introduced in both the
new satellite towns and the inner areas of Canberra.
3.51 In considering the timing of implementation, we have been conscious of the
need to allow sufficient time for adequate planning as well as accepting the point
made to us by the authors of the student survey report that 'the seriousness of the
current and probably increasing alienation of youth gives some urgency to the implementation of policies which aim at a closer integration of educational institutions with the life and work of the community as a whole'. Further, the deferment of implementation beyond 1976 would require the building for that year of the
43
first stage of one six-form high school and the second stage of another. Therefore,
we recommend that new college buildings be constructed in both the Widen Valley and
Belconnen along the lines of the design brief discussed with officers of the Department
of Education and Science and the National Capital Development Commission, to be
ready for occupation before the beginning of 1976.
3.52 In making this recommendation, we wish to make it clear that we do not
regard that design brief as providing a blueprint which should be followed closely in
the development of all future college buildings. As we have placed emphasis upon
encouraging the autonomy of schools and colleges, so we hope that there would
emerge differences of design, embodying different approaches to the educational
task relevant at this level.
3.53 Concerning the conversion of existing schools in inner Canberra there are a
number of difficulties which merit special consideration. We adjourn our detailed
discussion of them, and our recommendations to meet them, until Chapter 9.
3.54 We believe that an important element in introducing educational innovation
is that provision be made for independent evaluation of the new system once it has
become established. The degree to which the actual provisions succeed in implementing the original vision, the degree to which elements in the planning have
proved to be inappropriate, the degree to which further adaptation is required,
must all be examined critically by those who do not have a vested interest in the
success of the new venture. For this reason, we recommend that the A.C. T. Education
Authority commission an independent evaluation of the restructuring of secondary
education in the A.C.T. before 1981.
3.55 We conclude this chapter by emphasising again how the problems we have
tried to meet are deeply embedded in the changing structure of our society. We
strongly believe that if our recommendations are accepted and put into practice our
system of schools will provide more opportunities for students to resolve constructively the conflict of needs in which they ind themselves. However, precisely
because this tension is rooted in developments outside the school system, no
amount of restructuring of that system can serve as a solution of these problems.
Unduly high expectations can lead to disillusion and frustration.
44
CHAPTER 4
Curricula
4.1 We have indicated how the change in the character of the student population
in the upper years of secondary schooling has meant that many are now pursuing
courses inappropriate to them. It became clear to us that the structural changes we
have proposed require a corresponding review of the curricula to be offered in both
high schools and colleges. We do not here presume to attempt the complex and
specialised task of detailed curriculum construction; we simply attempt to articulate
our conception of the lines along which curriculum development should proceed.
4.2 We recognise that Western society has during this century come to some
agreement on the areas of knowledge with which youth must have at least a nodding acquaintance before it can be considered educated. We have no particular
quarrel with this consensus, although it is worth emphasising that it is not fi хеd but
ephemeral. Whatever curriculum is adopted, it must be so designed that amendment is constantly considered, both in method of presentation and in content.
4.3 Another general consideration foremost in our minds is that, hitherto, the
aims and methods of secondary education, especially at the senior level, have not
markedly changed since the days when the secondary ś chool was a selective
organisation, catering only for those already motivated towards the academic subjects offered. Despite lip-service to the ideals of universal education, reforms have
not taken sufficient account of the fact that a large number of adolescents, by
reason of their out-of-school environment and the future they envisage, see little or
no relevance in much of the material presented to them, as our survey has shown,
and so are not motivated to learn and enjoy learning. Our basic premise is therefore
that the student must be self-motivated; he or she must want to learn. In fact, of
course, all children are learning from the time they are born (or even before); and
'education', at bottom, is nothing more nor less than the harnessing of this innate,
and irresistible, drive to personally and socially valuable ends.
Objectives
4:4 We have found, and have been presented with, several unexceptionable
specifications of the objectives that underlie an approach to secondary schooling;
but it seems almost impossible to specify them in a way that is both brief and
genuinely informative. In this dilemma, we can best illuminate our objectives by
asking two key questions, and letting the objectives emerge from the answers.
4.5 Firstly,what sorts of qualities would we like young people to have when they
finish their school education? Prominent among them we include:
* a sense of personal integrity and identity;
* a sense of concern for people and ideas, and a willingness to become committed;
* an understanding of others, as individuals and as groups, a recognition of their
rights and an acceptance of the ways their beliefs, customs, and prejudices
differ from their own;
45
*
•
a critical and informed awareness that leads them to question and form their
own judgments about `facts', arguments, and dogma, irrespective of who
presents them, and that leads them to avoid blindly accepting or wilfully imposing unreasoned authority;
an eagerness to continue to learn and gain new understanding that will last
them through Jife.
4.6 An individual's personal and social values are developed and shaped by influences from a variety of sources: family, peer groups, schools, church, clubs, communication and entertainment media, etc. The school has always played an important role in this process, more explicit and recognised at some times that at others.
Its influence is not channelled through formal teaching units; rather, it pervades all
learning situations and extra-curricular school activities in the most subtle manner,
and reflects, above all, the attitudes and examples of individual teachers. We believe
that society today requires that schools act, more consciously and deliberately, to
supplement (or even to counteract) the influences of other groups in this area of
education.
4.7 Secondly, what sorts of knowledge, skills and abilitiés do we want our schoolleavers to have? The most important, in our view, include:
* a realistic working knowledge and understanding of their society and how it
operates, and of the natural world and man's place in it;
* the ability (and willingness) to think clearly, developed through an appreciation
of the methods and tools of analysis and an ability to recognise relevant facts;
• the knowledge that information must be sought, that it cannot all be taught,
and the ability to locate it for oneself;
• the ability and confidence to make decisions in a self-reliant manner;
* an ability to communicate, both in the sense of marshalling thoughts and expressing them clearly, and in the sense of recognising, expressing, and responding to emotions;
• the knowledge, skills, and abilities required to respond positively to later
challenges by continued purposeful learning, by the acquisition of new skills,
etc.;
* the skills and abilities, social as well as private, needed to live and work with
others;
* knowledge of self, of strengths and weaknesses, potentials and limitations, and
an awareness of the irrational elements in human behaviour;
* an awareness of cultural heritage sufficient to provide the basis both for individual response and enjoyment and for some understanding of creative activity and of genius.
4.8 We have thus discerned certain broad, accepted educational goals, and have
attempted to define particular objectives to meet them. In the course of our discussions, it has become clear that we envisage high schools and colleges providing
students with a far more general preparation to take their place in society than has
hitherto been the case. There should be a major emphasis on showing students how
to derive, sift and use information; and how to tackle the solution of personal and
social problems. There should also be an emphasis on searching for the key ideas
which underlie all areas of human knowledge, and how they are inter-related.
46
Curriculum structures
Principles
4.9 How, then, are we to forward these objectives within a curricular framework?
4.10 We should first emphasise that in a system whose schools are largely
autonomous there can be no attempt to prescribe a curriculum, let alone lay down
detailed syllabus requirements. What can be developed is a broad conceptual
framework within which each school and college may develop its own particular
educational programs and methods of meeting these objectives we have stated.
4.1 t Such a framework may be stated as a series of points:
(a) The courses of study must not only relate to the life of the community and of
the individual, but must also be seen to be relevant by the student. Therefore,
school and college must both be closely integrated into the community; the
school must go out into the community in the course of its studies, and conversely the community must be brought into the life and work of the school.
We are very mindful of the dissatisfaction and alienation shown by students in the
recent survey, which we see as partly arising from neglect of this point; and we are
mindful of their interests. Of over-riding influence at the college level are such
pressing, though usually unexpressed, demands as: 'how do we cope with life?' and
'how do we solve our problems?' From one point of view we have the needs of
society; from another, the needs and interests of the student. We do not see the two
in conflict; what we must try to do is maintain our society by rigorously pursuing an
educational program based on the needs of the student, who has to function in our
society.
(b) For the same reason, particular subjects should not be imposed on students.
The art of the teacher lies in developing in the student a realisation that it is
desirable that he shall pursue a study because of its significance, that is, that he
shall be self-motivated to study. Various bodies have submitted to us that certain subjects should be core and compulsory subjects. For the reasons given, we
cannot agree with this.
We cannot overemphasise that we are now dealing with an entire student population, whose background, expectations, and motivations vary widely; and all of
whom must be catered for.
(c) This does not, in our view, lead to the conclusion that students may study only
what interests them — the so-called 'activities' curriculum. But the curriculum
must start with their known interests, and by careful guidance and insinuation
(the word is not used pejoratively) broaden those interests so as to give the opportunity to range widely, and as deeply as the capacity of each student allows,
in the areas of value to the objectives outlined above.
(d) Those concerned with devising programs of study will need to take account of
what is known of the learning process and of the differences between the
various developmental stages and kinds of learning. Content has to be chosen
and so offered as to encourage the transference of the skills and insights learnt
to new situations and experiences. In a complex and changing society, students
need to learn how best to learn and to enjoy learning.
(e) Although we see a need for close liaison between the high schools and the
colleges, the courses of study devised for the high schools should be complete in
themselves, and not chosen merely in preparation for college study.
A major difference in approach between high school and college is that in the high
47
school there should be an emphasis on acquiring basic abilities. During the ages 12
to 16, a young person's basic capacities are still developing. He still has to become
competent in exercising his capacity for fully symbolic and abstract representation
of what has been experienced and for devising strategies for processing information.
In high schools, therefore, the approach must be to encourage this development. By
the time a student proceeds to a college these basic operations should have been
learnt. What is now required is increasing competence and confidence in applying
them in new situations and in exploring the ever widening circle of possibilities for
understanding and for constructively controlling his interaction with his environment. Thus in colleges the emphasis should be more on gaining experience in a wide
range of activities both practical and theoretical.
Outline of curriculum framework
The high school
4.12 We see the structuring of the curriculum of the high school against a
background of the need to broaden the range of studies and introduce a flexibility
and a diversity of curricula, linked to the life and work of the general community.
The curriculum at this level must provide for all students stimulus to develop in
three broad, overlapping educational dimensions: the development and refinement
of cognitive skills, the maturing of socialisation, and the acquisition of competence
in creative, productive and recreational pursuits.
4.13 We do not see any one of these dimensions as the preserve of any particular
grouping of abilities; on the contrary, every student needs to be extended to his individual maximum development in each dimension, having regard to his own inherent capacities. How students will, learn will be conditioned by their needs, interests and abilities; some students (and certainly not always the same students) will
explore one particular field at greater depth than will others. But all need at this
developmental stage to acquire the wide range of concepts, the social understanding, and the practical skills in terms of which they can organise, comprehend, and
respond constructively to their experience.
4.14 To meet these criteria, we see the need for a certain basic core curriculum of
studies, of which the contents of those subjects generally known as English,
mathematics, science and the social sciences are essential constituents. This core of
the curriculum should be pursued by all students, and be associated with a wide
range of optional courses, some at least of which are deliberately designed to cater
for the curiosity and interest developed during core studies. We believe that the
mosi successful approach to this core curriculum is a problem-centred, sociallyoriented one. Problems posed in the core curriculum should be such as to draw the
student on to deeper or wider studies in particular areas: we would call the core
studies interdisciplinary were it not that we believe the core curriculum would be
best approached in a way that is not subject-centred. The problems and projects of
the core should be closely related to the students' own experience: health, the environment, the life and work of the community, personal relationships and the like
are areas in which core problems are likely to originate. In framing such core
problems, we suggest that teachers should feel free to call on the consultative services of such agents as sociologists, social workers, and the police force.
4.15 Notwithstanding our belief in the greater potential of a problem-centred core
of related studies, we recognise that some curriculum planners may feel a need to
48
precede and accompany a problem-centred interdisciplinary approach by some introduction to and development of basic skills and concepts in the individual disciplines of the core curriculum. So long as the objective of intrinsic motivation is
not overridden, and so long as teachers remain acutely sensitive to the requirements
and reactions of their students, we see no contradiction between this concept and
our own. In any case, in line with our recommendations on the autonomy which
each school should exercise, we recognise that groups of teachers in some schools
may wish to structure their school's curriculum in ways different from those which
we are recommending.
4.16 We see the core and peripheral activities being available at varying depths
and levels to cater for the wide interest and ability range of all students. Some
studies there must be that are not deliberately peripheral to the core studies: music
and the arts, for example; some crafts; physical well-being (including
sport); comparative studies of religion. Some of these we can visualise as growing
from well-designed core problems; but they offer opportunities for creativity per se,
and for communal activity. We see them, therefore, as distinct from other corestimulated studies. Creativity is to be encouraged at all times; but we would suggest
that its bounds be very widely set; one child will get creative satisfaction from painting a picture, another from painting a garage; one will grow a flower, another write
a poem about it.
4.17 The options should be offered, along with the core, from the very beginning
of high school. It is almost certain that most children will come up from primary
school with a developed interest in certain special areas; and this interest must be
aught, preserved, and fostered.
4.18 We do not envisage all these individual study options as being presented in
tidy, year-long packets. Some may occupy only a week; some may last four years.
Some will be pre-planned; others will arise spontaneously in response to interest
aroused during a core or other study. At all times, each child will be extended to the
limits of his ability and interest. We see these studies, core or option, as being largely individual studies. There will of course be a limit to the number of students that a
teacher will work with at any one time, but it is envisaged that additional classes
would be formed for popular options as far as possible.
4.19 An example will serve to illustrate the way in which peripheral subject studies
grow from a problem-centred core. A core study on Indonesia, for example, could
quite readily be shaped, by good teaching, and with adequate resources, so that the
student realises for himself the advantage of knowing something of the language;
and that in turn can lead to the study of other languages, or of the development of
language, or of language as a factor in international understanding, and so on. In
another direction, interest could be aroused in world trade and hence in
macroeconomics; in yet another, the mineral resources of Indonesia could introduce the student to the study of economic geology and thence to geology as a
science. Further work could involve developing an interest in the major features of
Indonesian culture, beginning with the dance and leading to studies of the arts in
various forms, and also to the history of Indonesian culture, and eventually to a
critical and comparative study of religion.
4.20 We have received submissions pressing the claims of various subjects in relation to curriculum construction: classical and modern languages, mathematics,
computing, history, Aboriginal studies, Asian studies, health, music, religion.
49
While we are in agreement with a good deal of the general sentiments contained in
these submissions, we find many of the detailed recommendations made to us difficult to accept because of their assumption of a subject-centred curriculum.
4.21 Some of the shifts in emphasis urged upon us can easily and profitably be accommodated. We deliberately chose as our example of a core study one of our
Asian neighbours because we are conscious of the shortcomings in the present
courses on Asian languages and cultures highlighted in the Auchmuty Report on
these matters.' As the previous Minister for Education and Science has
acknowledged, similar inadequacies exist in the teaching of topics relating to
Australian Aborigines and the peoples of Papua New Guinea. In coming to a
mature understanding of Australian society, students should develop an appreciation not only of European culture, but also of traditional Aboriginal culture, with
its complex and sophisticated social organisation, and those of the neighbouring
peoples of our region. Through all such avenues of study, students would develop a
historical perspective, so as to achieve a richer understanding of the possibilities of
human existence and of how our society has come to be as it is now.
4.22 The submission made to us that all students at secondary level should be
taught a foreign language for at least one year we reject on the ground that no subject should be imposed on all students irrespective of their interests, motivation and
abilities. Nevertheless, we believe that learning a foreign language can be a significant factor in overcoming cultural isolationism, and have suggested one of the
many ways of stimulating the desire to learn another language. We agree that the
emphasis in the teaching of modern languages should be on the audiolingual
method, rather than the traditional grammar-based approach, and we regard with
sympathy, and refer for further consideration, the submission that children at
primary level should be introduced to a language, European or Asian, other than
English. Special provisions will have to be made for those for whom English is a second language.
4.23 The references above to the study of religion touch on an issue which has exercised us. In our thinking on whether religious education should be included
within the curriculum, and if so how, we took note of a number of submissions, including one from the Joint Commission for Church Development ( А.С.Т.) and one
from the Humanist Society of Canberra. Clearly, there is a part to be played in the
education of every child by consideration of the spiritual, moral, and ethical basis
of human existence; but it is equally clear to us that to present such matters as a
separate `subject' is to rob them of most of their significance. We should prefer,
therefore, that 'religious' studies, both historical and critical on the one hand, and
ethical and social on the other, be integrated into the problem-centred core
curriculum. A rounded education should include an understanding of various
current and past religions and their connections with the development of human
society, as well as of anti-religious movements and their effects. To do this effectivelу, some members of the staff will need to have undergone specialised training (for
which the proposed courses at the Australian National University may offer a
suitable preparation), though we believe it to be undesirable that they become
religious specialists within the school. In other words, we believe that religion and
religious conceptions, in one form or another, pervade the history, laws and attitudes of societies and many world views, and we would therefore eschew any
Con'monweikh Advisory Committee on the Teaching of Atiat' Languages and Collura in Australia, Report (Canberra 1970).
50
structuring, whether of curriculum or of staff, that would give rise even to the suspicion of 'separateness'.
4.24 As for the inculcation of particular religious doctrines, we should definitely
prefer not to have such an approach included in the school curriculum. Extracurricular tuition could be arranged for such students as require instruction in a
particular set of dogmas.
4.25 An area lying a little apart from the general course of activities is the pursuance of physical well-being. 'A healthy mind in healthy body' may be an outmoded concept, but the promotion of health and fitness is an essential part of the
educational process in its own right. We believe that all students, unless medically
exempted, should be required to spend some time on 'fitness activities' and be
taught skills in some forms of physical recreation. Over and above this, we expect
that there will be general encouragement for the promotion of physical well-being
and sporting activities, though we do not support excessive emphasis on competitive sport and sporting prowess.
4.26 In the high school, then, we believe that all students should follow a core
curriculum for the first few years, at least, to include such matters as health, community involvement, and personal relationships, together with a problem-centred,
socially-oriented approach which involves the areas basic to our society: English,
mathematics, science, and the social sciences. As well as this there would be many
study options, which would include French, Latin, music and so on; the study of
English, mathematics, science and the social sciences in greater depth; and a range
of activities in the craft area, as well as musical and cultural activities. All these options should relate to the compulsory core. Material to be studied would largely be
pre-determined but there would be a problem-centred approach to the study of it.
The core and the options should also be available at varying depths or levels to
cater for the wide ability range; some courses would be quite academic, while others
would be less intellectually demanding. A particular effort should be made to
develop students' verbal skills, which it would appear we have largely failed to
develop so far.
4.27 We recommend that the high school curriculum be complete in itself, and be
built around a problem-centred core that emphasises the interaction of student, school
and society. The basic skills should be essential elements of this core, and a wide range
of options should be offered peripheral to the core studies.
4.28 We recommend that critical and comparative studies of religion be integrated
into the core curriculum, but that dogmatic or sectarian religion not be offered at high
school, except on demand as an extra-curricular activity.
The college
4.29 In the college, the emphasis shifts to some extent; though the need to realise
the interdependence of aspects of learning which brought us to recommend a
problem-centred approach to the high school curriculum remains, there is a greater
need to cater for the more specialised interests that engage the attention of the older
student. But in recognising this, we are mindful of the changed constitution of the
group that remains at college for the later years: we must take into account not only
the need for preparation for tertiary education, but also the large area comprehended in the strongly affirmative answer to the query about 'more emphasis on
useful subjects' in our student surveys, and perhaps still more importantly the areas
in which society directly impinges on the subject.
51
4.30 Let us say at once that we do not envisage the college's pre-empting or
duplicating the function of the technical college: we see it as no part of the secondary college's role to train students for particular careers. The technical college is
and remains the proper vehicle for such education.
4.31 The particular virtue of the secondary college is that it can offer to the student a very wide range of options, both in depth from the rigorous to the comparatively superficial, and in breadth from the academic to the cultural or creative.
We believe that within this broad disciplinary framework there must necessarily be
provision also for experience of the interaction between disciplines and their interrelationships in many of the practical problems of life.
4.32. Therefore we suggest that the problem-centred approach be not abandoned
at the college level, though it will necessarily be attenuated as students' individual
interests develop. It is, however, no less necessary than at high school to
demonstrate the relevance of studies to life.
4.33 One common area that we feel is necessary to emphasise is the problem of
communication both as self-expression and as comprehension — both writing and
reading, both speaking and listening. Paradoxically, the more ubiquitous become
the media of communication the more is meaningful communication hindered by
jargon, by special pleading and by outright distortion. It rests squarely with the
schools and colleges to reverse this trend. Only they can move to ensure that the
sciences may commune with the humanities, the artisan with the artist, and the
'common man' with all.
4.34 A second neglected area about which we feel some concern is that of the
problems of living, outside the normal academic or vocational areas. We believe
that students should know, for instance, something of the law as it affects them;
their rights and duties on approaching adulthood; problems of personal, community and national finance; industrial relations; personal and community health; and
so on. And we point out that this is a point where college and community interact,
where members of the community can come into the college and members of the
college can go out into the community to their mutual benefit.
4.35 This is only one of the ways in which curriculum can serve to bring college
and community closer together. Since the college has no custodial function — that
is, since its students are all above the legal 'school-leaving' age and hence are present of their own volition — there is no reason in principle why the college should
be bound to the `school day'. This freedom offers the opportunity for interaction at
all times and at all levels with the community in which it is placed. This in its turn
suggests the possibility of developing a wide range of educational, cultural, and
recreational facilities of which the members of the college are the focus but not the
sole participants.
4.36 We do not believe that any 'subject' or course within the college should be
compulsory. Of course, some studies may be prescribed as prerequisites for those
intending to pursue particular tertiary studies: but no student should be forced by
college rules to undertake a particular course — though he may be strongly encouraged to do so. And in that connection we should expect students themselves to
play some part in deciding what courses are offered, beyond the passive choice of
acceptance or rejection.
4.37 With this widening of the range of courses available, we also see the possibility of students beginning the study of subjects they had not previously undertaken. It
52
should be possible for students to enrol in intensive language courses which assume
no prior knowledge of that language. We also endorse the submission that courses
in computing should be available, both as a study in its own right and as offering
service facilities for other studies. Likewise, introductory courses in the social
sciences and more specialised cultural studies should be available.
4.38 Religion in the college context we see as rather differently oriented from high
school religious education. The integration of religious matter — in the broad
sense — into the curriculum we see as continuing; and at this level a knowledge of
religious doctrine is necessary to an understanding of, say, social history. But
another factor is added. The age of young manhood or womanhood is an age of
questing as well as questioning: the young adult is trying to work out for himself a
personal philosophy on which to base his life, and in the course of such a quest he
will frequently scrutinise religious beliefs as a possible source of values and a world
view. If we are trying to develop the college as mentor in the problems of adult life,
we can by no means neglect this fact. Even though — as is clearly the case —
religion does not offer a set of values acceptable to everyone, the opportunity must
be made for discussion and scrutiny of what it does have to offer.
4.39 We also expect that students, especially at college but also at high school,
would enrich their educational experience by banding themselves together into
associations to pursue mutual interests. A Film society, a religious club, a judo club,
or one of a host of possible others, might well provide the means for a student to
meet with others who share his enthusiasm and to follow up his interest. Subject to
the over-all smooth running of a college, students in associations such as these
should be able to invite visiting speakers to talk with them.
4.40 We recommend that the college curriculum be so structured as to emphasise the
inter-relationship of student and community, of study and experience, and between disciplines.
4.41 We recommend that ways be sought to promote interaction between college and
community.
4.42 We recommend that no course of study shall be prescribed as compulsory for all
college students.
Curriculum Advisory Board
4.43 We have recommended that each school and college be given a large measure
of autonomy in fashioning their own curricula. But it would be unreasonable to expect that each, or indeed any, school would contain within itself all the necessary
expertise and experience for so doing. We therefore recommend the establishment
within the A.C.T. Education Authority, or, if that body is not established soon
enough, within the Department of Education as the interim authority, of a
Curriculum Advisory Board with expert and partly full-time membership, to help
teachers and schools establish, evaluate and where necessary amend new
curriculum materials and methods of presentation, and to act as the basis for the
fulfilment of the aims which have been established by the schools. This board
should have an advisory and critical but not an executive function — that is, we do
not intend that it impose ideas and methods on schools or colleges.
4.44 Clearly, a relatively small authority such as the A.C.T. will not be able to afford to design all of its curriculum materials de novo; materials and ideas will have
to be imported and bought. One of the main functions of the board will be to
53
evaluate resource materials and curriculum designs and to help adapt them to the
needs of individual schools and colleges. We see the board also as the body which
will:
# evaluate the success of curricula and methods in schools;
s advise, on request, on any improvements;
• research new ideas and encourage innovation in collaboration with schools and
colleges;
* advise on teacher in-service training in the curriculum field.
It is important, in order to ensure that the board has freedom to fulfil these functions, that it not be connected with whatever procedures are established for the
assessment of teachers in connection with promotion and progression.
4.45 The setting-up of the Curriculum Advisory Board is a matter of some urgency: it cannot wait upon the conversion of the present schools to new curricula,
but must have a considerable body of knowledge and experience ready in advance.
If the first colleges are to open in 1976, the board must be functioning by 1974. This
timetable will mean that the part-time membership of the board that we are about
to propose will not all be available from the beginning, but an interim membership
can overcome that difficulty.
4.46 We suggest as a numerical constitution for the Curriculum Advisory Board
once it is fully established:
(Full-time) 5 senior education officers, specialists in curricula and with considerable
teaching experience, employed by the Authority;
(Part-time) 2 Representatives of the School of Teacher Education at the Canberra
College of Advanced Education;
2 teachers;
1 high school principal;
1 college principal;
1 representative of the Department of Education (Curriculum Development Branch).
We envisage that, as the A.C.T. population grows, more than five full-time
curriculum specialists may need to be employed. Indeed, we believe that the
Authority should set up a research branch which would be concerned with a
number of planning and evaluative matters, including curricula. But not all the
curriculum specialists need be members of this board. We envisage that the board
will set up working groups which will involve experienced teachers to investigate
particular areas of curriculum development and to promote the dissemination and
interchange of ideas.
4.47 In proposing the above composition, we have deliberately kept within the
limits covered by secondary education, but clearly, either the scope of the board
will have to be broadened, or another similar board will have to be set up to deal
with similar issues relating to the primary sector.
4.48 We recommend that a Curriculum Advisory Board, constituted along the lines
indicated above, be appointed not later than early 1974. to form part of the Education
Authority. and to scrutinise, evaluate and adapt curriculum material, to advise schools
and colleges on curricular processes and implementation, and to advise on in-service
training in the curriculum field.
4.49 We recommend that all submissions received pertaining to matters of
curriculum construction be referred to the Curriculum Advisory Board for further
study.
54
Guidance
4.50 Adequate guidance needs to be a continuing process whereby students are
gradually assisted in decision-making, in adjustment to the school situation, and
towards life in general. At best it ought not to be seen as an aid to overcome crises,
nor as machinery to assist an educational system to function adequately, but as a
means of assisting students to develop judgments, attitudes and values, through a
better understanding of themselves as they mature and widen the scope of their
thinking and experience.
4.51 For this reason guidance needs to be a strand running throughout the
student's school life. All members of a school staff have a responsibility in this field
to establish a rapport with their students, and counselling should not be seen as a
separate function within the school, nor should it be seen as removing the responsibility that teachers have in this area, in general. However, counsellors have a unique role in the whole program, in that they alone have contact with the child from
kindergarten to sixth form, and so can provide a continuity of special assistance,
where it is required, throughout a child's school career. They should not, however,
be seen as `outsiders', but rather as members of the staffs of the schools in which
they work.
4.52 As we indicated in outline earlier, we see the need to strengthen and expand
the guidance services available to students, with a particular emphasis on the need
for co-ordination and continuity between each school level, from primary through
to college, to help students adjust to, and make the best use of each educational environment. With increasing demands for more self-reliance, maturity and selfdirection of learning in high schools and colleges, effective personal counselling on
educational and emotional problems will be needed to help students adjust to each
stage of their secondary schooling. A proposal to meet these requirements is included in Chapter 7.
4.53 In the fields of careers guidance there is an obvious need for a considerable
expansion of services. Because of the need for continuous advice, information and
counselling over the whole of a secondary student's school life, a far greater allocation of time is necessary than that now provided. We believe that careers advisers
should be appointed so that the equivalent of one full-time adviser is available in
each high school and in each college.
4.54 We consider it essential that careers advisers should be given more specific
training, either pre-service or in-service courses associated with the Department of
Labour. This would enable a careers adviser to be better prepared and trained in the
use of careers information services, the numerous referral agencies, ability tests and
vocational interest inventories, effective interviewing techniques and so on.
4.55 Careers work should constitute a more important part of the educational
program at secondary level than it does at present. The careers advisers generally
feel lack of status and frustration caused by insufficient knowledge and training
They often consider themselves inadequate for the task and are hampered by poor
accommodation and information facilities. More adequately trained careers advisers would be able to contribute from their particular expertise to the 'core'
studies their knowledge of the occupational structure of our society, and how it is
changing. Thus they would not be merely advisers, nor simply purveyors of careers
information. Rather they would assist students to integrate more closely their study
with an understanding of the society within which they live.
55
4.56 In addition, careers advice should become a vital component of the guidance
program in both the high school and college. The student should have the benefit of
well-organised opportunities for individual and group experiences designed to
promote educational, vocational, personal and social development.
4.57 Within this framework the well-trained careers adviser can undertake the
role of one who supplies basic information to be followed up over a period of time
with more selective and relevant data to meet the needs of the individual. Each student must be able to evaluate, interpret and relate this material to himself. Thus the
careers adviser will have much to contribute to the over-all guidance and welfare of
students in both high school and college.
4.58 The position of the careers adviser in the general guidance structure of the
school or college would provide possibilities for progression within such a department. However, such promotion would be restricted to positions similar to the present Special Master unless the person had more specialised training and
qualifications to progress through to other positions in the Guidance Service.
4.59 It is important that counsellors and careers advisers should be able to call on
the services of specialists in the various fields associated with their work. In particular, school counsellors should be assisted, when necessary, by any or all of the
members of a special diagnostic team, centrally based, which might consist of a psychologist, a remedial reading teacher, a speech therapist, and a social worker. As
well, an appropriate liaison should be established between the counsellors working
in schools and the A.C.T. Health Services, so that special cases could be referred for
psychiatric consultation, medical treatment and other services. The careers advisers
should be able to make maximum use of facilities such as those provided by the
Department of Labour and university student advisers.
56
CHAPTER 5
Examinations
5.1 The shift in emphasis in curricula towards more problem-centred approaches
and greater flexibility and diversity will be inhibited if external public examinations
continue to constrain the curriculum. These examinations originated from the
desire of universities to impose an entrance qualification, but are now very widely
used not only as marking the completion of a stage of schooling but also as a selection device for a range of social and vocational purposes. The effectiveness of the
public examination in serving all these ends is being increasingly questioned, as is its
effect on the learning process itself.
5.2 For these reasons, and because of the administrative difficulties and costs involved, the New South Wales Education Department is moving towards the abolition of the School Certificate examination, at present taken by fourth form students
in the A.C.T. In the years 1968-1972 inclusive, equal weighting has been given to
performance at the public examination and to the school's own assessment of the
student. In 1973 and 1974, students obtaining the New South Wales School Certificate will have their results based on composite marks to which the school assessment will contribute 75 per cent. It has been announced that as from 1975 the
School Certificate examination in New South Wales will cease. In Queensland,
following the Report of the Radford Committee', both the School Certificate and
the Higher School Certificate examinations were taken for the last time in 1972.
Clearly, if our conviction were put into effect, the А.С.Т. would not be acting unilaterally. In the light of all this, we readily agreed to the specific request of the then
Minister for Education and Science, Mr. Fraser, that we should elaborate on our
views concerning this matter and incorporate a detailed discussion on the effectiveness of examinations in our final report.
What is an examination?
5.3 An examination has been defined as 'a certain kind of task to be performed as
well as possible by the examinee at some determined future date' .2 As Brereton
points out, each component of this definition has its own characteristic; and since
our inquiry is concerned with public examinations, we can examine the
characteristics of public examinations in the light of their effect on student, teacher,
employer, and curriculum.
5.4 First, 'a certain kind of task': whether oral or written, essay-type or multiple
choice or project, the kind of task determines the syllabus or curriculum of the candidate.
5.5 Second, `to be performed as well as possible': some kind of reward is attached
to almost every examination: selection for further education, a prize or scholarship,
or a certificate of competence. These are the incentives for good performance. Also,
to almost every examination is attached the concept of success or failure.
I Department of Education and Cultural Activities, Report of the Cammitree appointed ta review ihr System of puhlir e.ramiпations for
Queensland secondary school students and to make recommendations fur the assessment of matante arhiárcmгпu. (Brisbane. 1970).
2
J.L. Brereton. 'Theories of Examinations'. World Year Rook of Edurоtiпп (London, 1969). sect. II. Ch. 3.
P.
14
57
5.6 Third, `at some determined future date': this, as Brereton says, determines one
of the most important characteristics of all; that is, that `the exam exerts an inluence on the behaviour of the candidate in the interval between his deciding to
take the examination and the event itself'.
5.7 In brief, every examination influences, often to the point of determining,
* the course of study;
* the behaviour of student and teacher;
and assuming that an examination of some kind is necessary at a certain stage or
stages of schooling, it is therefore necessary to devise or adopt a type that will have
the smallest inimical effects on the courses of study recommended elsewhere in this
Report and on the behaviour and mutual relationship of student and teacher.
The purpose of examinations
5.8 The public examination purports to have two main functions:
(1) A test of achievement, giving a succinct and quantified account of the student's
degree of assimilation of the material presented to him, and simultaneously of
his ability to evaluate and extrapolate from this material in the realms of logic
and creativity.
(2) A selection test: even if the exam is not overtly competitive it is used to evaluate
the student's readiness for further education, his relative competence at certain
tasks, and his relative fitness for employment in certain areas.
5.9 In practice, we believe that the function of selection has become dominant in
the minds of public and students alike; achievement — that is, the measure of how
much a student has benefited from his schooling — appears to have taken a back
seat. It is worth noting in this connection that the public examination is not, and is
not designed to be, a test of ability purely and simply. Its location at the end of a
stage of schooling, together with the lack of any feedback to the individual student
concerning his performance, means that the public examination is not intrinsic to
the educative process.
The assessment of examinations
5.10 Given the two functions of achievement and selection, an examination result
must be scrutinised in three ways:
(1) Its reliability: would different examiners give the same absolute or relative
results to the same papers? Would one examiner give the same assessment on
different occasions to the same paper? Would the same student produce the
same answers — or answers of equal value — to a different paper on the same
subject? Or, in other words, since we are in an experimental situation, can we
apply the test that a scientist applies to his experiment: are the results
reproducible?
(2) Its validity: that is, does it do what it purports to do?
(a) Is it effective in measuring the achievement of the student?
(b) Is it a good predictor? Does, say, a matriculation examination adequately
predict future performance at university level? This is the criterion we can
use to measure the validity of the examination as a selective process.
(3) Add to these points the two mentioned in para. 5.7— that is, how does it affect:
(a) the course of study;
(b) the behaviour of student and teacher
58
— and we have a good basis for comparing different types of examination and
assessment; though it is true that statistics, the only reliabie yardstick, are lacking in some areas and inadequate in all. Therefore, whatever conclusion we
reach is likely to be tentative.
The effectiveness of an examination
5.1 1 Since it is literally impossible for an examination to test the whole range of
knowledge in a subject — as opposed to a system of continuous assessment, which
by definition can do so — the question of efficiency of an examination, from this
aspect, is one of the validity of sampling techniques. Examination papers are very
diverse, but two broad types can be discerned.
5.12 The `essay-type paper — which, we may note, may take other forms than
literary (it may, for instance, be partly or wholly in the language of mathematics) —
is the traditional type for most subjects; it is designed to test in depth a small, and
ideally random, sample of knowledge, opinions, and deductive power, and to make
that serve as a test of the whole spectrum.
5.13 Though no statistical analysis of this particular small sampling technique has
been made, so far as we know — and probably could not be made because of the
vast number of variables — it is inherently probable that its efficiency is low, and
almost certain that its reliability in assessing achievement is very low: the range
between acceptable confidence limits in a regression analysis of small samples is invariably rather large.
5.14 The `objective' test can be of two types:
* the answering of large numbers'of short questions each with a single word or
short phrase;
* the selection of a correct answer from a number of choices offered, also usually
in terms of a large number of questions.
Those who favour this type of test claim that it gives a more precise assessment of
student achievement than the essay-type exam, because it consists of many more
questions. But this is not necessarily so because, generally, the more questions (in a
given time) the less depth; and one factor could cancel out the other. Unfortunately,
no comparative statistical experiments appear to have been carried out to test the
assumption.
5.15 Be that as it may, there is a strong caveat to be entered for each type of examination on the score of effectiveness:
(I) Though the sample tested by essay-type exams is ideally random, in practice it
is clearly not so. This is quite evident from the widespread and persistent practice of 'question-spotting', which is more often successful than not. This practice, of course, has other harmful effects besides the reduction in efficiency of
the examination.
(2) On the other hand, though it is true that objective tests can to some degree
measure not only knowledge but reasoning powers, they only do so at a
somewhat superficial level, and in particular lack power to measure adequately
powers of synthesis and correlation. (It is only fair to state that Bloom has
demonstrated the possibility of constructing objective examinations that test all
levels of educational achievement in the cognitive domain)) Even allowing for
Bloom, however, the preparation of a paper that tests reasoning power adeI
B.S. Bloom (ed.), Taxonomy of Education Objectives: I. Cognitive Domain (London. 1956). Ch. 3.
59
quately is both time-consuming and extremely difficult; and in any case may
fail because the logical steps that lead to a short answer are not exposed and
therefore cannot be evaluated.
5.16 For example, a mathematics examination typically combines objective and
essay types. Some questions consist of short problems in which the answer is allimportant (what used to be called 'mental arithmetic'), while others present more
complex problems in which the numerical or algebraic result is not so important,
and the reasoning processes dominant.
5.17 We cannot therefore unequivocally give absolute preference to one or the
other type of examination on the score of efficiency, though we are inclined to think
that the weight of evidence (perhaps it is only the weight of assertion) favours the
objective test. Neither, clearly, is as efficient as we should like; perhaps the most efficient single test would, like the mathematics examination, contain elements of
both types.
The reliability of examination results
5.18 As we have stated, the examination is essentially an experimental situation,
and the reproducibility of its results is a good test of its reliability, in the sense indicated above.
5.19 A considerable amount of research has gone into assessing both the reliability and the validity of examination marking. Tests have been applied to measure the
reliability of examiners' marks and student responses to various types of question.
'There is', says Dunn"Australian evidence that in a subject as difficult to mark consistently as English composition, reasonable self-consistency is likely for a majority
of experienced examiners'. But other evidence shows comparatively poor correlation, and one paper, quoted by Cox? cites a correlation of 0.28 for a particular examiner. Even Dunn's endorsement is heavily qualified ('reasonable','likely','a majority of), and it seems that the reliability of a given mark from a single examiner of
an essay-type question is certainly not above suspicion. When several examiners are
used, as in all public examinations, the variations are compounded, and correlations seldom appear to be much better than 0.5, which is by no means an acceptable level of reliability. With such variations in consistency, it is not surprising that
the validity of the essay-type examination — that is, its ability to grade examinees
both absolutely and relative to each other — is poor.
5.20 The evidence suggests that 'objective' tests have a much higher reliability
rating; Noll 3gives correlation co-efficients mostly in the range 0.85-0.90 for a series
of objective tests devised by various American educationists. There are grounds for
believing that these results are abnormally high; nevertheless, objective tests are unquestionably more reliable than essay-type tests.
5.21 It is worth repeating the warning, however, that 'reliability' as discussed
here simply means the degree to which the examination satisfies the criterion of experimental consistency — that it can be repeated with the same result. The evidence
we have cited makes no assumptions whatsoever about the validity of the examination as a test of achievement or for selection.
I S.S. Dunn. Мго.гиптеп and E'oluaiion in the Sгсопдоп Schonl. (2 nd Fdf. Ме l Ьоигпе. 1970) p. Э9.
2 R. Co'. 'Reliability and Validity af Eдaminationi, World Y,ar 8о 4 of Education (1969/70). ькн. 111. Ch. 7. pp. 74-75.
З v.H. No11, lntØunion 'о Educational Мготивгтепн (2nd Edn.. Boston, 1965).
60
The predictive validity of examinations
5.22 The predictive power of examinations is a measure of their ability to select
those examinees who will succeed in the next stage of their proposed careers. Here
again, statistics are adequate only to suggest but not to decide. A recent Swedish
assessment finishes with the following conclusions:
(1) The best instrument for the prediction of success in further eduation seems to
be marks from the secondary school. (There is no external matriculation examination in Sweden: the 'marks referred to compare rather with a system of
continuous assessment, moderated, apparently successfully, by standardised
marking scales.)
(2) The second best instrument seems to be tests of aptitude for study of a general
type, with measurements in several dimensions. . ;
(3) More specific tests and characterological [sic] tests seem to have less predictive
value, although they may perhaps be of value in certain special forms of education.
(4) Combinations of marks and tests of aptitude for study seem to give more
reliable predictions than marks alone. Adding further measurements to these
does not seem to improve possibilities of prediction to any great extent.
5.23 In Australia in recent years the then Department of Education and Science
conducted a major investigation into methods of selection of students for admission
to universities. This investigation, which has become known as the Tertiary Education Entrance Project (TEEP), has concentrated to date on comparing the correlations of first year university performance with scores on various sets of
scholastic aptitude tests and the traditional public examinations. The study is not
yet completed, and those conducting it have urged caution in taking these comparisions at face value. Differences in student preparation, motivation and approach to the testing procedures affect the results. The initial findings have disappointed those who hoped that the TEEP tests, or the Australian Scholastic Aptitude
Test (ASAT) developed by the Australian Council for Educational Research, would
prove to be more valid single predictor of university success than the public examination.
Whichever way one looks at the evidence it is difficult to escape the conclusion that both TEE?
Series A and ASAT have been less successful than traditional public examinations in predicting university performance. From the viewpoint of correlations and percentage of variance
accounted for, TEEP and ASAТ have both been disappointing, although in fairness it must be
admitted that the apparent superiority of public examinations leaves no room for complacency
either. On the other hand, although all predictors discriminated reasonably well, in terms of
statistical significance, between success and failure at university, a marked degree of overlap
was observed in the distributions of abilities for pass and fail students. Again, public examinations appeared to discriminate slightly better than TEEP and ASAT?
Interestingly, more recent studies involving comparison of TEEP scores with
Higher School Certificate examinations and teachers' estimates for particular
'streams' of students in university courses showed little difference in predictive
validity between the examination and the estimates, although both were better
()969).
S. Marklund, 'The Predictive Value of School Marks and Tests Гог Higher Education in Sweden'. World Year &ю& o/ Lduгmion,
Sect. III. Ch. B, pp. 93-94.
2 J.E.N. Sutherland,' The Tегtiaгу Education Entrance Project'. Eduщmiva News 13.9 (1972). p. 26.
61
predictors than TEEP alone. What is even more significant is that any two combined yielded better predictions than any one singly.
5.24 Since both the Higher School Certificate examinations and university examinations have mostly been of the essay type, it is hardly surprising that performance at an essay-type examination at one level proves to be the best single predictor of success at an examination of the same type at another level. Another question, which is not raised frequently enough in discussions on this matter, concerns
the effectiveness of university examinations themselves in measuring the achievement of their students. We have taken this question to lie beyond the scope of our
inquiry. However, we expect that'as universities move away from exclusive reliance
on terminal essay-type examinations to more diverse forms of assessment, the
predictive validity of public matriculation examinations will drop.
5.25 To some extent, therefore, the Swedish and Australian studies bear each
other out, inasmuch as a teacher's estimate may be taken as close to an unmoderated continuous assessment. As a very tentative conclusion, therefore
(because the tests reported are far from exhaustive) we may accept the Swedish conclusion that continuous assessment and a generalised aptitude test give as good
predictive power as can be found.
5.26 It is to be noted that the TEEP studies concern prediction of university
success only, while the Swedish study included also technical and military tertiary
education. No studies that we have been able to trace are concerned with prediction
of success in employment, and we can do no better than to quote from a paper by
Holmes and Lauwerys, respectively Reader and Professor in Comparative Education in the University of London':
The results of examinations used to predict future success in education are often also taken as
predictors of success in a wide range of industrial or commercial activities. It may be that these
results are clearly correlated with a level of general intelligence which is in turn correlated with
ability to perform technical tasks. Yet attention has been drawn to the importance of 'spatial
ability' in predicting vocational success and the argument here could be extended. Do all
school examinations act effectively as a link between education and industry? The increasing
complexity of modern industry raises even greater doubts. School examinations and tests may
fail to measure either what needs to be known by a growing person entering economic life or to
predict his future success.
5.27 We share these doubts. It has been put to us by employers that they have
`learned to live with' the current examination and can make allowances for its
defects; but we may be excused for doubting the efficacy of an obviously ad hoc
procedure, апд can conclude only — or, rather, reinforce a conclusion reached on
other grounds — that the educational significance of industrial or commercial
employment has been largely ignored by the educationists who have planned secondary schooling and examinations.
5.28 It would perhaps not be impertinent to suggest that this most important
aspect of education is suitable for extensive research sponsored by government, and
that the present research program could well be extended to take account of it.
While there are serious dangers in using assessments of students at school as a basis
for employment selection, the problems involved in assisting students to assess their
own abilities and interests so as to guide them into satisfying avenues of work must
be grasped.
I В. Нolmes 8 J.A. Lauwerys. 'Education and Eлыminations', in The World Угов Вгмк il EAuratiпn (1969 ). Sect. 1. Ch. 1, рр
.10-11.
62
Effect of Examinations on Curriculum
5.29 It is commonly agreed that the influence of the public examination on the
curriculum and on the syllabus has been disastrous. Despite the exhortations of
teachers and educationists, non-examination subjects are treated so lightly by many
students (and their parents) as to have become quite ineffectual; and in examination
subjects the rigid constraints applied by the requirements of the examination on a
given syllabus have effectively stopped any learning outside the syllabus. We have
made it clear that the rigid syllabus-bound subject-oriented curriculum is in our
opinion inimical to the educational process, and it is therefore equally clear that an
examination system that subsumes such a curriculum is also unacceptable.
5.30 But this is not necessarily to say that all public examinations must have this
effect on the curriculum; it should be possible to devise a public examination compatible with a freer curriculum. For instance, although on other grounds it may be
quite impracticable, the project-type examination (in which students are set, or set
themselves, a task and are examined on their fulfilment of the task and their understanding of the principles and processes involved in it) could in theory be well
suited to the sort of college curriculum we have in mind; and objective-test examinations could perhaps be equally adaptable.
5.31 But it is one thing to suggest and another to put into action; research is clearly needed to determine if a public examination without curriculum constraints can
be devised. Unless it can, we must, on this ground alone, decisively reject the external examination as a test for our college students.
The effect of examinations on student and teacher
5.32 We may start here with the comprehensive summary to be found in the
Report of the Consultative Committee on Examinations in Secondary Schools
(Н .M.S.O. 1911), which, despite its age and the somewhat different approach to
second гrry schooling at that time, is still a first-class summary:
(1) The good effects of the examination on the pupil are:
(a)
(b)
(c)
(d)
(e)
That they make him work up to time by requiring him to reach a stated
degree of knowledge by a fixed date;
that they incite him to get his knowledge into reproducible form and to
lessen the risk of vagueness;
that they make him work at parts of a study which, though important,
may be uninteresting or repugnant to him personally;
that they train the power of getting up a subject for a definite purpose,
even though it may not appear necessary to remember it afterwards — the
lawyer, the administrator, the journalist, and the man in business;
that in some cases they encourage a certain steadiness of work over a long
period of time; and
that they enable the pupil to measure his real attainment
(f)
(i) by the standards required by outside examiners,
(ii) by comparison with the attainments of his contemporaries in other
schools.
(2) On the other hand, examinations may have a bad effect upon the pupil's mind:
(a) by setting a premium on the power of merely reproducing other people's
ideas and other people's methods of presentment, thus diverting energy
from the creative process;
63
(b) by favouring a somewhat passive type of mind;
(c) by rewarding evanescent forms of knowledge;
(d) by giving an undue advantage to those who, in answering questions on
paper, can cleverly make the best use of, perhaps, slender attainments;
by
inducing the pupil, in his preparation for an examination, to aim
(e)
rather at absorbing information imparted to him by the teacher than at
forming an independent judgment upon the subjects in which he receives
instruction; and
(j) by stimulating the competitive (and at its worst, a mercenary) spirit in the
acquisition of knowledge.
(3) The good effects of a well-conducted examination on the teacher are:
(а ) that they induce him to treat his subjects thoroughly;
(b) that they make him so arrange his lessons as to cover with intellectual
thoroughness a prescribed course of study within an appointed limit of
time;
(c) that they impel him to pay attention not only to his best pupils, but also to
the backward and the slower amongst those who are being prepared for
the examination; and
(d) that they make him acquainted with the standard which other teachers
and their pupils are able to reach in the same subject in other places of
education.
(4) On the other hand, the effects of examinations on teachers are bad:
(а) in so far as they constrain him to watch the examiner's foibles and to note
his idiosyncrasies (or the tradition of the examiner) in order that he may
arm his pupils with the kind of knowledge required for dealing successfullу with the questions that will probably be put to them;
(b) in so far as they limit the freedom of the teačher in choosing the way in
which he will treat his subject;
(с) in so far as they encourage him to take upon himself work which had
better be left to the unaided efforts of his pupils, causing him to impart information to them in too digested a form or to select for them groups of
facts or aspects of the subject which each pupil should properly be left to
collect or envisage for himself;
(d) in so far as they predispose the teacher to overvalue among his pupils that
type of mental development which secures success in examinations;
(e) in so far as they make it the teacher's interest to excel in the purely examinable side of his professional work and divert his attention from those
parts of education which cannot be tested by the process of examination.
5.33 Not all the points listed by the 191 1 Committee would still be accounted as
virtues, for educational philosophy has moved away from the emphasis on
`prescribed study' and 'subject', and it is not true that exams, as at present constituted, 'enable a student to measure his real attainment'. And one quite important
bad effect on students has been omitted; that is, that many students — and particularly those in whom high mental ability is combined with a nervous disposition
— are so affected by the knowledge that a 'one shot' examination has a decisive
effect on their future that they fail to do themselves justice in the examination.
5.34 In a rapidly changing society, young people need to be trained to cope with
changing conditions and accept the necessity for continued learning. We do not
believe that the system of incentives embodied in traditional examinations en64
courages this appreciation of the intrinsic value of learning; on the contrary, the
hidden implication is that nobody in his senses applies himself to learning unless
there is some extrinsic reward attached to it. Moreover, there is the further implication that, having achieved the ultimate qualification, there is no further need for
learning.
5.35 Another point mentioned by the 1911 Committee needs, we feel, further
emphasis: in the words of Tibbl e1:
The exceptional teacher may indeed succeed in limiting the bad effects noted in the 1911
Report; but can there be any doubt that the majority of teachers, in this situation with all its
blutant pressures, play for safety and go in for question-spotting, dictation of notes, emphasis
on memorisation, holding 'mock' examinations, and all the other gambits of the game.
Or, in other words, the pressure of the examination, with all its implications of extrinsic reward, has forced many conscientious teachers, anxious to do their best for
their pupils, to place the passing of the examination above the education of the
child in their scale of priorities.
Effect of examinations on education and society
5.36 Educationally the examination does not, and indeed cannot, fulfil its purpose. However ingeniously it is constructed — and we may refer again to Bloom's
demonstration in Taxoizomy of Educational Objectives of the wide variety of
cognitive experience that a well-constructed exam can test — it is restricted to
testing the cognitive domain: the affective and psychomotor domains are untouched. And yet, the emphasis in education at the college level shifts from the
cognitive towards the affective domain; and — assuming that assessment of the
student's progress and achievement is required by society — it is the development in
the affective domain which must also be assessed.
5.37 In terms of the requirements of society, the examination is an imperfect instrument. While it exists, it is taken as a touchstone of competence not only by institutions of tertiary education (and we have seen that it is suspect even in that field)
but also by employers, and, even worse, by parents and students themselves. Yet the
examination leaves untouched, as we have seen, most of the characteristics of the
graduating student that will enable him to take his place either in the work force or
in society generally. It does not answer the question: will this boy make a good bank
clerk or bricklayer, or shopkeeper, or whatever? Nor the question: will this boy fit
into the society to which he belongs?
5.38 Whether or not these questions are justifiable in educational terms —
whether or not society has any right to expect the school or the educational system
to provide answers — is a different matter. The fact is that, justified or not, the
questions are asked, and the public examination is widely accepted as giving the
answer.
Alternatives to examinations
5.39 There are two alternatives to public examinations — irrespective, that is, of
the form in which such an examination is envisaged.
5.40 First, the educational system may refuse to deliver to the student, at the end
of his schooling, a certificate of competence. It can be cogently argued that it is a
distortion of an educational system to have to pass a quantitative judgment on the
competence of the student; that it is the business of employers, or the next stage of
I J.W. ТibЫe,'The Educational Effects of Examinations in England and Wales'. in The Wo'id Year
Boole of Eduгaiion (1969), Sect. VII,
Ch. 40. p. 351.
65
education, to devise their own means of judging whether or not a person is competent to enter their own particular field of interest or work; and that it is the business
of the school simply to prepare the rising generation for entry into adult society.
5.41 We are sympathetic towards this argument, because any requirement for
quantitative judgment, whether by examination or by assessment, imposes constraints on the educational advancement of the child which teachers and students
alike may find irksome, if not intolerable. Nevertheless, education is not a selfcontained process; it is part of society and cannot act independently of it. As long as
the competitive pressure of adulthood leads society to demand such certificates, the
educatioń al system must comply, for refusal may bear hardly on the young. Society
at large demands such certificates; and they can be abolished only with the consent
of society. Perhaps in time society will consent to their abolition, but we judge that
that time is not yet.
5.42 Second, the examination may be replaced by a system of assessment within
the school. This is a very tempting alternative, which has in fact been recommended
by the Radford Committee on Public Examinations for Queensland Secondary
Schools, and adopted by the Education Department of Queensland. We do not
need to rehearse the arguments used by the Radford Committee, because they have
become apparent in our own considerations of various shortcomings of the examination system. We believe we have shown in thę proceeding pages that:
(a) continuous assessment can survey the whole range of the student's accomplishment, unlike the examination, which can only sample, more or less effectively;
(b) it has predictive power at least as good as that of an examination;
(c) it does not.constrain the curriculum unduly, but on the contrary arises from it;
(d) it is free of the deleterious effects of examinations on pupil and teacher, both
educational and psychological;
(e) it can measure the development of the student in the affective domain, which
the examination in unable to do.
5.43 The arguments against the continuous assessment method have been
marshalled by Holmes and Lauwerys 1 , who were quoted almost verbatim by the
Radford Committee. Holmes and Lauwerys actually wrote:
There are more and stronger arguments against such a method than those who are not very
familiar with it realise. In the first place — and this is a fundamental objection — it alters
radically the relation between teacher and taught. The student is continually on trial, constantly being examined. The teacher is always evaluating and weighing: a task difficult to reconcile
with helping and guiding. Too much power is placed in his hands. Secondly, teachers — being
kind and generous — are rather easily pressured, often without knowing it, into awarding
better marks than they should to weak students who have tried hard. Thirdly, the anonymous
examination may well provide a defence for the gifted students [ ř] who lacks social grace and
who antagonizes his teachers by his manner and personality. Fourthly, it is almost impossible
to equate continuous assessment grades awarded in one institution and those of another: each
is bound to have its own internal currency and there is no agreed rate of exchange. Fifthly, no
exam fulfils its purpose unless some candidates 'fail' — and it is precisely failure which is objected to by some reformers.
5.44 The Radford Committee disposes of these arguments by countering one
assertion with another; but we believe that they carry more weight than the Radford
Committee allows. Without wavering in our conviction that, if practicable, a
method of continuous assessment is decidedly preferable to a single imposed external examination of the type that we have been dissecting, we nevertheless agree that
I Op ci1.. p. 8.
66
the harmful effects suggested by Holmes and Lauwerys are real, and must be
countered before the method can be considered practicable and beneficial.
5.45 The Swedish method, of moderating examinations and standardised marking
scales, cited and to a large degree adopted by the Radford Committee, may ensure
equal assessment standards between schools; but, unless applied with the utmost
delicacy and skill, it will reintroduce many of the constraints on the curriculum that
we so deplore in the public examination system.
5.46 Moreover, whereas we have been able to dissect examinations into their constituent parts and consider them in detail, no such precise meaning is attached to
'continuous assessment'. Is it simply continuous observation of progress, or is it a
quantitative assessment by repeated internal tests of achievement? And if the latter,
how are they to be weighted — for a test of achievement has a feedback into the
educational process, showing where faults and lacunae lie and how they can be
eradicated; and how much weight should be given to tests administered before and
after their eradication?
5.47 And finally, we must consider the reactions of parents, employers and the
community at large to the method; for in the words of the aphorism, justice must
not only be done but must be seen to be done. Even if educators are convinced that
the shortcomings of the method are overcome, there still remains the task of convincing sbciety as a whole.
5.48 So we are reluctantly driven to the conclusion that much more work on
methods of continuous assessment remains to be done before it can be accepted as a
full substitute for the public examination, despite the manifest inefficiency of the
latter. Fortunately, we have a breathing space before the inception of the system
recommended in this Report. We hope that during that time intensive investigations will be put in train with a view to (a) defining in some detail the most
practicable and effective method of continuous assessment; and (b) devising
safeguards, or moderators, against the dangers outlined above. Of course, continuous assessment is not the only method of internal assessment. A school may set
its own formal examinations, based on its own concept of the curriculum, either to
bolster or to replace the continuous assessment. This, at least in theory, avoids
some of the defects of both external examination and continuous assessment; but
has defects of its own. Any research on internal assessment should, of course, inelude an evaluation of this factor.
Conclusions
5.49 Our opinions must have become clear during the perusal of this chapter,
though it has been written, as far as within us lies, without prejudice.
5.50 We believe that the evidence shows that the external examination in its
traditional form is neither effective, nor reliable, nor predictive. We have examined
the objective-test and multiple-choice types of examination and find that their principal advantage over the traditional examination is that they are more reliable, and
to some degree more effective; but there is no evidence available to us to show that
their predictive power is higher than that of the traditional exam.
5.51 Both types of examination have the following defects:
*
they have disastrous effects on the curriculum;
*
they have a variety of ill effects on both student and teacher;
* they are unable to assess that part of the student's achievement that lies in the
affective domain;
67
* they are unable effectively to answer the questions asked by society of the
education system about students leaving the system.
5.52 So far as we can judge, a method of continuous assessment can be devised
which is free from all these defects, though its predictive validity may still be in
question. We believe that by careful research many if not all of the defects of a continuous assessment method can be eradicated, whereas most of the defects of the external examination are ineradicable.
5.53 Nevertheless, we are not convinced that continuous assessment can stand
alone, partly for educational and partly for sociological reasons. So, until both
educators and society are convinced that the method adequately fulfils both functions demanded of it — the measurement of achievement and the ability to select —
we suggest that there be associated with it an external test.
5.54 This serves two purposes: it helps to allay the fears and suspicions of society,
and strengthens the predictive or selective power. But we are no longer concerned,
in the selective process, only with grading by a particular type of intellectual ability:
selectivity is extended to the whole gamut of vocations. Therefore, we recommend
that an impersonal external test be devised to measure aptitudes across the whole
spectrum of endeavour: TEEP and its fellows must be refined to this end if they are
to be used.
5.55 We should point out that the evaluative process will be sharpened to a very
considerable degree by the adoption of our recommendations for counselling and
vocational guidance services in the new system.
5.56 We have said that research is needed before continuous assessment can be
put into practice. In the confident hope that such research will bear fruit, we decided to seek reactions from those local bodies who have come to rely on the present
Higher School Certificate to a proposal that these public examinations be abolished. We believed that the implications of such a move for these bodies needed to be
explored before our final recommendations were settled. We suggested that a certificate or statement of a student's curriculum vitae based on internal assessment
could still be issued, with an aptitude test being administered to provide information on the comparability of grading between colleges. Letters were sent and subsequently discussions held with the admissions committees of the Australian
National University and the Canberra College of Advanced Education, Council
members of the A.C.T. Employers' Federation, and senior officers of the Public
Service Board.
5.57 Although the latter three express varying degrees of caution, we are pleased
to report that all have stated their preparedness in principle to accept an alternative
criterion to the public examination as a selection instrument. Because we recognise
the Importance of demonstrating the acceptability of our proposals, we report the
replies received in some detail.
5.58 The largest single employer of A.C.T. school leavers is the Commonwealth
Public Service Board. The Secretary of the Board pointed out that the Board has
accepted the introduction of internal examinations in the'past and, in Victoria and
Queensland, applicants for Third Division entry have been granted eligibility on the
basis of certificates awarded on internal assessment. He continued:
Providing it is assured that a recognised educational authority in the A.C.T. will certify that a
student has satisfactorily completed a course of six years secondary education in designated
subjects and that its standard is consistent between colleges over time, the Board will accept
such subjects against its minimum education requirements for appointment or transfer to the
68
Third Division ... Under present regulations all educationally-qualified applicants seeking appointment as Clerk Class I must undertake the Commonwealth Selection Test. This test is
competitive, and is designed to determine each applicant's aptitude for clerical and administrative work. Offers of appointment as Clerk Class I are made according to an 'order of
merit which is based on marks obtained in the test.
5.59 The local Employers' Federation stated that it 'fully appreciates the reasons
actuating you in advancing your recommendations, and it is alert to the fact that
our existing system of examination leaves much to be desired'. 1t drew our attention
to possible weaknesses in an assessment system similar to those noted above and
pointed out that any new system will take some time to be accepted and understood. It continued:
If an assessment system were to be adopted in the future, employers could envisage benefit accruing if such assessment were to include not only academic achievement, but also extracurricular activities followed by the student. This you will readily perceive would prove of inestimable value to an employer in gauging a student's suitability for employment in particular
areas. The assessment criteria should be made known to students immediately a new system
became operational so that they would be aware of all requirements of the assessment.
The Federation submitted that implementation of the assessment system on a comparative basis with the present system for a few years would assist employers and
others in evaluating the new approach. For some years now, high schools have been
providing assessments of students at School Certificate level to the N.S.W. Department and at Higher School Certificate level to the Australian National University,
as well as providing to that Department a prediction of students' Higher School
Certificate examination results. These assessments have correlated highly with the
examination results. There would be merit in extending the practice in the way
suggested.
5.60 The Admissions Committee of the Australian National University has for
the past few years been admitting some students on the basis of school assessment
and it has very helpfully supplied an outline of the documentation needed from
colleges to enable the University to proceed with the selection and enrolment of
students if the present system of external examinations ceased. The University
would look for the following information:
(1) A report, similar to those supplied by American-type high schools, which
would record details of performance in all studies attempted. The report should
include the college's overall ranking of the student in relation to other students
in a manner similar to that now shown on this University's application forms
for early admission. That is, some assessment of likely success in tertiary studies
should be made.
(2) An achievement test of the scholastic aptitude type, preferably administered
on a national scale.
(3) The performance reached in academic subjects should be clearly shown so that
admission may be properly considered in the case of those courses adopting an
assumed level of knowledge for entry.
As we have mentioned, such arrangements, if acceptable to the Canberra College of
Advanced Education as well as to the University, would cover approximately 15 per
cent of all local school leavers, but separate approaches would need to be made on
behalf of those 5 per cent who go on to tertiary education outside the A.C.T.
However, with the abolition of external examinations in Queensland as from next
year, we believe that Australian universities will have to undertake a general review
of their matriculation requirements. A.C.T. students going elsewhere for tertiary
education should not be especially disadvantaged.
69
5.61 The Canberra College of Advanced Education expressed more caution than
did the University. The main points raised were:
(1) The College recognises the force of arguments that are raised on educational
grounds against the HSC-type examination, and would not in principle be opposed to a recommendation for the non-introduction of such an examination in
the A.C.T. if a viable alternative criterion for admission to tertiary educational
institutions can be found.
(2) The College nevertheless, believing that it has a responsibility both to its
applicants and to the community to use the most reliable predictor of tertiary
success that is available, and believing that at the present time the matriculation
examination is the best single predictor of tertiary success, would be opposed to
such a recommendation until such time as an alternative criterion for admission
can be used with reasonable confidence that its success as a predictor is comparable with that of the USC-type examination.
The
College considers that a detailed study of any alternative proposals, such as
(3)
a combination of school reports and results of TEEP-type tests, is required
before proposals are adopted. It suggests that the Working Party should urge
the continuation, and if necessary the intensification, of such studies as are
currently being made.
The College also suggested that a Joint Admissions Board for tertiary institutions in
the A.C.T. should be established and that the effects of the abolition of the Senior
examination in Queensland should be closely watched.
5.62 In the light of our own considerations argued here, and taking into account
the submissions made to us by the bodies consulted, we recommend:
(a) that the Department of Education take urgent steps to ensure that research is continued. if necessary at public expense, into alternative methods of assessment and
evaluation;
(b) that the Higher School Certificate examination be replaced by a tested system of
continuous assessment evolved through such research, to which is added, at least
for the time being. an external test of the ТЕЕР or ASA T type, suitably refined so
as to take account of other aptitudes besides scholastic;
(c) that this change be timed to coincide with the first complete two years of operation
of the first colleges (1977);
(d) that the А . С.T. follow the lead of the N.S.W. Department of Education in
abolishing the external School Certificate examination not later than 1975';
(e) that a traiiscript of standardised form be devised to serve as an indicator of
progress and proficiency' and to indicate the range of a student's interests and
abilities, such transcripts being available to all students leaving high school and
college;
(f) that the Commonwealth continue and intensify its research into the development of
aptitude lests for tertiary entrance and other specific skills;
(g) that the Department of Education, as the interim local Education Authority, pursue with the Australian Universities Vice-Chancellors' Co ► rmittee the question of
the admissibility of students from the А . С. T. colleges to universities other than the
A.N.U.
Since all A.C.T. schools are to operate under a Commonwealth structure from the beginning of 1974. and since the examination is to contribute only 25 per cent towards the N.S.W. School Certificate results in that year, it might be rpore suitable for A.С.Т. students to take
that examination in 1974.
70
CHAPTER 6
Government
Introduction
6.1 Earlier in this report we have set out our ideas on the nature of the college and
the educational objectives it should try to achieve. Our convictions on these points
lead us to the view that colleges must have a far greater degree of independence to
devise their own goals, structures and curricula than any individual school under
current arrangements. We also believe that a much wider participation in decisionmaking on these matters is essential if the college as we envisage it is to become a
reality.
6.2 In this chapter we will set out in broad detail our views on the ways in which
the government and administration of colleges can be managed to ensure the
realisation of the goals we have outlined.
6.3 We believe that one of the most important benefits which will result from the
establishment of a statutory education authority in the A.C.T. is that educational
policy will be developed locally. The twin problems of remoteness and impersonality which exist in State education systems should effectively be eliminated in the
A.C.T. However, the setting up of a local authority does not, of itself, ensure that
the formulation of educational policy will involve those most closely concerned
with the educational undertaking — teachers, students, and parents — in a more
meaningful way than at present. If conventional administrative structures were
adopted in the A.C.T., there would be little opportunity for these groups to exercise
due influence on educational policy. We believe the consequences of this would be
inimical to the concept of the college as we have developed it.
6.4 Teachers are a central and critical part of all educational undertakings. We are
convinced that their limited ability to influence educational policy in the State
systems is a fundamental cause of the prevailing frustration and dissatisfaction
amongst practising teachers. In the colleges, their endorsement of the philosophy
we have outlined, their acceptance of the objectives of these new institutions and
their enthusiasm in devising professional solutions to achieve these objectives will
be essential. We think it of paramount importance, therefore, that teachers are formally involved in educational decision-making relating to colleges.
6.5 It is increasingly apparent that parents are also experiencing the frustrations
and sense of alienation felt by teachers arising from the lack of opportunity for
meaningful participation in the educational policy-making process. In addition to
dissolving the present climate of dissatisfaction and apathy, we see a number of
positive advantages in parents participating directly in educational decisionmaking. They will be able to infuse into educational deliberations a wider range of
experience and more diverse expertise than can be provided by teachers alone. They
will serve as agents in bridging the gap between college and community which is
fundamental to our thinking. Finally, they will broaden the focus of college planning and offset any tendency to purely professional orientation in decision making.
6.6 We believe that the students who will be attending colleges have a legitimate
71
point of view respecting educational decisions which affect them most directly. We
think, therefore, that they should be directly involved in policy making. As well as
overcoming the alienation felt by students in the present system, responsible participation in decision making would ensure that those involved, either directly or indirectly, acquired a clearer understanding of the objectives, methods and difficulties
of the college, and a more mature and informed point of view about the processes
involved.
6.7 Central to our argument for the establishment of colleges is the conviction
that the conformity and uniformity characteristic of the State systems can and
should be broken down. We believe that even with the existence of a local authority
in the A.C.T. centralised control and policy formulation would impose unnecessary
constraints on the individual college. To ensure the realisation of our ideal, which is
to encourage the development of learning situations unique to the particular
teachers and students within a single institution, we believe each college should
have the right to determine, within the budget and broad guidelines laid down by
the authority, all aspects of its own educational program. We consider that this
would ensure that educational objectives were formulated in a socially responsible
manner while preserving for the individual college the responsibility of determining
for itself the most acceptable way of achieving these objectives.
6.8 For a proper exercise of the autonomy we are suggesting each college must
have the power to reach decisions on certain specific matters. These may be summarised as follows:
(a) determination of the educational program within guidelines laid down by the
authority;
(b) preparation of estimates and the determination of a budget within available
funds which would allow the educational program to be implemented;
(c) advice to the Education Authority on staffing requirements in accordance with
the educational needs of the college;
(d) participation in the selection of teaching staff;
(e) selection and employment of non-teaching staff on such bases as will ensure the
most effective implementation of the educational program.
6.9 To enable decisions to be made on these and more general matters affecting
college operations, it will be necessary for each college to have a formal governing
body which will bear the responsibility for all decisions taken by the college. Our
view is that this body should be called a `council' rather than a board' as suggested
in the Neal-Radford Report. Our preference for this term arises from its connotation of deliberative powers which we see as essential for the colleges' governing
bodies.
6.10 In reaching our conclusion that colleges should have a single governing body
we have given careful consideration to the question of how to ensure the
professional independence of the principal and his staff. It was suggested to us that
in a council representing the groups mentioned in paragraphs 6.4-6 above, the principal could be accountable to both subordinate staff members and students for actions taken in his role as the college's chief executive officer. We were also conscious
of teachers' desire under any form of college government to have more professional
independence than at present.
6.11 One solution to this difficulty would have been to adopt the suggestion contained in the Neal-Radford report that schools have a dual governing structure. We
72
regard this as unacceptable for colleges in the A.C.T. This proposal, in practice,
would exclude the lay members of the school's governing body from any effective
role in the educational decision-making process. We consider that the acceptance of
such a dual system would militate seriously against the community involvement we
see as central to the college concept. To ensure the commitment of members of the
community to the colleges we believe it is essential that they participate directly in
the process of educational policy formulation.
6.12 Under the arrangements we propose, the council will participate in the planning of the college's policy and operations and bear the responsibility for ratifying
all policy decisions. We believe the council must delegate many planning and executive functions to the staff and the principal. Although it will be obliged to accept
their advice in relation to the discharge of its responsibilities, the council should retain rights to initiate proposals covering a wide range of college activities. We see
the council being involved in making suggestions to the principal and staff during
the planning stages, in commenting on and criticising proposals and referring them
back for further consideration if necessary. However, we do not think that in such
areas as syllabus and course planning, the determination of teaching strategies and
methods, the organisation of timetables and the administrative and operational
arrangements associated with these, the council should establish policies which do
not have the endorsement of the principal and staff nor should it reject proposals on
matters of this kind about which the principal and staff are agreed.
6.13 We think that this proposal overcomes the difficulties we alluded to earlier. It
ensures the professional independence of the principal and staff in those areas requiring the special insight and expertise of the professional educator. At the same
time it gives the council overall responsibility for college policy. Finally, it
guarantees meaningful participation in the policy-making process by teachers,
parents and students.
6.14 We recommend that each college should have as its governing body a council
whose functions are summarised in 6.8 and whose method of operation is set down in
6.11.
The role of the Education Authority
6.15 We have stated that we see colleges operating within a framework of broad
policy laid down by the A.C.T. Education Authority. We have assumed that the
present arrangements for financing public education in the A.C.T., under which
almost all costs are met from funds allocated by the Government, will continue. We
accept that, in these circumstances, the Government through the appropriate
Minister, has a direct responsibility for the education system. Under present
arrangements, the Education Authority for the A.C.T. would be the Minister's
agent in the detailed exercise of this responsibility.
6.16 Until the inquiry into the establishment of a statutory education authority
has been held, assumptions about its role are speculative. We believe that it is
necessary to make certain assumptions about matters likely to be of fundamental
concern to it in order to clarify the relationship of the colleges and their councils to
it. For these purposes we have regarded it as exercising either on its own initiative
or in association with other agencies of government some of the responsibilities
common to education authorities elsewhere in Australia. These are set out below:
(a) the determination of the broad educational philosophy and objectives for the
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system and the endorsement and evaluation of particular educational programs
within this framework;
(b) allocation of funds in accordance with the needs and priorities of the system;
(c) the provision of professional staff;
(d) the provision, major maintenance and security of educational buildings;
( е) the provision of facilities, services, resources and expertise which would be unpractical or uneconomical for individual schools or colleges to possess.
6.17 We do not consider it appropriate for colleges to exercise these or related
powers, but we believe their staffs and councils will be much more closely involved
with these matters than is now the case.
Membership of councils
6.18 We think the membership of college councils should consist of the following
categories:
(a) the principal;
(b) a member appointed by the authority;
(c) members elected by the college's parent group;
(d) members elected by staff;
(e) members elected by students;
(f) members appointed by the council itself.
6.19 Certain people should be on the council by virtue of their being college
students or members of the college's staff. The principal should be an ex officio
member wiih the same rights as other members. Staff should elect a maximum of
three members from among themselves and students a maximum of two.
6.20 The member appointed by the authority need not necessarily be an officer of
the authority. He could be drawn from the community or from another government
agency and he should be an experienced educationist. His role would be to ensure
that the authority's viewpoint was represented in council deliberations.
6.21 Parents of students at the college should elect a maximum of three members.
6.22 Up to two members may be appointed by the council itself. These members
could be drawn from the staff or the community if a broader cross-section of views
was required or they could be persons with special experience or interests.
6.23 We think that each council should have the right to elect its own chairman
and that all members should be eligible to fill that office. It is possible that some
principals and representatives of staff or students would not wish to occupy that office because of the anomalous position they could be in. We do not consider,
however, that they should have any less entitlement than other council members for
this reason.
6.24 We believe that elected or appointed members should hold office for one year
but that they should have the right to be re-elected. Dates of appointment to the
council should be so arranged as to ensure that there is a continuity of membership.
6.25 We recommend that college councils have a maximum membership of twelve.
They should contain representatives of the staff, students, parents and the authority;
the basis of membership should be as described in the preceding paragraphs.
The educational program
6.26 We have already mentioned our view that within a framework determined by
the authority, the college should have the right to determine its detailed educational
program, to introduce major changes to established programs and to participate in
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the evaluation of their effectiveness. The principal, staff and students should have a
major role in formulating policy proposals on these matters. Proposals about such
matters as curriculum, teaching methods, class timetables, the need for resources to
carry out the educational program effectively, etc. should be reached as a result of
intensive discussion and planning within the college.
6.27 Because of the concern expressed by teachers at the possibility of principals
not making the fullest use of the expertise and enthusiasm of staff members in
reaching the decisions referred to above, we believe it is necessary to set down our
thoughts on this matter fully. At the outset we state that it should be an obligation
for staff members to participate according to their particular interests and expertise
in this process of policy formulation. At the same time, it should also be an obligation for the principal to devise means by which his staff's enthusiasm and skill can
be best harnessed by proper consultation with them. We believe that an acceptance
of these principles should be a condition of employment in a college.
6.28 We do not see it as our role to prescribe the means by which individual principals should approach this task but we have several suggestions to offer. The first is
that we see the principal as an educational leader whose role is that of chief executive officer of the college. Apart from the administrative duties imposed on him
by this role, we see the principal by virtue of his qualifications, experience and
character, as exercising a significant entrepreneurial function in identifying and
directing his staff's talents and competences to the college's needs. We believe that
he will, under the arrangements we are suggesting, be in a position to exercise
educational leadership in a far more effective way than at present.
6.29 Our second suggestion relates more closely to the structures through which
staff participation in the formulation of college policy is effected. We do not think a
hierarchical structure involving only formal subcommittees responsible to the principal provides an adequate solution. The delegations inherent in this approach and
the retention of real authority and responsiblity at the apex of the pyramid merely
serve to bureaucratise the decision making and operations of the college and to
isolate teachers from a true exercise of responsibility. We envisage an alternative in
which special purpose groups would assemble to deal with specific policy or
operational matters and disband once their purpose has been achieved. Associated
with this would be a real delegation of responsibility such that these groups would
be directly accountable to the principal and staff, either together or separately, for
the decisions reached.We expect that the principal would, as a matter of course,
reach decisions on the recommendations of these groups in consultation with the
staff. The size of these groups would vary depending on the nature of the matters
under consideration and their appointment could be by the principal's action or by
resolution of the whole or the relevant part of the staff according to the purpose to
be served. We would see this arrangement as operating in much the same way as a
faculty does within a tertiary institution, with the principal occupying a similar role
to the dean. The suggestions we have made provide for a less formal and, we
believe, more flexible form of operation than is customary in a tertiary institution.
We believe this flexibility to be essential in the context of the college. In the model
we have described we see the principal being at the centre of a continually changing
organisational infrastructure rather than at the apex of a formal hierarchical
pyramid.
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6.30 Because the principal and staff will have a more significant role than at present in planning the educational program and developing organisational patterns
they will need a much greater degree of support at management and administrative
levels than occurs now. They will also need access to resource material and expertise
in a number of fields such as curriculum planning and development. Such expertise
and resources should be available from the authority.
6.31 We recommend that all staff members have the right and the responsibility of
participating in the college's policy-making process: that principals should ensure that
necessary arrangements are made to enable staff properly to exercise this responsibility.
Financial management
6.32 The council should have overall responsibility for the management of college
finances and would be accountable to the authority for the proper exercise of this
responsibility. Its functions would include the preparation of estimates, the allocation of funds in accordance with the college's agreed priorities, oversight of expenditure and the preparation of financial statements.
6.33 We consider it essential that the college have this degree of financial independence if it is to exercise the form of autonomy we are recommending. We also
believe it is important that funds be allocated in such a way that the college is able
to determine its own priorities in the allocation of resources. We have in mind that
the pattern of allocation may vary from year to year as particular aspects of the
college's program are emphasised.
6.34 We envisage a machinery being developed which would enable the council to
submit to the authority a statement of financial requirements based on the college's
total needs. When the precise allocation of funds has been determined, it will be the
council's responsibility to apportion funds in the college and to ensure that
operations are managed within the available funds.
6.35 The closest possible involvement of the staff in the preparation of the
college's budget and in the allocation of funds is essential. It has been suggested that
without this, the council could inadvertently impose undesirable restrictions on the
educational program. We believe that if the college's educational policy is
developed in the ways mentioned, there is little likelihood of this kind of problem
arising. We think that this is another area in which the proper exercise of responsibility within the college will be essential.
Staffing
6.36 In another chapter of this report we have set down in some detail our views
on the staffing of colleges. In this section we wish only to record our thoughts on
the role we envisage for the council in relation to the college's staffing.
6.37 The provision of professional staff is closely related to the kind of
educational program to be provided in individual colleges. We think it is inevitable
that the supply of professional staff will be within the guidelines of a general policy
laid down by the authority. We believe it essential that within these guidelines, each
college should have considerable flexibility to determine precise needs in accordance with particular requirements of the education program. We think that the
need for professional staff would be considered at the same time as, and as an integral part of, the college's annual review of its educational program.
6.38 The council should be closely involved in the process of selecting new staff
members for key posts. We have argued elsewhere of the need for staff to be
76
recruited as far as possible on the basis of their suitability for the particular
positions in question and on their commitment to the educational philosophy and
objectives of the college. As the formal agency responsible for determining and
furthering these objectives, the council should make recommendations on appointments.
6.39 We have outlined elsewhere our reasons for believing that ancillary staff
should be employed by the individual college rather than the authority. We see the
council as having a major role in this. Under the arrangements for the financial
management of the college mentioned earlier, the scale of provision of ancillary
staff would be one of the competing demands on the financial resources available.
We believe that each college, through its council, should be able to recruit ancillary
staff and to determine an establishment on the basis of the particular educational
and administrative needs of that college.
Internal administration of college
6.40 We accept that the day to day running of the college and the decision making
associated with this is a matter for the principal and staff. He would operate within
agreed general policy lines developed in detail in consultation with staff and
students. Such policies could vary markedly from college to college depending on
particular educational philosophies and objectives.
6.41 We think that as the college's chief executive officer, the principal would, as a
matter of course, consult his council on major policy matters relating to the
college's internal administrative operations.
6.42 Without seeing it as within our brief to prescribe ways in which policies of internal college administration should be determined, we have a general comment to
make. We would expect a close involvement of all members of the college, staff and
students, in this process. We believe it will be essential for all members of staff to be
committed to this kind of approach if the kind of college we envisage is to come into
being.
6.43 We consider it essential that adequate provision is made within colleges for
appropriate machinery to exist to enable students to participate in the management
of their own affairs. We see this as being as important as student involvement in the
work of the college council.
6.44 We think there would be advantages in establishing an organ similar to a
students' representative council as a forum for the discussion of matters of interest
to students. Student representatives on the college council could report to this body.
Ad hoc groups could also be established to consider particular aspects of student affairs within the college. We have indicated earlier our belief that students should be
able to participate in educational policy making. They should be involved whenever
it is relevant in consultative or other groups set up within the college to plan particular aspects of educational policy.
6.45 Because we envisage the college as a transition between formal schooling and
full participation in community life, we believe that studemts should participate
with staff in developing proposals on discipline. We see the cornerstone of discipline in the college being the individual's acceptance of the need to exercise selfdiscipline and self-restraint for the benefit of the whole group. In the case of extreme breaches of discipline we believe that the principal should have the power of
suspending students while the council should be able to expel. If students are expelled they should have the right of appeal to the authority. We consider it essential
77
that the enforcement of discipline is the responsibility of the principal.
6.46 We recommend that colleges develop both formal and informal structures to
enable students to participate actively in the control
of their own affairs.
The operation of councils
6.47 We do not think it would be appropriate for us to suggest a particular
method for the operations of councils. We believe this can best be determined by
those involved in the light of such factors as the time available to members, the
nature of the college's operation and the extent to which the council is willing to
delegate its authority. There are one or two general comments we would like to
make about this.
6.48 If councils are to perform their functions effectively, a substantial commitment of time and energy by their members will be called for on a continuing basis.
We believe it would be highly desirable if a system of subcommittees was instituted
to deal in detail with specific matters of council business. We already see the need
for a finance committee, an education committee and, perhaps, a selection and appointments committee for each council. We have no doubt that the need for others
will develop.
6.49 We also believe it will be essential for colleges to have administrative
resources to ensure that council and its committees are properly serviced and that
executive and administrative actions arising from their proceedings can be taken
promptly. It is also highly. desirable that the authority should arrange an orientation and training program for members of councils to enable their deliberations to
be conducted in the most informed manner possible.
6.50 As the formal governing body of the college, the council should be aware of
all matters affecting the college's attainment of its educational objectives or its
status. We accept that there will be matters about which the staff should retain
professional confidentiality. We also see the need for council's deliberations to be
confidential except where it resolves to make public its proceedings.
Interim councils
6.51 We are in favour of the suggestion made by the A.C.T. Council of Parents'
and Citizens' Associations that interim councils be appointed some time before the
opening of the college to carry out the kinds of planning activity outlined in this
chapter.
6.52 We think it essential that such an arrangement be made to enable the college
to embark on its program at the earliest possible date after its opening. We outline
elsewhere in this report our views on the importance of the early appointment of
key staff to participate in this planning process.
6.53 These interim councils could be appointed by the authority and would have
members nominated by the relevant teachers' and principals' organisations, the
authority, parents, students, and staff members when appointed.
6.54 Undoubtedly, our proposal could be seen as pre-empting the professional
rights of future staff members. We can think of no practical means which would
allow the whole staff to be involved in the detailed planning process before the
college's opening, attractive as the idea may be. We believe it is essential that some
formulation of college objectives and planning of operations and programs is undertaken before the bulk of the staff can be recruited. We would imagine that this
early planning would be sufficiently flexible to ensure that as many educational options as possible were kept open for the future staff.
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6.55 We recommend that interim councils be established to undertake preliminary
planning prior to the establishment of colleges; they should be constituted along the
lines set out in 6.53.
High schools
6.56 Generally we believe that a similar approach to the government of high
schools as we have outlined for colleges is desirable. The maturity level of the
students involved will, however, necessitate some variation to certain of the
suggestions we have made. We think, for example, that while high school pupils
should be able to voice opinions in the council, it may be desirable for them to be
excluded when certain matters are discussed. Within limits of this kind, opportunities should exist for the fullest possible involvement of all high school students
in decision making.
6.57 We think that in the high school context a students' representative council
would be a most appropriate agency for students to consult and discuss issues of
concern to them. We think a formal body of this kind is desirable because of the
ages of the students concerned and their lack of experience in deliberative processes.
In the senior years of high school the transition towards the ad hoc groups we have
suggested for the colleges could be developed.
6.58 We are also of the opinion that high school students, particularly in the early
years, would be less able to participate meaningfully in the detailed determination
of the school's educational objectives and program than college students. We consider that opportunities should be taken to increase students' involvement in this
aspect of policy making as they mature.
6.59 Because the high school will be dealing with younger students who are obliged to attend, it may have less flexibility in organisation and planning that we have
suggested for colleges. However, there will be no less need to develop appropriate
philosophies and strategies in the ways we have proposed for colleges. Most of the
administrative and organisational approaches we suggest will be equally relevant
for the high schools.
6.60 We recommend that, in general, high schools have the same form of government
as we have recommended for colleges; some modifications may be necessary because
the students are younger and less mature.
6.61 In an earlier chapter we referred to the small group of students to be found in
every high school whose behaviour is so antisocial and who are so little amenable to
the disciplinary sanctions available to schools that they have disruptive effects out
of proportion to their numbers. We do not think that each individual high school
can have the range of social welfare resources necessary to deal with the social, psychological and intellectual problems which give rise to the aberrant behaviour
which characterises the students we are discussing. We believe it is essential that the
authority take responsibility for providing a range of special services to deal adequately with these students. The provisions should be comprehensive, co-ordinated
and adequately staffed and should include specialised counselling and guidance,
welfare services, clinical psychological services as well as personnel concerned with
the legal aspects of these students' behaviour.
6.62 We recommend that the authority provide the range of special services including
those outlined in 6.61 to enable the problems of students whose antisocial behaviour
cannot be dealt with by the school itself to receive proper attention.
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CHAPTER 7
staÌÌltlg
Introduction
Avoiding elitism in the teaching profession
7.1 We have already made clear (para. 3.26(7) ) our concern to avoid the development of an attitude of elitism within the teaching profession with respect to the staffing of colleges and high schools. If we felt that colleges, for whatever reason, would
inevitably develop an `elite' aura relative to high schools, or to primary schools, we
would be opposed to their creation.
7.2 At some point in most discussions on the high school/college proposal it is
suggested that colleges will develop a form of `elitism'. Examples of such
suggestions are:
* Teachers in colleges might be seen as having a higher status and pleasanter
working conditions than teachers in high schools.
* The creation of colleges might unduly deprive high schools of experienced,
well-qualified, and as well, male teachers.
* Colleges might be staffed with teachers with the highest of academic
qualifications, even though they may have no teacher training qualifications.
* The college might become an academic institution, of a tertiary type, at best a
matriculation factory, a mere imitation of a university.
7.3 The responsibility to ensure that colleges do not appear to be more 'important'1, in the general educational process, than high schools, nor high schools than
primary schools, rests squarely on the shoulders of teachers and the Education
Authority as well as the community. Nevertheless, as one group consisting of
representatives of these three parties, we have, in what follows, comments and
recommendations to make on the issues raised by the above suggestions.
The emerging role of the teacher
7.4
The traditional task of the teacher has taken on many new dimensions ... With increasing
knowledge about learning, with continuing but more effective emphasis being given to the individualization of learning and with more responsibility being placed on the student for his
own learning, the teacher's role is fast becoming more that of a guide, co-ordinator, counsellor
and manipulator within the learning environment, than that of direct instructor?
More than this, the teacher is now making greater contributions within a school to
the development of its aims, curricula and assessment methods. Our proposals for
the government of colleges and of high schools, for the removal of external examination, and for greater involvement by teachers in the development of the
educational program, will speedily encourage this development.
7.5 Furthermore, we will be making proposals for equal teaching loads and for a
staffing organisation of a more functional kind in both the high school and the
I Instead we would hope that colleges would attract students of a wide range of ability and interests in the same way that high schools attract pupils from the primary school. that is, with anticipation on the part of students and a high level of confidence that the new institution contains programs and activities of value to them.
2 Neal & Radford p. 20.
во
college. In various staffing levels, a variety of functions and responsibilities in both
specific and broad teaching areas, as well as in administrative ones, will be needed.
It should be possible for a high school or a college to allow its teachers to interchange roles, or assume new ones, in a particular level. In many instances we see
little or no difficulty with similar interchanges occurring between a high school and
a college; in fact it is desirable that changes such as these do occur.
7.6 It seems to us that the traditional status attached to an academic,
examination-oriented discipline, that the view of many teachers that satisfaction is
to be gained through specialisation in a subject area, and that the notion of promotion implying administration rather than stronger associations with teaching, could
well diminish or, at most, these satisfactions could take their place among other
satisfying teaching roles and career opportunities.
7.7 The situation we envisage can be easily realised and we now propose
arrangements for teachers and others to study its implications. Our proposals are
not of the idealistic kind where practical application and implication are difficult to
visualise. Although we may be expecting too much with respect to the attractions it
will present to teachers to seek positions both in the high school and in the college,
we confidently believe otherwise.
Study of these proposals
7.8 In earlier chapters we have stated, and argued, our belief that the totality of
changes and trends in the Canberra society of the past decade is of such significance
that a reforging of the goals, methods and structures of government secondary
schools in the A.C.T. is necessary. Principals and school staffs have already, in
many ways and to varying degrees, experimented and adjusted by forming new
relationships with parent associations, students and the administration; by experimenting with teaching methods and student assessment; by forming new
relationships with the community, particularly the churches; and by restructuring
the content and organisation of the school's program. Further development of these
adjustments to the changes evident requires that schools have greater freedoms (and
hence greater responsibilities). It also requires the formalising of the type of
relationship with parents and the community that is emerging, and a structure
different from that now existing.
7.9 Whilst we, as a committee, are convinced of these things, it would be folly on
our part to assume that teachers, parents, and the community at large are equally
convinced, even though our views have been shaped by submissions from such
bodies. The success of even a minor change, let alone one involving the restructuring of secondary education, depends heavily on understanding the cause, nature
and purpose of the change.
7.10 We are conscious that, without careful preparation, innovation could breed
uncertainty which might have the opposite effect to that we desire. Just as it is unreasonable for an education authority to introduce `open plan' teaching, or to
replace examinations with assessment, if it has not prepared the way for change
through in-service education of teachers and principals, so we consider it would be
unreasonable if teachers were not given adequate opportunities to digest our
general and specific reasons and proposals for change, and to make their contributions to advance planning. An authority introducing innovations on the scale
we are recommending must be prepared to allocate time, funds, and the services of
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specialist advisers in preparing teachers for the changing conditions.
7.11 It is clear that all teachers will have to be conversant with the philosophy of
operation of the new high schools and colleges, and will require sufficient opportunities for detailed discussion on all aspects of the change recommended in this
report. But the need goes further than this. Teachers will need to come together in
workshop and study sessions to examine the range of issues pertaining to the
change and to establish appropriate modes of operation in sufficient detail to
enable them to operate effectively in the new educational environment.
7.12 Prior to the opening of the separate high schools and colleges, we also see a
particular need for principals and senior staff to be involved in appropriate
programmes of study and consultation. These people will play a greatly increased
role in planning and supervising the diversified educational activities which we have
recommended should be undertaken. They will also have greatly increased demands
placed on them with regard to their participation in the methods of school and
college government that we have recommended. They will therefore need to undertake a skilfully prepared and directed familiarisation program, and they will require
special leave to attend such a program. We believe that this program should involve
visits to other States of the Commonwealth and perhaps further afield, for study
and critical observation of other educational systems, by at least some of the senior
staff members.
7.13 Whilst the matter of continuing facilities for in-service education of teachers
is dealt with later in this chapter, we here make what we consider to be one of the
most important of our recommendations concerning the implementation of our
proposals.
7.14 We recommend that the Department of Education, as a priority matter, make
arrangements to ensure that teachers, through in-service education, are provided with
opportunities to familiarise themselves with the cause, nature and purpose of the
changes we are proposing, and to make their contributions to advance planning.
7.15 We recommend that the Council of Parents' and Citizens' Associations, with
the active support of members of this committee and the Department of Education,
perform a similar service for parents and the community.
Who shall teach? And where?
7.16 We see no differences between the basic characteristics of teachers, whether
they be in a college, a high school or a primary school. The qualities most likely to
be at a premium are:
(a) the ability to communicate with the age group involved in a manner to which
the latter respond in a warm, positive way so that a genuinely unforced and
productive interaction is induced; and
(b) the ability to appreciate the basic needs of this group and thus contribute to the
creation of a suitable social environment for their formal education. These
qualities will be found in teachers of all ages, sexes and levels of seniority right
through the educational system.
7.17 All teachers need to be well qualified, both in the areas of knowledge needed
by a school or college and in understanding student development processes and
teaching methods. Moreover, the further high school and college curricula move
away from subject-oriented approaches and the further teachers move from habits
conditioned by external examinations, the more demanding and, we believe,
82
rewarding will their task be in terms of their breadth of knowledge and their understanding of students.
7.18 This committee is aware of some non-graduate teachers who possess sound,
personally earned, knowledge of their fields, and who have outstanding ability to
communicate with, and to understand the needs of, senior students. Such teachers
should have the opportunity to teach in a college. On the other hand there are
teachers, with high academic attainments, who find their greatest satisfaction in
working with other age groups. We feel impelled however to advise the teacher, in
the former class, though he is able to achieve some levels of responsibility in a high
school or in a college as well as satisfaction in his teaching role, to take advantage of
the opportunities for continuing education available to him now and in the future.
7.19 This view certainly does not place academic qualifications as the prime
criterion for selection to teach in a college.
7.20 We recommend that the teaching staff (and we include here the guidance,
counselling and senior library staff') of high schools and colleges should have teacher
training of a kind and standard acceptable to the teaching profession.
7.21 We recommend that the Commissioner of the Commonwealth Teaching Service, in consultation with the Commonwealth Teachers' Federation. determine these
standards, assess equivalence of training between various teacher education institutions, and devise procedures to handle exceptional cases.
7.22 We recommend that the Education Authority, in being alert to the needs of high
school and college staffing in respect to the experience. sex, and qualifications of their
teachers, and also to the appointment opportunities of teachers, devise procedures. in
consultation with the Commonwealth Teachers' Federation, to correct any imbalance
that may arise between high schools, between colleges, and between high schools and
colleges.
Staffing and career structures
7.23 In this section we discuss the staffing structure of a high school and a college
and at the same time give an insight into possible career structures. H owever, given
the formal distinction between the Commonwealth Teaching Service and the
authority which will become responsible for schools in the A.C.T., we have been
careful to distinguish between a staffing structure for a particular school, with its
variety of positions, and where a position fits into the staffing structure of the whole
teaching service. For example, at present there are high schools and several classes
of primary schools each with a principal, but in the New South Wales teaching service these principals are on different levels; some of them are on the same level as a
master in a high school. The Neal-Radford Report makes recommendations on the
placement of various staff positions into service bands, but we feel that discussion
of this aspect of the teaching service is beyond our brief. In fact, we will make only
one recommendation relating to the matter, and give our attention to the staffing
structure within a high school or a college.
The present structure
7.24 At the present time, a typical Forms 1-6 high school in the A.C.T., with a
staff of 50 teachers, is structured as follows:
1 Guidanп, counкlling and library staffing .rc diкuжd lвнсг in thi chapicT.
83
Promotions Positions:
Assistant Positions:
I Principal
I Deputy Principal
9 Masters (8 Subject I Special)
I Teacher Librarian
38 Assistant Teachers
7.25 Some of the latter teachers, on the recommendation of the principal, are appojnted to the following positions and are either paid an allowance or given period
concessions to compensate for the special responsibilities involved:
4 Form Masters (pastoral care activities)
I Girls' Supervisor
2 Sportsmasters/Sportsmistresses
2 Careers Advisers
The school counsellor, who operates in several schools,is not included here.
7.26 In practice the subject masters and some of the assistant teachers assume
many roles other than those implied in their titles, either on a permanent or a temporary basis. Some of these roles are: development of the beginning teacher,
organisation of examinations, preparation of the time-table, liaison with student
councils, procedures for reporting student progress to parents, supervision of attendance, development of a school's audio-visual resources and training of teachers in
their use, etc.
7.27 The principal, of necessity, delegates these duties and in doing so relies heavily on his powers of persuasion and on a typical eagerness on the part of members of
his staff to become involved in school matters of a general and leadership kind.
Some masters and teachers, as a result, assume extra responsibilities of a substantial
degree, contribute a great deal to the functional effectiveness of the school, but
receive no appropriate and immediate status recognition. We feel that newer approaches to teaching, curricula and government will accentuate this problem.
7.28 It was also put to us that the time between readiness for, and the assumption
of, a position of higher responsibility and greater rewards can be excessively long in
some cases. We do not expect any relief from this situation in the A.C.T. if the present promotion structure is retained. As well, some teachers, eligible to assume
higher positions, are deterred from doing so when the positions available are administrative ones too far removed from the teaching leid.
7.29 Present staffing structures, particularly through the appointment of special
masters, form masters, girls' supervisors, careers advisers and sportsmasters,
recognise the importance of certain functions within a school and the limitations of
the original deputy principal ... subject master structure. It was put to us that more
appointments of the above type, sonic possibly of a temporary nature, are needed to
recognise the status of some of the extra functions being performed by some
masters and some teachers. As well references have been made to the need for new
roles such as co-ordination of guidance, curriculum development, adaptation and
evaluation of teaching methods and community relations.
7.30 We are reluctant to suggest further adjustments or additions to the present
structure that may mitigate the problems existing and arising or that may take account of any new needs. Instead it would be more profitable to seek a new view of
staffing and career structures.
84
New structures
7.31 It seems to us that a staffing structure should facilitate the following:
(a) the achievement of the educational purpose of the school;
(b) the functional effectiveness of the school;
(c) variations in patterns between schools;
(d) the creation of some positions of a temporary nature;
(e) a career structure within which teachers can maintain a close relationship with
teaching and educational matters as well as with administrative ones.
7.32 One new view of staffing and career structures is provided by the recommendations of the Neal-Radford Report.)
7.33 Our report emphasises the importance of developing staffing patterns that
enhance the functional effectiveness of the school as well as providing educational
leadership, with career patterns emerging rather than dominating the process. In
the next section a 'model' structure is presented as one possible outcome of the principles enunciated below. Another model structure was submitted by a teacher and is
appended. This model has some features in common with our own but we are not
certain of the basic principles underlying it.
7.34 On all the evidence before us, we recommend the adoption of the following
principles.
7.35 We recommend that, for both high schools and colleges:
(a) the staffing organisation should become more flexible to enable each school or
college to determine its own appropriate pattern within a total points allocation;
(b) the staff be so structured that the functional effectiveness of the school or college is
enhanced, with leachers undertaking varied specialised roles and with positions of
responsibility calling for a variety of leadership skills;
(e) the levels of positions of responsibility between the principal and the assistant
teachers be few in number? and a maximum of three. The junior level should contain some positions which would be occupied on a temporary basis to meet special
needs. The lower two levels should provide positions which are oriented towards
Model Staffing Structure
High School/College
Present 1-6 High School
Principal (1)
IV
Assistant Principals(a)
Senior level (7)
iII
Junior level (13) (c)
(permanent and temporary II
positions)
Assistants (29)
I
4
Principal (I)
3 Deputy Principal (1)
2 Masters (9) (b)
l(i) Form Masters (4), Librarian (1),
Girls' Supervisor (1), Careers Advisers (2), Sportsmasters (2)
(ii)Assistants (29)
(a) The inclusion of the assistant principal level is one way of fo ming a five-level structure.
b) Some masters ind some assistants assume other substantial responsibilities.
c) Responsibility allowance above position on salary scale for assistants.
An extract from the summary of recommendations of the Neal-Radford Report is given in Appendix C. •
2 The Neal-Radford Report recommends two levels. Some members of this committee incline to having three, but the majority incline to
having only two.
85
specialised teaching roles as well as administrative ones, and related leadership activities.
7.36 We recommend that career patterns and levels of responsibility be similar for
both high school and college teachers.
A possible model structure
7.37 We believe that the model (see p.85) is an outcome of the application of the
above principles. In it we show a four-level structure with one way of extending it to
five. We are not recommending that it be the adopted structure. All aspects of it,
such as the number of levels, the number of positions in a level, whether there
should be appointment salaries, salary ranges and/or allowances, call for much
more discussion. Whilst we do support the principles underlying this model, it is
presented simply as a contribution to general discussion.
7.38 We confine our comments to the nature of the positions in the two middle
levels, i.e. II and III. But again, we emphasise, they will be suggestive only. This
leads to a brief diversion to make the following recommendation.
7.39 We recommend that the Department of Education, as the interim authority,
select and consult with several Forms 1-6 high schools, individually, in order to establish further staff structure models based on the above principles and that the
remaining high schools be invited to make their own studies.
7.40 We envisage that the positions in any one level would be equivalent to each
other. They would largely consist of roles closely related to teaching and
educational matters, but some would be of an administrative kind. An occupant of
any position, of course, would need a certain background and potential to fulfil a
particular role. One implication of this is that a particular teacher could successfully
fulfil several different roles. This suggests the feasibility, and we think the desirability, that some teachers should interchange roles at some interval of time. Why must
the physical education teacher, for instance, be confined to the role of sportsmaster,
as frequently occurs, when he may have the background and interest to assume
other roles in addition to this special teaching role?
7.41 We offer some illustrations of the types of tasks that a school or college
might define and position in a staffing structure:
(a) Level II
Form Master
Supervisor of Girls
Co-ordinator and Planner—Sport
Co-ordinator---Library Services
Curriculum Planner—Program A
—Remedial Program
Consultant—Beginning Teachers
Leader—Teaching Team
Designer—Learning Material for Program B
Some positions in this level would be held on a temporary basis as major short-term
tasks arise.
(b) Level III
One of the Level III positions might be that of Assistant Principal, but, if the
notion of interchanging roles is fostered, there is no need for a particular person
to permanently occupy the position. The position could have a salary allowance
86
to recognise its status. See (c) below for an alternative to this and the creation of
a further level.
Co-ordinators of:
Instruction,
Guidance and Counselling Services,
Evaluation Program,
Professional Development,
Administration.
(c) An Additional Level
A position for an Assistant Principal with an appointment salary. This introduces a fifth level between Levels III and IV.
7.42 Finally, we suggest that a structure of the kind we are supporting would
readily embrace new functions that the future may hold in store.
Special staffing matters
7.43 If we look back several decades we find that pupils were in a `fixed class, talk
and chalk, one text book per subject' situation. Many changes have taken place
since then. Teachers now employ many new technques, involving sight and sound,
separately and together, either teacher or student controlled, to make the learning
process more efficient and enjoyable.
7.44 Libraries are in the process of changing from remote unimportant areas,
visited only by the more academically inclined, to busy resource centres where a
vast array of information is available in visual and audio forms to appeal to pupils
of all interests and abilities.
7.45 Teachers have had to develop a whole range of skills in using materials unknown a few years ago. Theře materials must be prepared or purchased, they must
be available when needed and stored when not needed. It is more economical to use
non-teaching staff to carry out most of these tasks.
7.46 Schools recognise and have a better understanding of the needs and treatment of the handicapped and those with special learning problems. Furthermore,
schools have accepted a greater degree of responsibility for the guidance of students
and, although much of this is given by teachers as an integral part of their work, the
full-time counsellor has a vital role to play.
7.47 Schools are responsible for large sums of money, schools purchase a wide
range of goods and services for the students, and are responsible for ordering,
receiving and using equipment running into thousands of items and costing many
thousands of dollars. There is an ever-increasing burden of correspondence and
calls to supply information, statistics, and recommendations relating to the
students.
Specialist teachers
7.48 In this section we discuss the implications for staffing of these developments,
and make recommendations so that a high school or college might be serviced more
effectively. We begin by examining the provision of staff for guidance, the importance of which we have stressed in earlier chapters.
7.49 Guidance is a strand running through the student's school life. It involves all
teachers and counsellors. As now constituted the counselling service alone has con87
tact with the child from the beginning of Infants to the end of secondary school. (In
some cases, the child will be known in pre-school areas.)
7.50 The functions of the school counsellor have been discussed in Chapter 4.
There the following points were made:
(1) There should be an increase in the number of counsellors to enable them to play
a greater part in the total guidance program.
(2) The counselling service provides an important means of forging links between
primary school, high school and college. The implication here is that a
counsellor would work in, at least, two levels of the education system.
(3) A counsellor must be regarded as belonging to the staff of the schools to which
he is attached and hence becomes a part of the guidance structure of those
schools. We have already suggested that each school and college might have a
Level III position for a co-ordinator of its guidance and counselling functions.
7.51 Since this group of teachers is functioning over several levels of the education
system it seems to us that, for convenience in organising their work, in their deployment, and in their positioning in the teaching service the counselling service be
regarded as a co-ordinated structure within the total system. We will make some
recommendations concerning their career structure and its relationship to that of all
teachers. However, we wish to avoid creating a rigid, closed separate organisation.
7.52 We recommend that in respect to the counselling service:
( а ) the number of counsellors be substantially increased;
(b) a group of counsellors be associated with a college, several high schools and
several primary schools, with one counsellor co-ordinating the work of the group;
(c) a counsellor be responsible for co-ordinating the work of all the groups and for the
deployment of the counselling staff,•
(d) Level I1 and Level III positions be established in the counselling service, and that a
Level I V position be established at a suitable stage in its growth;
(e) the occupant of a Level II or Level 111 position be able to counsel in the
primary/high school or the high school/college continuum;
(f) all teachers, with the necessary qualifications, be eligible to apply for positions in
the counselling service, and, conversely, all members of the counselling service,
with the necessary qualifications, be eligible to apply for positions in a high school
or in a college.
7.53 As the service grows we see a progression occurring in respect to the coordinator of the counselling service as follows:
(a) one Level III position at present;
(b) several Level III positions, one of which would be fillеd by the co-ordinator;
(c) finally, one Level IV position.
7.54 At present each school has two careers advisers who are teachers drawn from
any subject area and who have a special period allowance to give vocational information to students. We see the need for a change. We believe that a specialist
teacher in the social science area should have information concerning careers and
that this information be taught as part of a social science course. This would give all
students a reasonable background on careers.
7.55 We recommend that careers information should be available from and taught by
a specialist teacher in the social sciences area. Vocational guidance should be the
responsibility of the counsellor.
7.56 We do not think it necessary to do more than state that certain children such
88
as the blind, the part-sighted, the deaf, the severely retarded, the autistic, the dyslectic, the spastic and those suffering from language delay must have special provision
made for them. The need is recognised for teachers to take small groups of New
Australian students who have little English, for intensive courses. This must continue.
7.57 We turn our attention to the need for specialist teachers for the mildly retarded person in the high school. We think that, in general, such students should attend
their local schools and be treated, so far as the corporate life of the school is concerned, in a normal manner. However, these students cannot cope with normal
classroom work. We see the need for O.A. classes and slow learner classes such as
exist at present. Such classes should be staffed with teachers who have had special
training and have the degree of patience, commitment and understanding needed.
Furthermore, such teachers should not necessarily leave this field to qualify for
promotion.
7.58 We emphasise our conviction that all teachers should diagnose difficulties
and weaknesses and should, as part of their normal teaching in their own content
area carry out remedial work in reading and speech. There is evidence that a significant number of students at high school level will still need remedial assistance in
matters such as reading and speech. We believe that each school or group of schools
should have, over and above its normal staffing complement, the services of
remedial teachers, some of whom can advise schools on their remedial programs as
well as teaching particular groups.
7.59 If an adequate counselling service were provided it would be expected that
reading and other difficulties would be identified in the primary school and appropriate help given.
7.60 We recommend that specialist teachers be provided for mentally and physically
handicapped students, for those not fluent in English, for those with specific learning
disabilities and for those in need of expert remedial help.
7.61 We recommend that, as information becomes available from research on
specific learning difficulties and successful techniques evolve, schools be staffed and
equipped accordingly.
7.62 We think there would be much to gain by having teachers from all areas who
have shown outstanding skill in various specialised fields seconded from their
schools for varying lengths of time to devise and run in-service training courses and
to be available on request, to go to other schools to give assistance. We believe that
facilities and advisers must be available to answer the needs which arise from rapidly changing teaching techniques.
7.63 Religious studies have been discussed in Chapter 4 and the recommendation
is there made that religious studies, historical and critical on the one hand and
ethical and social on the other, be integrated into the core curriculum and taught by
a member of the normal teaching staff after appropriate preparation. Related to
this area is the question of moral guidance and ethics. It has been suggested to us
that perhaps some chaplaincy could be arranged with the clergy of the district.
Some.schools have had some success with seminars and discussion groups in which
the clergymen of the district have played a large part. We feel that all these matters
however would be best left to the individual high schools and colleges to work out
as they see fit. However, particularly at the high school level, we feel that the matter
of moral guidance must receive considerable attention.
89
7.64 We would expect that high schools and colleges would make use of the experts in many fields available in the community. No doubt all curriculum areas
would benefit by inviting such persons into the schools. This is already done in
many schools and we think the practice should be extended.
7.65 The library has expanded into a resources centre and the role of the librarian
has expanded with it. More and more will the student be responsible for selfmotivated and self-directed learning in this centre, spending less time in the
traditional classroom situation. These centres are rapidly becoming big, busy areas.
7.66 It must be remembered that, in addition to books there is an increasing
number of audio-visual aids, such as cassettes, films, video tapes, etc. to be
prepared and catalogued. Furthermore, the library serves as a resources centre for
each subject area and will make materials and programs available to other parts of
the high school or college.
7.67 In so far as we believe that the hours of the library-resources centre should be
extended considerably in the high schools and should be continuous from 9 a.m. to
9 p.m. in colleges, then we consider that the library staff must be greatly increased.
7.68 Ideally, a teacher-librarian should have teacher training followed by
classroom experience and, in addition, should have full professional library
qualifications and experience. However, to be realistic, we doubt if many persons
with such breadth of training and experiences are readily available. A professional
librarian, having expertise in reader advisory services and reference matters would
complement the work of a teacher-librarian and would be of great assistance to certain individual students, in particular, those working at higher academic levels.
Furthermore the professional librarian would make a valuable contribution
because of extensive training in such matters as cataloguing and classification.
7.69 We consider the minimum staffing requirements for colleges and high
schools to be those outlined by the Commonwealth Secondary Schools Libraries
Committee in their publication Standards for Secondary School Libraries. On these
standards, high schools with 800 students should have a teacher-librarian (a
professional librarian), two clerical assistants and a library/media assistant with
suitable technical training to serve the library and other areas in the school. We
suggest the addition of a professional librarian, for the reasons outlined in 7.66.
Colleges should, according to these standards, have two teacher-librarians plus two
professional librarians, two clerical assistants and library/media assistance.
7.70 We recommend that the library staffing arrangements, in both colleges and high
schools, meet the standards set down by the Commonwealth Secondary Schools
Libraries Conirni' lee.
Non-leaching ,staff
7.71 In addition to the non-teaching staff required in the library, many other nonteaching staff members are needed. They fall into two broad categories. Firstly
there are those needed to carry out the highly skilled or relatively unskilled tasks
associated with the running of any large institution which handles money, orders,
stores and writes letters. The others are those who give direct assistance to the
teaching staff.
7.72 Bursar and office staff. Running today's school — even more so, tomorrow's
— is a significant financial and managerial task. A very strong case can be made in
the existing circumstances of school organisation for employing a non-teaching
specialist to manage and account for the scores of thousands of dollars disbursed
90
directly by the school. Received in the form of fees, donations from the P. & C. and
Tuckshop Committees, and subsidies and grants, these funds are spent on a variety
of expendable materials, equipment and amenities. Ordering, receiving and supervising the large quantities of stock involved and performing the associated bookkeeping are tasks that now generally fall largely to teaching staff.
7.73 If our recommendations concerning the government of colleges and high
schools are accepted, additional functions will be created that are new and more
demanding. Governing councils will require administrative backing to sevice their
operations. Agenda materials will need to be prepared and collated and minutes
recorded. More importantly, with greater educational and financial autonomy will
come the need to cost out alternative educational options and strategies open to the
institution; estimates will have to be prepared for the authority and financial
statements rendered to it. To cope with these new tasks, as well as with those now
existing, we see a pressing need to employ, in each college and high school, a
business manager, or bursar, with professional training in accountancy and
management. We see the bursar's position as one of very considerable responsibility
and status.
7.74 Nurse. Our schools have sick rooms which are reasonably well fitted out. The
sick and injured are cared for by teachers or office staff who have to find the time
from other duties. Frequently a sick child must remain in the sickroom all day
because both parents are at work and neither can be contacted. A properly qualified
nurse is needed, not only to give skilled and continuous care, but to keep records
which might indicate chronic or serious ailments which would otherwise go undetected.
7.75 Janitor. Not only will library hours be extended considerably, but greater
participation in extra-curricular activities is bringing teachers and students increasingly together outside the traditional school hours and days. Some school
buildings are now used for evening colleges and we hope acceptable arrangements
can be made for more community use of school facilities. To supervise such heavy
use of buildings, the services of a janitor are needed for long hours. This will be especially true in the case of college buildings but it applies to high schools as well. In
addition, it is to be hoped that the presence of a janitor might deter the vandals who
are attracted to unattended buildings. We note with satisfaction that the design
brief for the new colleges included provision of a flat for a resident janitor.
7.76 Faculty assistants. For many years schools have had the services of a `maid'
in the home science area. The comparatively recent appointment of non-teaching
assistants to science areas has enabled science teachers to concentrate on teaching
and spend less time handling, repairing and cleaning apparatus. This type of help
should be extended and all faculty areas should have non-teaching help for such
jobs as setting out materials needed for specific lessons, and looking after the issue
and return of textbooks. The need is particularly great in certain areas where
reference material must be ready for almost every lesson. Special mention must be
made of the Manual Arts Department where teachers at present have to find time to
cut timber to the sizes needed and to repair and sharpen tools.
7.77 We recommend that each high school and college has a greatly increased ancillary staff to include a professionally qualified bursar, sufficient secretarial staff, a
trained nurse, a full-tinmejanitor. and дго n-teaching assistants to answer the needs of all
faculty areas.
91
7.78 We recommend that all non-teaching staff have suitable pre-service training and
further in-service training as required.
Continuing education of professional staff
In earlier chapters it has been argued that rapid changes in society and
technology, coupled with the knowledge explosion, are imposing new, more varied,
and more numerous demands on teachers and administrators at all levels of responsibility. Examples of new or augmented duties and responsibilities come readily to
mind. Curricula must be re-evaluated, renewed and extended. New instructional
methods, including use of multi-media and team teaching, for example, require to
be perfected and diffused. Teachers need the expertise to guide students who are increasingly critical of authority and more sophisticated than students of earlier
decades, and to inform and interact with a community taking a greater interest in
education. There is need for a re-delineation of the purpose and methods of supervisory leadership in education. Teachers in the schools will need greater expertise in
internal assessment procedures as these progressively replace external examinations.
7.80 These educational developments require a professional work force that is, individually and collectively, continually updating its knowledge, skills, experience
and insight, through formal and informal in-service education. This education will
be obtained in part on the job, in part through teachers' own professional reading,
and in part through tertiary educational institutions. Knowledge of subject fields
will need to be broadened, deepened and updated, and teachers will inevitably seek
experience of subject fields related to their current ones, if our hopes for interdisciplinary approaches are to be realised. The findings of educational, psychological and sociological research should be studied by practising teachers with a
view to their imaginative application to particular school situations. It is highly
desirable that every high school and college have a core of teachers familiar with the
technology of the audio-visual revolution. Educational administrators must inevitably come to grips with the organisational revolution which is already having
far-reaching effects on industry and government in the U.S.A.
7.81 Fortunately, the A.C.T. has all the tertiary educational institutions needed
for in-service education of teachers and educational administrators — the
Australian National University, the Canberra College of Advanced Education, and
the Canberra Technical College. For the success of the secondary education
changes we are recommending, a major commitment to teacher education in the
next three years is essential, with a standing commitment thereafter.
7.79
7.82 We recommend that in the years 1973-1975, as a matter of urgency, and
thereafter as a matter of continuing policy, the education authority:
(a) identify the areas where the expertise of professional staff is inadequate;
(b) negotiate with tertiary institutions where it is found that requisite courses are not
already being offered;
(c) encourage its professional staff, both teachers and administrators, to undertake
courses to improve their efficiency and readiness to assume new or additional roles
and responsibilities.
In the past, many recruits to teaching have received inadequate pre-service
education. They have been expected thereafter to make considerable sacrifice of
7.83
92
leisure and health, and their families have had to suffer loss of normal homě life,
while the teachers struggled for years to gain proper professional qualifications. We
would hope that henceforth teachers will be given proper pre-service education.
Along with this general point, we wish to emphasise the importance of teachers in
their early training gaining an appreciation and knowledge of primary, high school
and college education. While we cannot be prescriptive about this, we would urge
those involved with teacher education to so arrange their programs that such experience can be gained by student teachers.
7.84 Teachers who seek to further improve their qualifications after entering the
service do of course stand to gain personally in salary and in accelerated promotion,
and can be expected to make some personal sacrifice. However, it would be unfair
to students in college and high schools if their teachers were overburdened by a full
teaching load with study superimposed, since the professional performance of such
teachers would be impaired. Furthermore, the general trend to the 35-hour week
and the overall increase of leisure time makes necessary a more generous attitude
towards teachers and educational administrators undertaking part-time study.
7.85 Once the four-year high schools and colleges are established and operating, it
can be envisaged that a good deal of the in-service work will take place at the school
level, given that each school will be autonomous and seeking to establish its own
modus operandi for itself, backed up by the kind of resources in terms of personnel
and facilities that we recommend elsewhere. Nevertheless, it can also be envisaged,
because of the strong element of flexibility that we have sought to establish, that
there will be a continuing need for teachers to participate in a wide range of inservice activities, including the opportunity at least once a year, to interact in an appropriate environment over a number of consecutive days with outstanding
educators and curriculum specialists. We believe that the concept of in-service
training will be given expression at many levels and in many groupings within the
overall structure of A.C.T. education, and see the need for the co-ordination of at
least some of these activities. We believe that consideration should be given to the
establishment of a residential conference centre similar in concept and setting to
that of the Raywood Conference Centre in South Australia.
7.86 It is also clear that appropriate arrangements will need to be worked out to
enable teachers to participate in such courses and meetings and, in this respect, sufficient time will need to be made available during the school year to ensure that
what must be regarded as an essential part of the educational process can occur
without undue restriction. We also believe that in addition to the continuing
program of in-service training outlined above, sabbatical leave should be available
to teachers at the end of each six-year period of service, to enable them to further
their educational studies.
7.87
We recommend that a continuing program of in-service education be arranged
by the Education Authority for principals and staff in А . С. Т. schools, during school
hours.
7.88 We recommend that where teachers have an approved part-time study commitment their professional work load in the school or college be reduced.
7.89 We recommend that leave on full pay for periods up to a year be granted to
professional staff prepared rigorously to pursue approved courses which will improve
their efficiency as teachers or administrators.
93
The teaching establishment
7.90 The teaching establishment should be of such a number and kind as to
facilitate the achievement of the approved aims, objectives and methods of a high
school or a college. Adequate provision of professional teaching staff is vital to the
success of the proposals in this report. The degree to which our hopes are turned
into realities will largely depend on the number and quality of the high
school/college staff establishment.
7.91 We isolate for discussion the areas of guidance/library/ancillary staff,
general teaching, class sizes, assistant teaching loads, the beginning teacher, and
period allowances for leadership roles. Without wishing to specify numbers or formulae, the following considerations will clearly be relevant to determining the
numbers of staff required.
7.92 Some of our proposals will require staff additional to that now provided in
the areas of guidance, library, ancillary staff, and other allowances. But we observe
that there is a general acceptance that this is essential and over the past decade staff
has been progressively increased in some of these areas. Ways and means of
accelerating the process need further investigation.
7.93 We are uncertain whether our curriculum proposals, considered in isolation
from our other recommendations, will require more or fewer teachers in the general
teaching areas. This will become clearer as the proposals are worked out in more
detail. In the meantime, we make the following comments.
7.94 The Wyndham scheme, in producing a wider choice of courses and a variety
of levels of study in each subject, brought with it increased staffing requirements. At
present, the number of teachers assigned to a school is based on the number of
English classes in a school.' Before the Wyndham scheme was introduced in the
junior schools staff was provided on the basis of 1.3 teachers per English class? In
1972, Form 1 was allowed 1.4 teachers per English class; Form 2, 1.5; Forms 3 and
4, 1.6 teachers. We have been unable to make a similar comparison in the senior
school, but report that 1.7 teachers were provided per English class in 1972. We
recognise that the variety of courses emanating from our curriculum proposals may
have a further effect on the staff establishment.
7.95 Further, our study of the change from a Forms l-6 to a 1-4 high
school/college configuration under the present organisation and curricular pattern,
in the A.C.T., shows that five per cent fewer staff would be required on present
standards if the change were made.
7.96 It is obvious that the optimum size of a group of students, particularly in a
college, will vary enormously as between exposition and demonstration, film and
seminar, workshop and guided study group, creative writing class and the audience
for a visiting lecturer, remedial teaching and some kinds of practical work.
7.97 We recommend that high schools and colleges be staffed so that each has a
reasonable degree of flexibility to determine and operate an optimum range of group
sizes.
7.98 In Chapter 3, we have recommended that, for staffing purposes, class sizes
should be calculated in accordance with the recommendation of the Scott Committee3.Our reasons, which also define the application of the recommendation, are:
I ... class sizes of e maximum of about 30 in the junior secondary school (i.e. Forms 1-4) and not more than 20 to 25 (depending upon the
subject area) in the senior school: (p. 49).
2
з
There were 327 English classes in A.C.T. government high schools in 1972; 356 are expected in 1973.
Stab requirements for guidance, choir. orchestra. library organisation. cadets, sportsmastors, scripture, promotion position allowances,
ancillary stiff. etc. are excluded from these calculations. Some are mentioned under (1) above.
94
(1) There is evidence that the lowering of the size of many groups to about 30 in
Forms 2-4 and not more than 20 to 25 (depending upon the subject area) in the
senior school will contribute a great deal to the general development of students
and to increase teacher satisfaction. A similar claim in the area of student attainment cannot be made on the research evidence at present available We also
noted that these class sizes are an objective of many Departments of Education
both in Australia and overseas. The attainment of this situation would require
an increase in staff of the order of 10 per cent.
(2) With a significant proportion of groups in the range 31-40 students, schools at
present have little opportunity to vary the size of groups to meet various purposes and needs. The use of the group sizes quoted in (1), in a staffing formula,
would increase the school or college's flexibility in organisation.
7.99 We recommend that where class sizes are part of a formula in determining a
school or college's teaching establishment, they be a maximum of about 30 in the high
school and not more than 20 to 25 (depending upon the subject area) in the college,
with appropriate. reductions for practical classes.
7.100 In some discussions of teacher work loads, it is contended that teachers of
senior secondary students require a reduction in the number of hours of face-to-face
teaching because of the greater complexity of the content taught at that level. We
are by no means convinced of this. While college teaching might be more demanding in terms of preparation of subject matter, the high school teacher will carry a
heavy responsibility to train his students in study techniques, to help students locate
and organise resource material, and to meet his custodial functions outside the
classroom. Once the new institutions are established, a thorough investigation of all
issues touching upon teaching loads should be held. This investigation should seek
to assess, amongst other things, the amount of preparation and the amount of
follow-up work required as well as the demands of actual teaching situations.
Whatever findings that study comes to, our basic principle in this matter should be
adhered to.
7.101 We recommend that the teaching loads of teachers of comparable levels in high
schools and colleges be the same.
7.102 We are aware of the problems and the possible outcomes of the experiences
of beginning teachers. Schools are also conscious of this and do make some provision to assist their development. We believe that all parties involved, the beginning
teacher himself, the school, and the education system, would be greatly aided if he
has a lighter teaching load.
7.103 We recommend that the beginning teacher, at least in his first year of teaching,
has a reduced teaching load.
7.104 We have endorsed the proposals of the Neal-Radford Report for functional
as well as subject specialisation, for new patterns of educational leadership, and for
the assumption of leadership roles early in a professional career. We have also
pointed out how our own recommendations in areas such as curriculum development and school or college government heighten the importance of such provisions.
7.105 Our concern here is to ensure that those teachers who assume a leadership
role not only have financial and status rewards but also have sufficient time to carry
out their responsibilities. At the present time, teachers in leadership roles have a
time allowance only, a financial allowance only, or no allowance at all. Efficient
performance of new responsibilities is less likely if they are merely superimposed on
a normal teaching load.
95
7.106 We recommend that, as well as salary allowances and status, positions involving educational leadership have an appropriate time allowance.
7.107 We summarise the matters concerning staff establ ishment discussed in this
section in the following recommendation:
7.108 We recommend that the teaching establishment and the aпсiПary staff of a
high school and of a college be of such a number and kind as iofaciliiate the achievement of their approved aims, objectives and methods.
7.109 We have already stated our view that at least some of the teaching staff need
to be appointed in advance of the opening of the new colleges so that they can participate in planning. Procedures for the selection of principals and staff must be
devised so that the main functions and purposes agreed upon should not be inhibited. Machinery to enable this to occur should have been established before the
re-structuring takes place.
7.110 With this need for participation both in planning the operation of the new
institutions and in devising appropriate curriculum material, and with the opening
of new colleges in 1976 in mind, we recommend that the following time-table be
adopted to prepare for the opening of each of the four new colleges' in 1976:
(a) the principal should be known at the beginning of 1974 and should be available for
consultation with an expert Curriculum Advisory Board also established on a permanent basis at the beginning of 1974.
(b) before the middle of 1974, the Curriculum Advisory Board should brief interim
committees with some full-time members to provide suggested syllabus material by
mid-1975.
(c) the principal and one deputy principal and the librarian should be appointed at the
beginning of 1975 on a full-time basis to prepare the general organisation for the
opening of the College.
(d) senior staff appointments should be known at the beginning of 1975. These
teachers should be available for consultation and planning throughout 1975 with
necessary relief provided from classroom teaching.
during
1975. regular consultation with Form 4 students in existing schools should
(e)
be made in order to determine the range of courses to be offered. They should
make firm selection of courses by the end of second term so that detailed organisation for opening the college can proceed, although students may request variations
at later stages.
(f) staffing, purchase of basic equipment. provision of facilities (library, etc.) should
be well in hand early in third term, 1975.
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CHAPTER 8
Educational Facilities
8.l If the new secondary education program we envisage is to be successful it is
clear that thought must be devoted to the provision of appropriate educational
facilities, to allow both students and teachers to take optimum advantage from the
new courses and organisation. These facilities for both colleges and high schools fall
into two broad categories: buildings and equipment, with equipment including such
materials as books and programmed learning kits.
8.2 The Neal-Radford Report advocates that schools should have flexibility in
their organisation and staffing. We strongly support this view and believe that in
the designing of new schools and colleges the emphasis must be on flexibility also.
The buildings should be designed in such a way that schools have maximum choice
in the use of accommodation. Extensive use should be made of varying sizes of learfing areas, demountable partitioning, open space etc., to create this flexibility.
8.3 In the case of alterations and additions to existing schools we believe that the
objective should be to create accommodation which is similar in provision and standard to that of a new complex. Some further discussion of these matters is given
later in this chapter.
Educational materials and equipment
8.4 Since one of our aims is to see a more student-oriented program in our high
schools and colleges, we believe it will be essential for them to be well supplied with
basic materials and well equipped with modern teaching aids. The development of
new courses brings a need for new types of equipment. Additional materials and
media will also be required to ensure efficient operation of open learning spaces and
the open laboratory and craft areas proposed by the Department of Education.
8.5 The present practice for new high schools to be provided with stores and
equipment as ordered by the new principal and an officer of the Department of
Education has been only moderately successful. The lists and requisitions used have
been based upon the extensive experience gained in opening new schools in New
South Wales and the Australian Capital Territory. Materials for the administration
and for the day-to-day affairs in the various subject departments of such schools
have depended more on numbers of students being enrolled than on any changes in
the structure of the buildings. Basic items of equipment provided for art-craft areas,
science laboratories, health and physical education have been those considered for
the general functioning of those areas. Funds provided by the Department of
Education and the New South Wales Department of Education have proved sufficient to enable a new high school to commence operations satisfactorily. It should
be pointed out, however, that considerable inconvenience and inefficient administration have resulted from the practice of delivering some supplies midway
through the first year of the school's operation. The total provision of materials is
based upon the projected enrolments for the first year. The efficient operation of
the school depends upon these materials being available from the beginning of the
97
first year. In the case of new colleges which will have their total enrolment by the
beginning of the second year the complete allocation of materials should be made at
the outset.
8.6 The general provision of the accountable items of equipment to recently opened high schools has approached a satisfactory standard, but again it must be
emphasised that what.have become standard practices in administration and class
room procedures have determined the materials to be supplied. The experience
gained in some of the secondary schools which are commencing to use open learning areas could prove valuable in assessing the needs of the new high schools yet to
be planned and constructed.
8.7 We believe that any change from the strictly structured classroom operation of
a school to a procedure allowing for the instruction of large groups and small
groups while permitting considerable periods of independent study by the students
will require a re-assessment of the needs of the different study areas. The greatest
demand will be for more individual and small group work-stations with ready
access to books and other materials. There will be a need for simple easy-to-use
materials which are not overly expensive. The simple programmed text can he expected to give way to extended reference sources which must be readily available.
These will include print in all forms, static visual material, sound media, moving
visual and audio-visual material, tools and apparatus such as found in workshops
and laboratories.
8.8 The organisation of the learning resources will become of major concern when
extensive packages of curriculum materials such as books, pamphlets, folders,
slides, transparencies, tapes, cassettes, records, films and tele-recordings are in constant use. Materials of this range will demand well-organised distribution systems
run by teachers and assisted by technical and other ancillary staff. Effective use of
those materials will only be possible when the appropriate teaching machines such
as slide and movie projectors, tape and cassette recorders, overhead projectors and
video-tape recorders are readily available. We believe there will be a need to provide
more of this equipment than is readily available in the average A.C.T. high school.
8.9 The material can be divided into four main categories:
(a) that needed regularly by the individual student at his place of work and requiring handy storage space under constant supervision to avoid depletion from
whatever cause;
(b) that which can be held centrally in the school but is easily transportable to the
student's place of work;
(c) that held centrally at a school library-resources centre where it can be used freelу by the students:
(d) that which is more specialised and more expensive, and is held on a regional
basis, but can be readily ordered and delivered to the school.
8.10 The provision of efficient copying services, readily accessible to students and
staff, is being extended in high schools at present but will be called upon to a greater
degree in schools in the future. This has been noticed particularly in those places
where an inter-disciplinary approach to studies has been adopted. Consideration
should also be given to the provision of coin-operated copying machines in all
libraries.
8.1 1 We recommend, as a matter of necessity, that all high schools and colleges be
provided with adequate audio-visual equipment, apparatus, and teaching aids, and that
98
machinery be devised by the Education Authority to ensure that these are available
when the school or college commences operation.
Text-books
8.12 Consideration will have to be given to likely variations in the present practice
of providing texts in subject areas for the use of individual students. A tendency to
provide mostly small sets of texts is already apparent and this will increase with the
adoption of other teaching techniques. A careful appraisal of the present text-book
hire and text-book subsidy arrangements will need to be undertaken. As the
students in secondary schools will tend to rely less on set texts as sources of information and make more use of the extensive software in the various resources centres, the appropriateness of the present contribution by parents for text-book hire
must be reviewed. The present scheme depends for its success to a great degree upon
the obvious benefits apparent in the numbers of text-books made available for the
students for constant use. The reaction of parents when their financial assistance is
required for the provision of items of an entirely different kind cannot be foretold
but the consequent problems of financing school purchases are likely to be considerable.
Library collections
8.13 The initial stocking of the library-resources centre will need to be at a
satisfactory level if the new schools and colleges are to function efficiently from the
beginning. This is particularly important in relation to the colleges which will depend very heavily on their library-media centre. Even if colleges receive the initial
grant of $5,000 currently made to new high schools they will at first have pitifully
few books. We believe it undesirable for all new schools to be put in this position
and for parents to have to shoulder the burden of funding library expansion up to
something nearer a satisfactory standard. Though this parental contribution is now
encouraged and supplemented by library subsidies, the process of building up adequate collections is very slow. This has been reluctantly accepted by parents in the
past because new high schools have typically begun operation with only two or
three forms at the junior end of the school, so school and library could grow
simultaneously.
8.14 Colleges by contrast will open with 400 students and in their second year will
be operating at their capacity of 800 students so the traditional gradual build-up of
library materials would be unsatisfactory. Moreover the library in both college and
high school will assume a much more central function than it has had in the past.
This will mean a larger range and number of books and additional impetus to the
trend towards a multi-media collection of materials.
8.15 We believe that in view of these circumstances it is quite unrealistic to look
primarily to parents as the chief supplier of library resources. In fact, we believe
that all school libraries should be brought up to standards recommended by the
Commonwealth Secondary Schools Libraries Committee in its booklet Standards
for Secondary School Libraries. This would mean that a high school for 800 students
should have a basic stock of some 5,700 books and should have the opportunity
eventually to build up to a collection of about 12,000 books. It would also mean
that a college for 800 senior students should have a basic stock of about 6,900 books
and should have the opportunity to develop a collection of about 18,000 books. We
believe the Education Authority should arrange the purchase of the basic stock of
99
books and have the processing completed before the opening of the high school or
college concerned. We envisage that the additional acquisitions would be achieved
over a period and would be selected on the basis of the school or college's own
preferences. This would mean that each institution would have sufficient library
stocks to operate satisfactorily from its opening day, but that it could develop
special characteristics according to its own judgment.
8.16 We recoinniend that the initial library grant for new high schools and colleges
be sufficient to provide a resource collection to the Commonwealth Secondary Schools
Library Committee standard.
8.17 Further, we believe that appropriate negotiations should be entered into with
the Canberra Public Library authorities to explore the possibilities of the integration of college and high school libraries with community library services. We understand such negotiations are being arranged.
8.18 We recommend that the Education Authority enter into negotiations with the
Canberra Public Library authorities with the aim of integration of facilities.
Relocation of existing resources
8.19 Another area which has engaged our attention is that of the rationalisation of
equipment, library books, texts, etc. in existing schools which will become either
high schools or colleges. Those schools which will become colleges will have no
need of their junior materials, and to some extent the reverse will be true for schools
which lose their senior students, although much of the senior material will be of
value to fourth form students, particularly if they have greater opportunity to extend their interests and pursue in-depth studies in certain areas.
8.20 in line with our policy of autonomy in schools we consider that final decision
on what materials and equipment are no longer needed should be made the responsibility of the school. Details of surplus equipment would then be expected to vary
from school to school. Arrangements for transfer of such equipment between
schools should be assisted by the educational administration. Schools should be encouraged not to retain unnecessary equipment by assurances that requests for more
equipment will be sympathetically treated.
8.21 Our attitude on the question of relocation of materials can be summarised as
follows:
(a) no student or group of students should be disadvantaged by the restructuring
including relocation of materials;
(b) the new structure should not place on parents a heavier financial responsibility
to support or equip schools or colleges than they already bear; and
(c) effective use should be made of existing materials.
8.22 It would be wasteful if each existing high school were to retain its complete
stock of advanced science equipment and if wholly new and substantially identical
equipment were provided in each college. But, given that students should be encouraged to pursue their interests in various areas of knowledge to the point where
their abilities are stretched, we are certain that a good deal of the equipment now
used only by seniors (e.g. some types of microscopes, slides of various specialised
kinds, etc.) would be essential to some juniors in the future. We suggest, therefore,
that schools make assessments of what materials would be surplus to their needs
and that this be made available to colleges, and that the future fourth form high
100
schools be provided, in return, with equipment needed because of enlarged junior
enrolments.
8.23 The same procedure should be applied to the treatment of the whole range of
teaching aids and equipment, used primarily at the moment in senior classes and
provided from school or P. & C. funds — wall maps, records, sound and video
tapes, films and film strips, etc. When freed from the constraints of courses which
inhibit intensive examination of narrow subject areas, a significant proportion of
junior students could make use of many of these materials. (There is no reason why
an able student should not wish — and be encouraged — to make an in-depth study
of the economic geography of the Soviet Union, for example, or of the geology of
his neighbourhood. Both require facilities not normally available at the present to
juniors). Equipment and aids surplus to probable future needs could be made
available to colleges and more relevant materials supplied.
8.24 Many senior text-books will become redundant in high schools and junior
text-books redundant in the two schools converted to colleges. Although text-book
stocks and text-book requirements may not match identically, especially if there are
important curricular changes, an exchange of text-books between schools in the
older areas of Canberra raises no major problems of equity or convenience. In both
Belconnen and Widen, however, there will be some relatively new schools that will
have to provide text-books for senior classes even though they cater for seniors for
only a few years. The colleges in those areas will be new institutions and will have
no junior texts with which to make an exchange. We do not see this as a major
problem since students will move from the high school to the college in any case.
8.25 The relocation of library books calls for a different approach. Most schools
have divided their libraries into junior and senior sections and place restrictions on
the use of the senior library by junior students. This has been done mainly to give
seniors an opportunity to use the library during private study periods without disturbing (or being disturbed by) scheduled library periods for juniors and to improve
their access to books relevant to their courses. It has the effect also of creating a
false distinction between 'senior library books' and 'junior library books'. All
books held in senior libraries could appropriately and usefully be held in junior
libraries. To argue otherwise would be to ignore the fact that some juniors (fourth
formers in particular) read those books, when they can get them, in the course of
their studies; to imply that there is a level of difficulty or sophistication in books
beyond which juniors cannot or ought not be encouraged to go; and to deny to
juniors one of the avenues through which intellectual 'stretching may be reached.
8.26 We r еcot пm епd that decisions related to the rationalisation of holdings of equipment, apparatus, and text-books should be left to individual schools, although there
will be a need for supplementary grants during the transition period.
8.27 We recommend that adjustment in bookstocks should be left to individual
schools and colleges. Libraries in high schools which lose their senior forms should not
be di.smembered. Those schools which will lose their junior forms should decide which
of their books will be no longer required and these should be made available to new
high schools. These two colleges should also receive an initial library grant.
College and high school buildings
8.28 We believe that a major consideration in the design of future high schools
and colleges should be that of flexibility. Some schools may elect to continue in a
101
conventional vein with a fixed class organisation, others may opt for open-plan
methods, others again for a problem or project-based program with very few
lesson-type sessions. All of these different organisations should be possible within
the new schools. It should be possible to accommodate efficiently groups from one
or two students up to groups of a hundred or more, and for this there should be
spaces of varying sizes available. We are convinced that many differing approaches
can be used and given interested and competent teachers each can be successful
provided the basic facilities are suitable. It should be the aim of the designer to
provide for as many of these approaches as possible. This emphasis on flexible
design is consistent with what is being done in various States of Australia and is advocated in the literature from overseas.
8.29 School buildings should be designed to provide an efficient learning environment for the student, and to allow effective communication between teacher and
students. Noise control is considered important and we believe that all learning
areas should be acoustically treated. All classrooms, open spaces, libraries, etc.,
should have acoustic floor coverings and, where necessary, treated ceilings. Craft
areas should have acoustically absorbent ceilings and attention should be given to
the prevention of sound transmission.
8.30 Adequate provision should be made for audio-visual equipment including
reticulated television, projection screens, dim-out, language facilities, etc.
Chalkboards should be of the highest quality.
8.31 New types of furniture will be required if appropriate use is to be made of
learning areas. Individual study carrels and light movable tables of various shapes
(rectangular, trapezoidal, semi-circular) which can be grouped in various
arrangements, screens or storage furniture which can be isolate groups of four or
five students and can be used to subdivide open planned spaces for seminar groups
will be needed.
8.32 Some more specific comments on various areas of the college and high school
are set out below.
8.33 The library resources centre is considered to be a central part of the school or
college and should be located so as to facilitate access and maximise usage. It is
desirable that the library should be as open as possible although problems of security may limit the number of entry points which are practicable. If, as we envisage,
the library is available after hours, it will need to be a secure area from the
remainder of the building.
8.34 In the Canberra climate, with a high incidence of inclement weather, it is
necessary to provide indoor dining facilities. In the college this should take the form
of a cafeteria, ř n the high school a canteen and luncheon area with tables and chairs.
It was argued to the committee that recent high schools with combined assembly
hall, gymnasium and luncheon facilities have not been completely successful, and
some teachers have expressed dissatisfaction with them. We are of the opinion that
luncheon facilities should be separate from assembIy or multi-purpose halls.
8.35 Facilities in colleges should include a gymnasium as well as some outdoor
re .r зΡ ation facilities including a grassed area of about 2 hectares for informal sporting and athletic activities. The gymnasium and lecture theatre should be made
available for community use outside of hours when used by students and should be
secure from the remainder of the building. Athough separate gymnasium and
assembly hall facilities would be desirable for high schools, it should be feasible for
102
them to operate effectively with a multi-purpose hall with separate luncheon
facilities.
8.36 The committee considered a draft paper presented by the then Department
of Education and Science setting out a planning concept fir high schools to open in
1977. This paper suggested that the new four-year high schools would accommodate 800 students, with first form students to be home based in three-teacher
open learning areas, with third and fourth form students in a large complex which is
nominally faculty oriented, while accommodation for second form students should
be designed to allow either form or faculty based operation. There were to be consolidated craft and science areas to serve all students plus a library, hall, luncheon
and administrative areas. As a result of discussion, some details of the planning
concept proposed were modified. We offer, however, the following general comments in relation to the design of high schools.
8.37 A certain amount of caution is necessary with radical departures from
current design practices, particularly when, as in this case, the new educational
philosophy and curriculum for which the departures are designed have not been
finalised and when industrial and professional issues may be involved. The students
entering these new schools will have had experience with open space techniques in
the primary school, so it is reasonable to provide a similar environment at least in
the early stages of high school. On the other hand, open plan is largely untried in
secondary schools here and our teachers are unused to it.
8.38 Once again, we ask for flexibility in the planning of these schools, including
the facility of installing or removing walls with comparative ease and economy and
without loss of noise insulation. The internal walls in the learning areas should not
be load bearing so as to facilitate redesign of internal spaces in the light of experience.
8.39 The open plan concept envisages a large degree of movement within the open
area and the inclusion of circulation space within the area. Secondary students are
significantly larger than primary students and require more room to move about, so
additional circulation space will be required. Adequate withdrawal spaces will also
be essential.
8.40 During the past decade school designs have been evolving more towards a
faculty arrangement to allow a faculty based organisation. While there is now
developing a trend towards a general studies curriculum the committee favours the
retention of a grouping of specialist areas such as craft and science facilities.
General learning areas should be grouped around these in such a way as to allow
either home based or faculty based operation, or a combination of these.
8.41 We recommend that high schools and colleges be designed to permit maximum
flexibility of operation. This flexibility should be further ensured by provisions for
modern audio-visual equipment and the use of well-designed furniture in both new and
existing buildings.
8.42 As mentioned earlier, the committee examined the design briefs developed by
the Department of Education and Science, the then Department of Works, and the
National Capital Development Commission for the two colleges planned to open in
1976. The brief envisages one large building complex to facilitate informal movement, with a variety of learning areas and a minimum of pure circulation space. The
college is to be faculty based, with each faculty containing spaces of various sizes,
from tutorial spaces, through classrooms to lecture areas and open areas for lecture
103
discussion groups or informal study. The faculties are to be grouped around a central library-resource centre, linked to it and to each other through the open areas; it
is envisaged that most of the circulation will be through these areas. The different
faculties nominated were English, languages, mathematics, science, social sciences,
music, and arts and crafts, which includes art areas and craft workshops in an open
plan concept. Other facilities in the college brief include a gymnasium for multipurpose use, a lecture theatre or multi-purpose hall, a cafeteria and large commonroom area, and an administrative area with accommodation for the college executive staff, clerical staff, guidance officers, and student organisations, with conference facilities.
8.43 We find the educational philosophy and accommodation requirements incorporated in the briefs for these colleges generally acceptable, noting that the areas
provided admit of alternative uses. Members of the committee would welcome the
opportunity to maintain a continuing interest in the colleges as designs and plans
are developed. In response to an invitation from the then Department of Education
and Science, the committee has put forward suggestions for modifications to the
brief for the college planned to open in 1977.
8.44 We have considered in a general way that what would be required to convert
some of the existing high school buildings to provide for the needs of a college in
both North and South Canberra. As stated previously, we believe that the approach
should be to achieve facilities similar to that of the new colleges. In each case, we
believe that library facilities to Commonwealth standards are required, together
with cafeteria and common-room facilities, gymnasium and additional craft
facilities. To meet these requirements, some extra building will be necessary. Lecture spaces and suite areas for discussion and private study should be created in
each area of the existing buildings, and extensive acoustic treatment will be
necessary.
8.45 We believe that if renovations and additions on this scale are carried out the
facilities in each case will then be able to provide accommodation for a college.
These renovations and additions should be done during 1975 to ensure that they
are completed when operation as a college begins in 1976.
Resources centre
8.46 We firmlу believe that an essential part of the provision of educational
facilities for a school system is access to a well-stocked teaching resources centre.
Building modifications have now been completed in part of the City Education
Centre to provide accommodation for such a centre. There is a library area, an exhibition and display area, a work-room, a printing room and a social and in-service
education area. The centre is expected to begin operation at the beginning of the
1973 school year, and will be available to all teachers, both government and nongovernment.
8.47 The function of the centre will be to provide a centralised resources service
for teachers in all A.C.T. schools and pre-schools. This is possible because of the
compact nature of the A.C.T. and the central location of the proposed resource centre. Services which will be available will include exhibitions and demonstrations of
the latest available educational equipment, instruction in the manufacture of
teaching aids and the operation of audio-visual equipment, display of the available
printed materials, both book and non-book, and professional resource materials.
1Ø
There will also be a collection of teaching materials which teachers or schools may
borrow, including charts, slide sets, films, records, sound tapes, programmed learning kits and combinations of these.
8.48 A major function of the centre will be to provide an area where teachers can
make their own teaching aids. This will include chart and poster making,
photocopying and a duplicating service for high quality and fine detail printing the
schools cannot do themselves. This could include diagrammatic and colour work
for maps and diagrams, examination papers and art materials requiring half-tone
reproduction. The centre will also be used for in-service training courses and the
facilities of the centre will be used for this purpose, including Ilm projection, printing of papers, overhead transparencies, etc.
8.49 The teaching resources centre is seen as a point of focus for teachers where
they may meet for discussions, where they can obtain assistance with problems
related to materials and equipment and which will act as a source of teaching aids
and materials. It will be a centre where expensive items of equipment can be provided on an economic basis where they could not be provided to individual schools.
8.50 While we are pleased that this centre is being established, we would point out
that it has been planned in the context of the present system. The changed approach
which this report embraces implies much more intensive provision of resources for
teachers than was previously expected. We anticipate that the centre will work in
close conjunction with the Curriculum Advisory Board; the relationships between
this board and individual schools and colleges defined in Chapter 4 will require
teachers to have access to a good deal of curriculum material. The authority will
need to develop more ambitious plans for the centre.
8.51 We recommend that the Education Authority. as a пratt еr of priority, give
attention to the expansion of the teaching resources centre so that it may be able to
give ready assistance to teachers to implement our proposals.
105
CHAPTER 9
Implementation
General Considerations
9.1 As mentioned in Chapter I, the then Department of Education and Science in
November 1971 brought forward for circulation and discussion two papers relating
to the possible introduction of colleges in the A.C.T. One of these papers put
forward a method by which the colleges could be introduced.
9.2 The Department's original proposals were progressively modified during 1972
in the light of revised predictions in enrolments made possible by later enrolment
statistics and evidence of demographic trends. Since it was against the background
of the original proposals, however, that subsequent discussion took place, we summarise them here.
9.3 The suggestion was to accommodate colleges in the older areas of Canberra in
existing high schools, suitably modified for this purpose, and in the newer areas in
new buildings especially designed. The selected existing high schools were to have
their Forms 1-4 enrolments phased out and the other high schools would lose their
fifth and sixth form students to the colleges. The original proposals suggested that
this could be done by using Telopea Park and Dickson High Schools as colleges
with no Form 1 and perhaps no Form 2 entry to these schools in 1973. On the other
hand, in 1973 students entering Form 5 in old Canberra would have enrolled at
Dickson or Telopea Park, with Form 6 students remaining in their old schools.
Thus, by 1974 all Forms 5 and 6 students in old Canberra would have been in
Teloрea Park and Dickson colleges and by 1975 these colleges would have included
students at Forms 5 and 6 level only.
9.4 In Widen, Weston Creek, Belconnen and Tuggeranong, the provision of
colleges was seen as being by way of new buildings. In Woden and Belconnen the
new colleges would have enrolled fifth form students in 1976 and the existing high
schools would have become four-year high schools by 1977. In Weston Creek a
college to cater also for Kambah (in Tuggeranong) was envisaged as opening with
fifth formers in 1977. In Wanniassa or Tuggeranong Creek a high school was envisaged for 1978 and a college about 1979.
9.5 We have received two main objections to that Departmental proposal. Some
felt that it would be inappropriate to move students away from schools they had
entered only a year before, especially with only a year's notice, and many claimed
that the enrolment projection by the Departmental forecasts indicated situations in
which some schools would have excessive numbers of students. Even readjustment
of some catchment areas did not appear to overcome this problem. Our discussion
of the Department's proposals thus led to the putting forward of some alternatives.
9.6 The Department itself in February 1972 brought out an alternative proposal
including more refined projections, using some revised catchment areas and
avoiding the movement of second form students. Under this proposal there were to
be no first form enrolments at Dickson and Telopea Park in 1973 but the fifth
formers from the associated high schools were not to transfer until 1974. Both
colleges would then have been fully operative by 1976 with Woden and Belconnen
colleges commencing with fifth form enrolments in 1976. In March, the A.C.T.
106
Council of Parents' and Citizens' Associations suggested that in 1973 the first to
third formers should move out of Telopea Park and Dickson, and fifth formers
should move in. Using February 1972 enrolments in the calculation of the enrolment projections this arrangement seemed to give tolerable numbers of students in
the schools and colleges concerned. However, in April the Department brought out
another paper also using February 1972 enrolments but suggesting a more delayed
approach towards the transition. Under this third Departmental proposal Telopea
Park and Dickson were to have no first form intake in 1974 and fifth formers (except Lyneham) were to transfer from the associated high schools in 1975. The
Lyneham fifth formers were to transfer to Dickson in 1976 and the new colleges in
Widen and Belconnen were to open with fifth formers in 1976. Other strategies
were put forward by the Telopea Park Parents' and Citizens' Association and the
Secondary Principals' Association. All of these and other alternatives as well were
considered by us.
9.7 We have pointed out (para. 3.49) how our deliberations came to focus upon
1976 as the earliest date at which new college buildings could become available and
the conversion of existing buildings completed. Even if in this respect we had not
been constrained by building considerations, however, we would have taken the
view that time would be required for the devising of appropriate curriculum
programs for the colleges and for the four-year self-contained high schools, and
that there would need to be proper opportunity for the preparation of staff. So that
these could be achieved we have recommended that the appropriate timing is for the
introduction of the new-style fifth forms in 1976 and new-style sixth forms in 1977.
9.8 The consensus of opinion in the Working Committee was thus that the transition arrangements should not commence before 1974, that they should not involve
the removal of students from a high school to a college until they had completed
fourth form, and that the whole transition exercise should be completed not later
than 1978. The recommendation made in our preliminary report to the Minister
was therefore that the conversion should take place during the period 1974 to 1978.
9.9 The problem of projecting enrolments is not simplified by uncertainty as to
the kinds of choice which students at post-fourth form level would make once
colleges are introduced. There may be a tendency from some students from independent schools to opt to enter colleges, as has happened in Tasmania, or conversely there may be a tendency for some to make their choice at the end of fourth
form to seek employment or to enter full-time vocational preparation programs at
the Technical College. There needs to be some flexibility in the planning
arrangements; it would not be inappropriate if enrolments in the colleges were a little less than predicted, and, on the other hand, it is necessary that there should be
adequate provision to take an additional number of students over and above those
who are expected on current projections to be seeking enrolment. With these two
qualifications in mind, it seems reasonable to make use of the enrolments which are
predicted on the basis of known fifth and sixth form enrolment trends.
9.10 After the Department had analysed the August 1972 census enrolments from
both primary and secondary schools it was able to reassess retention rates and apply them to the later actual enrolment figures. Revised enrolment projections were
then produced and these are summarised in Tables 7 and 8 and given in greater
detail in Appendix D.
107
Table 7 — Projected Forms I to 4 Enrolments retention ratio method
Schools
North
Canberra
in:
Tugger.
Weston
South
Canberra (a) Widen
mug Belent oren
Creek
Talai
August
1972
(actual)
1973
1974
1975
1976
1977
1978
1979
1980
tа)
2758
2905
2955
2920
2715
2625
2360
2155
2020
2053
2010
2085
2080
2105
2055
1920
1815
1735
1363
1425
1545
1685
1820
488
765
1055
360
710
1000
1275
1490
1675
1135
1915
1280
1395
2090
2115
2160
1625
1730
1510
1170
7652
1765
8870
9945
11000
12035
12820
13335
2305
2820
3405
3830
4)80
4440
13640
4645
13965
Including Deakin High School
Table 8 — Projected Forms 5 to б Enrolments retention ratio method
in:
North
Canberra
Sauth
Canberra (h) Widen
We.st пn
Tugger-
Creek
aning
August
1972
(actual)
1973
1974
1975
1976
1977
1978
1979
1980
(o)
(b)
608
595
630
685
715
735
750
710
640
638
675
665
640
630
625
675
675
640
344
430
440
440
465
500
525
565
610
140
350
465(а )
565(а)
655
730
800
Includedin Weston Creek
Schools
Вeleminen
306
400
550
670
805
905
985
1055
1075
Total
189б
2100
2425
2785
3080
3330
3590
3735
3765
260 fifth formers in 1976 and 250 siRth formers in 1977 from Weston Creek and Tuggeranong would be attending Woden College.
Including Deakin High School.
9.11 At the same time an attempt was made to carry out a more refined analysis of
the options being made and the demand for places arising from the various suburban areas of Canberra. One of the characteristics of the present enrolment at secondary schools in old Canberra is the number of students who travel to them from
other areas. The August 1972 fifth and sixth form enrolments were therefore analysed in terms of the actual living places of the students irrespective of which school
they were attending. This disclosed that the number of fifth and sixth form government school enrolments per occupied dwelling varied substantially from one part of
Canberra to another, so that for example it was of the order of 0.056 in old south
Canberra through 0.051 in the Widen Valley to 0.018 in Weston Creek. By comparison with some earlier indications and taking into account genęral demographic
information regarding the ages of children in various areas of Canberra, it became
clearer that over a period of time in a newly developing area the ratios would increase from something like the existing 0.018 in Weston Creek to something of the
order of 0.085 as a peak some fifteen years after the initial development of the area.
Arising from this study, the Department prepared a set of projected fifth and sixth
form enrolments for each of the main areas of Canberra based upon the method of
applying projected ratios to occupied dwellings. The same method was applied to
108
the projected numbers of dwellings in the newly developing areas such as
Tuggeranong and Belconnen. Table 9 gives a summary of projected enrolments on
this basis.
Table 9 — Projected Forms 5 and б Enrolments calculated on basis of number per occupied dwellings
North
Suburbs:
We.sion
Tugger-
Wuden
Creek
anoiig
440
460
500
550
600
650
700
760
830
90
1i0
140
190
230
260
290
320
360
South
Canberra Canberra
Веl гоипеп
То1 и1
220
280
420
570
740
880
1000
1120
1210
1820
1920
2150
2440
2770
3080
34(Ю
3720
3990
August
1972
(actual)
1973
1974
1975
1976
1977
1978
1979
1980
650
660
690
720
740
770
770
760
740
420
410
400
400
400
400
400
390
380
—
—
—
II
60
120
240
370
470
(These figures omit enrolments from Bungendore. Queanbсyan. Sutton and У ass, totalling 15 in 1972. and from Harman. Rail. Stromlo.
Pearce- Creek, Tharwa, etc., totalling 32 in 1972.)
9.12 It will be apparent from this table that, if the demand for places in the
colleges bore a reasonably high relationship to the numbers of expected fifth and
sixth form students living in the areas in which the colleges were located, it would be
found that the demand would be shrinking in old South Canberra and old North
Canberra and that it should continue to increase for a number of years in
Tuggeranong and Belconnen and indeed in the Woden Valley and Weston Creek.
9.13 At the time when the Department presented these enrolment projections to
us it also brought forward another consideration which became more relevant in
the light of the expected enrolment decline in old Canberra. This was that the
proposed conversion of the buildings at Telopea Park, despite substantial expense
to create areas suitable for senior students, would still provide a physical building
which would be of very mixed quality considering their age. Some parts of Telopea
Park High School have been in existence already for fifty years. The Department,
therefore, put forward the suggestion that Narrabundah High School should
become the college and that Telopea Park should remain a Forms 1-4 high school
for the present. It seems likely that enrolment of secondary students from old South
Canberra will continue to decline in the foreseeable future unless there is either substantial redevelopment of some of these areas together with a change in the
traditional patterns of family living or young families become attracted to living in
older areas because of convenience or for some other reason rather than moving out
to the newly developing parts of the city. Should there be a revival of the older area
of Canberra in terms of the numbers of pre-school, primary and secondary children
seeking accommodation there would have to be a considerable replanning of
educational provision and this could be the time for reconsideration of the role of
Telopea Park.
9.14 The original choice of Telopea Park as the school to be converted into a
college was partly influenced by the interest shown by the Telopea Park Parents'
and Citizens' Association in the proposal. The Department has consulted with both
the Telopea Park and Narrabundah Parents' and Citizens' Associations on the
109
proposed change of school for college purposes and in general the reaction has not
been unfavourable. There is understanding on the part of parents as of this committee that the use of Narrabundah will both be less expensive and will be more
satisfactory in the long run for all the students concerned.
9.15 In the light of all these points, we now wish to modify the recommendation
which we made in our interim report to the extent that Narrabundah should be substituted for Telopea Park as the school in South Canberra to be converted into a
college.
Strategies
9.16 The strategies we propose for the conversion of both Dickson and Narrabundah into a college are basically similar in that there should be no first form
enrolments in either Dickson or Narrabundah in 1974 and that the fifth forms from
the associated high schools should transfer to the two colleges in 1976. For convenience, however, the proposals for each of the main areas of Canberra are indicated in the tables and commentaries which follow.
North Canberra
9.17 The proposal for North Canberra is that there should be no first intake at
Dickson in 1974 and that the fifth forms from Lyneham, Campbell and Watson
High Schools should transfer to Dickson in 1976. These three schools would thus
have residual sixth forms in 1976 and would be Forms 1-4 high schools only in
1977. In 1976 Dickson would have a residual fourth form, but in 1977 it would consist only of college level students. We considered different proposals which would
have the effect of building up the fifth and sixth form enrolments at Dickson earlier
than 1976, but we have become convinced that the nature of the building
modifications necessary (mainly in the centre of the present complex of buildings)
requires that enrolments should be kept as low as possible in 1975 to avoid undue
disruption. Special consideration in relation to staffing will need to be given to this
school over the transition period to ensure that a full range of courses is available to
the students.
9.18 The other aspects of the strategy we propose for North Canberra are that,
from and including 1974, pupils from Hackett would attend Watson High, and it
would be expected that about 65 per cent of students attending North Ainslie
Primary School would move on to Campbell High and the remaining 35 per cent
would attend Lyneham High. We point out that thiš will involve some students
crossing Northbourne Avenue to attend Lyneham High and conversely that some
college students will cross Northbourne Avenue to attend Dickson College. One
further aspect of the likely enrolments in North Canberra is that it may be necessary
in the latter part of the 1970s for students from the Belconnen suburbs at present
numbered 2, 3 and 4 to come to North Canberra instead of travelling to more
westerly or southerly parts of Belconnen. This could have the effect of substantially
increasing enrolments at Lyneham High School for a longer period than suggested
and it could mean that the numbers of students at Dickson College would be slightly higher.
9.19 A detailed study of what is expected to happen in terms of enrolments is
given in Table 10 and is provided in greater detail in Table Dl in Appendix D.
I10
Table 10 — Projected secondary enrolments—North Canberra
Гøпрне!/
Year
!-4 5& б
August
197г
197з
1974
1975
1976
1977
1978
1979
1980
ыз
67о
745
800
715
800
695
615
575
(a)
(b)
(c)
Total
177
160
160
170
во
1-4 5& б Tuai
79о
678
155
833
830 72о 165
н85
905
845
160 1005
970 970 165 1135
во 115o
795 1070
800 1105
1105
695 1065
1065
615 1020
102o
995
575 995
( Оѓі(g е
Lгпеншп
Waгsoø
l-4 5& б
Тога!
!-4 5& б
Tuai Talai
3336
86
875
7г6
1 а2
741
1 з4
795 1г5 920 7г0 145 865 з500
970 540(а)
165
705 3585
145
825
810 170 980 340 180 520 3605
630 3430
150 480(h)
в55
7и0
75
720
735(с) 735 3360
720
750 750 3110
600
600
710 710 2165
520
520
640 640 2660
450
450
Na first form intake at Dickson in 1974.
Fifth forms from Lyneham. Campbell and Watson High Schools transferred to Dickson in 1976.
Dickson becomes a full college in 1977.
South Canberra
9.20 In the case of South Canberra, as indicated earlier, we propose that
Narrabundah High School will become the college and Telopea Park the Forms 1-4
high school. To this end, we propose that there will be no first form intake at
Narrabundah in 1974 and that first form students from the Narrabundah and Red
Hill area will enrol at Telopea Park. In 1976 the fifth form students from Telopea
Park will move to Narrabundah thus leaving Telopea Park with a residual sixth
form. In the same year Narrabundah will have a residual fourth form.
9.21 Table 1 1, and the table in Appendix D numbered D2, indicate the extent of
the decline in enrolments in South Canberra up to 1980. However, we expect that a
number of students will seek admission to Narrabundah College from other areas
of Canberra, in particular from the Woden Valley, which in the latter part of the
1970s will be under pressure at fifth and sixth form level. Narrabundah will also be
conveniently placed to take enrolments from the south-east outlying districts.
Tahle 11 — Projected secondary enrolments South Canberra
Narrahwudah
Year
!-4
August
1972
1973
1974
1975
1976
1 Ч77
1978
1979
1980
fa)
(bl
(Cl
66з
630
470(а)
290
135
Telopea Park
5& б
Taial
!-4
5& б
Tufal
Toral
17о
180
170
160
295(h)
395
350
310
285
833
и 10
640
450
430
395
350
ЭІ0(г)
285(с)
714
660
765
840
890
940
840
755
705
2ы
285
275
265
135
9и 1
945
1041)
1105
1025
Ч40
840
755
705
1 К 14
1755
16н0
1555
1455
1335
11 Ч0
1065
Ч90
No first form intake.
Accepts fifth form enrolmenta from Telopea Park in 1976.
Up to 200 additional enrolments might be expected from outlying areas and the Woden valby.
9.22 We expect that secondary students from the suburbs of Deakin and
Yarralumla will be enrolled at Deakin High School, and that at senior level these
students are likely to seek enrolment in Woden College. There would be no change
in the pattern of enrolments in 1973, during which year, as in the past, students who
had attended Forrest Primary School would move to Telopea Park for their first
form. In 1974, the new first form from the Deakin and Yarralumla portion of the
Forrest Primary School catchment area would enrol at Deakin High.
Widen Valley
9.23 In the case of the Widen Valley, since a new college is to be constructed to
open in 1976, there is no need to reduce the enrolment of one of the existing schools
by ceasing to take a first-year group. As indicated in Table 12, it is not expected that
the enrolment levels in the schools will become excessive in terms of available accommodation. Melrose High School will be able to accommodate up to 1,300
pupils and Widen Valley will not be under pressure during the period in which
Deakin is forecast as having enrolments in excess of 1,100. A consequence of increased flexibility in catchment area arrangements could be that students from the
catchment area of Deakin to the south of Deakin High School, that is in Hughes,
could if they wished attend Widen Valley High School, thus achieving a better
balance between the two schools.
Table 12 — Projected secondary enrolments — Widen Valley including Deakin
Widen Valley
1 rar
August
1972
1973(a)
1970)
1975
1976
1977
1978
1979
1980
(o)
(b
/-4 5 & б Total
Meirose
/-4 5 & б Total
Deakin
14 5
&
б
College Total
Total
596
344
940
767
767
676
201
877
2584
620
405
1025
805
205
1010
720
210
930
2965
670 245 915 875 305 1180 850 220 1070
3165
770
175
945
265
1180
950
215
1165
915
3290
870 80(d) 950 950 145(d) 1095 1080 95(d) 1175 345(с) 3565
935
980
1115
730( с)
3760
1025
1065
1080
850 4020
1025
1090
1060
930(e) 4105
1055
1105
1030
965(e)
4155
1973 enrolments include 120 fifth and sixth form pupils from Weston Creek at Widen Valley, and 60 fifth form pupils from Weston
Creek at mirone.
1974 enrolments include•. 55 sixth form pupils from Weston Creek at Widen VaIIey
55 sixth form pupils from Weston Creek at Меiгоѕ
(г) College enrolments would include an additional 260 fifth form pupils from Weston Creek/Tuggeranong in 1976 and 250 sixth form
pupils in 1977.
( д) Sixth form only.
( г) Up to 200 enrolments could be accommodated at Narrabundah College.
9.24 It should be noted that the fifth form students from Weston Creek and
Tuggeranong who are envisaged as entering the Widen College in 1976 are expected to remain in that college for a second year in 1977. The projected
enrolments, however, make no allowance for other Weston Creek or Tuggeranong
students who will have Weston Creek College as their likely choice. We expect that
Narrabundah College will provide some programs which may attract students from
the Widen Valley, thus relieving the pressure on Widen College in the latter part of
the 1970s.
Weston Creek and Tuggeranong
9.25 The proposal is for the construction of a new college in Weston Creek to
open in 1977, and in that year to take fifth form students from Weston Creek and
Tuggeranong. As mentioned in para. 9.24, the 1976 fifth formers will have attended
Widen College and will presumably continue at that college for their second senior
112
year during 1977. If all the expected Weston Creek and Tuggeranong students enrol
at Weston Creek College, they should number about 315 in 1977, increasing to
about 655 in 1978. On this basis Weston Creek High will have lost its fifth form in
1976.
ТаЬ a 13 — Projected secondary enrolments — Weston Creek and Tuggeгапong
Year
1973
1974
1975
1976
1977
1978
1979
1980
1-4 5 & б
Tota!
7 иReeraпong
Hnldler
Weston Creek
1-4 5 & б
765
765
1055
140
1195
845 265 1110 650
1245
125 1370 745
825
570
570
605
605 905
635
635 990
670 1060
670
Tota/
1-4
80(а)
85 735 360(а)
820 710(а )
75
825 1000(с)
905 1275
990 1490
1060 1675
5&6
То а! College
Tolat
265(Ь)
1000 565(Ы
1275 655
1490 730
1675 800
765
1195
1845
2455
2960
3440
3845
4205
(a) Included in projections for Weston Creek High. In fact somе may attend Holder.
(b) In 1976 fifth form students from Weston Creek and Tuggeranong would attend Woden College and might be expected to continue at
that college for sixth form. They would number about 265 and 245 respectively.
( с) Some of these students, possibly those in forth form, would continue to attend schools in Weston Creek. The first high school is expected to be available in Tuggeranong in 1977 and the second in 1978 or 1979.
Catchment Suburbs:
Weston: Weston, Waramanga, Fisher
Holder. Holder, Duffy, Rivett, Chapman, Stirling.
Tuggeranong: Kambah, Wanniassa.
9.26 Table 13 suggests a very high enrolment at Weston Creek High School in
1976. As indicated in the footnote, it is expected that some students from
Tuggeranong will attend Holder High School instead of Weston Creek High. This
would have the effect of balancing the numbers more satisfactorily. The basis on
which students would be distributed between the two schools will need to be considered nearer to the years concerned. The projections for Holder High School
make the assumption that the school will open with Forms 1-5 in 1975 and will thus
have a residual sixth form in 1976. While this residual sixth form in 1976 is a feature
appearing in others of the strategies we are proposing, we believe that it would be
more desirable were Holder High School not to accommodate this single fifth form
and sixth form the following year, if later enrolment projections indicate that they
can reasonably be accommodated in Weston Creek High. We understand that the
acceleration of land release in the Weston Creek area since these two schools were
planned has meant that it may become necessary for Holder High School to accommodate these students.
9.27 On the projections shown in Table 13, there would appear to be a need for a
second high school in Tuggeranong in 1978 or 1979, but a college may not be required until 1981.
Belconnen
9.28 As with Weston Creek and Woden, the establishment of a new college in
1976 instead of the conversion of an existing school to a college means that there
will be no need to interfere with the enrolments of first form students in the schools
serving their catchment areas. The first change in the existing pattern will be in 1976
itself when fifth form students from Canberra, Belconnen and Ginninderra High
Schools will enter the new college. As will be seen from Table 14, the numbers of
fifth and sixth form students are expected to grow to the point where a second
college may be required in 1978 and perhaps a fifth high school in the same year.
113
These projections omit students in the three suburbs of Belconnen at present known
as Belconnen 2, 3 and 4, who, as indicated above (paras. 9.17-9.19), are expected to
seek enrolment in North Canberra in the latter part of the 1970s. How soon a high
school will be established in Belconnen 2, 3 and 4 depends upon the rate of development of these suburbs and this will need to be kept under close review.
9.29 The other uncertainty of the Belconnen enrolments at the time of the writing
of this report is the extent to which provision will be made for places in nongovernment schools in the Belconnen area. We believe that the enrolment projections which have been provided by the Department and which are summarised in
Table 14 will prove to be too low if these students who wish to enrol in independent
schools have to travel from the more westerly parts of Belconnen into North
Canberra or elsewhere.
Table 14 — Projected secondary enrolments — Beiconnen
(omitting Вelсonnen 2, 3 and 4)
Гиnheггп
Угаг
1-4 5& б
Total
Belconnen
1-4 5& б Tota!
ВеГcannel
D
Тога!
l-4
Giuuinderra
1-4 5& б
Coli.
Нин- Coil
ker Melba Total
August
1972 601 306 907 569
1476
569
1973
735 265 1000 1035 135 1170
2170
1974
2860
710 200 910 900 260 1160 695 95 790
1975
985 240 1225 935 245 1180 900 200 1100
3505
1976 1140 120 1260 925 115 1040 1095 95 1190
455(a)
3945
1977
590
I III
905
4390
900
895
1978
600
775
1155
12200)
750 235(a) 4735
1979
610
12201h1
1330( ь 590 465 5005
790
1980
625
800
1170
1575(h) 590 485 5245
fa) Fifth form only.
Iht Additional accommodation to he provided.
9.30 We believe that new-style courses in the high schools will need to be phased
in according to the judgment of particular schools during the years 1974 and 1975.
The fourth form students in 1975 will be the first to enter the new-style fifth forms
in 1976, and it may be reasonable to expect them to have had the opportunity to
sample new-style programs during their fourth form and perhaps earlier. Students
who are in forms below fourth in 1975 can be experiencing a change of emphasis
and approach to prepare them for the colleges which they will be entering in their
fifth form. On the other hand, the 1974 fourth form groups of students will
presumably be moving through a fifth and sixth form program on the existing basis
of preparation for the High School Certificate and we would not expect to see their
fourth form programs substantially modified from the existing pattern.
9.31 Students who undertake the High Sch оol Certificate in 1976, but who are less
successful than they hoped, may wish to have an opportunity to repeat the examination in 1977. As at the time of the introduction of the sixth year under the
Wyndham Scheme, it will be necessary to arrange for one or two schools to provide
suitable repeat programs. There is a possibility that the Technical College
arrangements for day matriculation may be relevant for some of these students.
9.32 We recommend that the strategies for introducing the new structure for secondary education in Canberra recomniended in this report be along the lines described in
this chapter.
114
Summary of Recommendations
Your Committee recommends:
The college proposal
1. That secondary education in the A.C.T. be restructured, in ways to be further
specified, along the lines of four-year high schools and colleges having at least those
functions and purposes defined in 4 below. (Paragraph 3.34)
2. That in principle the enrolment of part-time students should be permitted from
the outset, but the final decision should be made by the individual college council.
(Paragraph 3.43)
3. That colleges be named generically as 'secondary colleges', but that each be
known by its individual name together with the word "college", e.g. 'Dickson
College'. (Paragraph 3.48)
4. That colleges whose functions and purposes include at least those defined
below be introduced in both the new satellite towns and the inner areas of
Canberra. (Paragraph 3.50)
Colleges should offer a wide range of courses tailored to the differing interests and abilities of students.
The entry to colleges should be non-selective on academic grounds.
Colleges would embody the concept of free education. Rejection, suspension or expulsion of any student to be subject to appeal. The entry of
mature-age students should be permitted, and even encouraged, from the
outset.
Each student in the college should be given the maximum opportunity for
individual development and excellence, both academically and socially.
Vocational guidance and pastoral care should be inherent to the structure
of these new institutions.
Colleges should not be organised or staffed in such a way as to inhibit the
offering of a sound education in high schools. The principle of equal regard
for all phases of formal educational should be taken into account when
considering the relationships between colleges, high schools and primary
schools.
Colleges should become responsible for their own methods of assessment,
appropriate to the needs of their students and the different kinds of courses
they are pursuing. Accordingly, the external-examination-oriented nature
of secondary education should be phased out as quickly as is practicable.
It is fundamental that both schools and colleges be encouraged to assume a
greater degree of autonomy than at present to devise, within broad,
accepted educational objectives, their own particular goals, structures and
curricula.
The accent in colleges should be on freedom, self-development, selfmotivation, self-discipline, and student management of student affairs.
In the making of arrangements and in the content of curricula, colleges
should aim at a closer integration with the life and work of the community
as a whole.
115
Teacher training recognised by the profession to be a prerequisite for all
teaching staff in colleges and high schools. Colleges should be planned for a
maximum of 800 full-time students with an optimum of 650. For staffing
purposes, class sizes should be calculated in accordance with the
recommendations of the Scott Committee. (Paragraph 3.36).
5. That new collеgе buildings be constructed in both the Widen Valley and
Belconnen along the lines of the design brief discussed with officers of the then
Department of Education and Science and the National Capital Development Commission, to be ready for occupation before the beginning of 1976. (Paragraph 3.51).
6. That the A.C.T. Education Authority commission an independent evaluation
of the restructuring of secondary education in the A.C.T. before 1981. (Paragraph
3.54).
Curricula
7. That the high school curriculum be complete in itself, and be built around a
problem-centred core that emphasises the interaction of student, school and society. The basic skills should be essential elements of this core, and a wide range of options should be offered peripheral to the core studies. (Paragraph 4.27)
8. That critical and comparative studies of religion be integrated into the core
curriculum, but that dogmatic or sectarian religion not be offered at high school,
except on demand as an extra-curricular activity. (Paragraph 4.28).
9. That the college curriculum be so structured as to emphasise the interrelationship of student and community, of study and experience, and between disciplines. (Paragraph 4.40).
10. That ways to be sought to promote interaction between college and community. (Paragraph 4.41).
11. That no course of study shall be prescribed as compulsory for all college
students. (Paragraph 4.42).
12. That a Curriculum Advisory Board, constituted along the lines indicated
below, be appointed not later than early 1974, to form part of the Education
Authority, and to scrutinise, evaluate and adapt curriculum material, to advise
schools and colleges on curricular processes and implementation, and to advise on
in-service training in the curriculum field. (Paragraph 4.48).
The board to have five full-time curriculum specialists, plus part-time members:
two from the school of Teacher Education, C.C.A.E.; two teachers; one high
school and one college principal; and one representative of the Department of
Education. (Paragraph 4.46).
13. That all submissions received pertaining to matters of curriculum construction
be referred to the Curriculum Advisory Board for further study. (Paragraph 4.49).
Examinations
14.
(a)
(b)
116
that the Department of Education take urgent steps to ensure that
research is continued, if necessary at public expense, into alternative
methods of assessment and evaluation;
the Higher School Certificate examination be replaced by a testing
system of continuous assessment evolved through such research, to
which is added, at least for the time being, an external test of the
TEEP or ASAT type, suitably refined so as to take account of other
aptitudes besides scholastic;
(c) this change be timed to coincide with the first completed two years of
operation of the first colleges (1977);
(d) the A.C.T. follow the lead of the N.S.W. Department of Education in
abolishing the external School Certificate examination not later than
1975;
(e) a transcript of standardised form be devised to serve as an indicator
of progress and proficiency and to indicate the range of a student's interests and abilities, such transcripts being available to all students
leaving high school and college;
(f) the Commonwealth continue and intensify its research into the
development of aptitude tests for tertiary entrance and other specific
skills;
(g) the Department of Education, as the interim local Education
Authority, pursue with the Australian Universities Vice-Chancellors'
Committee the question of the admissibility of students from the
A.C.T. colleges to universities other than the A.N.U. (Paragraph
5.62).
Government
15. That each college should have as its governing body a council with the following functions:
(а) determination of the educational program within guidelines laid
down by the authority;
(b) preparation of estimates and the determination of a budget within
available funds which would allow the educational program to be implemented;
(c) advice to the education authority on staffing requirements in accordance with the educational needs of the college;
(d) participation in the selection of teaching staff;
(е) selection and employment of non-teaching staff on such basis as will
ensure the most effective implementation of the educational program.
(Paragraph 6.8).
The method of operation of the council should be as follows:
The council will participate in the planning of the college's policy and operations
and bear the responsibility for ratifying all policy decisions. Inevitably, the council
will delegate many planning and executive functions to the staff and the principal.
Although it will be obliged to accept their advice in relation to the discharge of its
responsibilities, the council should retain rights to initiate proposals covering a
wide range of college activities. The council is to be involved in making suggestions
to the principal and staff during the planning stages, in commenting on and criticising proposals and referring them back for further consideration if necessary. In
such areas as syllabus and course planning, the determination of teaching strategies
and methods, the organisation of timetables and the administrative and operational
arrangements associated with these, the council should not establish policies which
do not have the endorsement of the principal and staff nor should it reject proposals
117
on matters of this kind about which the principal and staff are agreed. (Paragraph
6.12).
16. That college councils have a maximum membership of twelve. They should
contain representatives of the staff, students, parents and the authority. (Paragraph
6.25)
17. That all staff members have the right and the responsibility of participating in
the college's policy-making process; that principals should ensure that necessary
arrangements are made to enable staff properly to exercise this responsibility.
(Paragraph 6.31)
18. That colleges develop both formal and informal structures to enable students
to participate actively in the control of their own affairs. (Paragraph 6.36)
19. That interim councils be established to undertake preliminary planning prior
to the establishment of colleges; they should be appointed by the authority and
would have members nominated by the relevant teachers' and principals'
organisations, the authority, parents, students, and staff members when appointed.
(Paragraph 6.55)
20. That in general, high schools have the same form of government as we have
recommended for colleges; some modifications may be necessary because the
students are younger and less mature. (Paragraph 6.60)
21. That the authority provide a range of special services to enable the problems
of students whose antisocial behaviour cannot be dealt with by the school itself to
receive proper attention. (Paragraph 6.62)
Staffing
22. That the Department of Education, as a priority matter, make arrangements
to ensure that teachers, through in-service education, are provided with opportunities to familiarise themselves with the cause, nature and purpose of the changes
we are proposing, and to make their contributions to advance planning. (Paragraph
7.14)
23. That the Council of Parents' and Citizens' Associations, with the active support of members of this committee and the Department of Education, perform a
similar service for parents and the community. (Paragraph 7.15)
24. That the teaching staff (and we include here the guidance, counselling and
senior library staff) of high schools and colleges should have teacher training of a
kind and standard acceptable to the teaching profession. (Paragraph 7.20)
25. That the Commissioner of the Commonwealth Teaching Service, in consultation with the Commonwealth Teachers' Federation, determine these standards,
assess equivalence of training between various teacher education institutions, and
devise procedures to handle exceptional cases. (Paragraph 7.21)
26. That the Education Authority, in being alert to the needs of high school and
college staffing in respect to the experience, sex, and qualifications of their teachers,
and also to the appointment opportunities of teachers, devise procedures, in consultation with the Commonwealth Teachers' Federation, to correct any imbalance
that may arise between high schools, between colleges and between high schools
and colleges. (Paragraph 7.22)
27 That for both high schools and colleges:
the staffing organisation should become more flexible to enable each
(a)
school or college to determine its own appropriate pattern within a
total points allocation;
118
the staff to be so structured that the functional effectiveness of the
school or college is enhanced, with teachers undertaking varied
specialised roles and with positions of responsibility calling for a
variety of leadership skills;
(c) the levels of positions of responsibility between the principal and the
assistant teachers be few in number, and a maximum of three. The
junior level should contain some positions which would be occupied
on a temporary basis to meet special needs. The lower two levels
should provide positions which are oriented towards specialised
teaching roles as well as administrative ones, and related leadership
activities. (Paragraph 7.35)
28 That career patterns and levels of responsibility be similar for both high school
and college teachers. (Paragraph 7.36)
29. That the Department of Education, as the interim authority, select and consult with several Forms 1-6 high schools, individually, in order to establish further
staff structure models based on the above principles and that the remaining high
schools be invited to make their own studies. (Paragraph 7.39)
30. That in respect to the counselling service:
(a) the number of counsellors be substantially increased;
(b) a group of counsellors be associated with a college, several high
schools and several primary schools, with one counsellor coordinating the work of the group;
(c) a counsellor be responsible for co-ordinating the work of all the
groups and for the deployment of the counselling staff;
(d) Level II and Level III positions be established in the counselling service, and that a Level IV position be established at a suitablestage in
its growth:
(e) the occupant of a Level I1 or Level Ill position be able to counsel in
the primary/high school or the high school/college continuum;
(f) all teachers, with the necessary qualifications, be eligible to apply for
positions in the counselling service, and, conversely, all members of
the counselling service, with the necessary qualifications, be eligible
to apply for positions in a high school or in a college. (Paragraph
7.52)
31. That careers information should be available from and taught by a specialist
teacher in the social sciences area. Vocational guidance should be the responsibility
of the counsellor.(Paragraph 7.55)
32. That specialist teachers be provided for mentally and physically handicapped
students, for those not fluent in English, for those with specific learning disabilities
and for those in need of expert remedial help. (Paragraph 7.60)
33. That as information becomes available from research on specific learning difficulties and successful techniques evolve, schools be staffed and equipped accordingly. (Paragraph 7.61)
34. That the library staffing arrangements, in both colleges and high schools, meet
the standards set down by the Commonwealth Secondary Schools Libraries Committee. (Paragraph 7.70)
35. That each high school and college have a greatly increased ancillary staff to inelude a professionally qualified bursar, sufficient secretarial staff, a trained nurse, a
(b)
119
full-time janitor, and non-teaching assistants to answer the needs of all faculty
areas. (Paragraph 7.77)
36. That all non-teaching staff have suitable pre-service training and further inservice training as required. (Paragraph 7.78)
37. That in the years 1973-1975, as a matter of urgency, and thereafter as a
matter of continuing policy, the education authority:
(a) identify the areas where the expertise of professional staff is inadequate;
(b) negotiate with tertiary institutions where it is found that requisite
courses are not already being offered;
(c) encourage its professional staff, both teachers and administrators, to
undertake courses to improve their efficiency and readiness to assume
new or additional roles and responsibilities. (Paragraph 7.82)
38. That a continuing program of in-service education be arranged by the Education Authority for principals and staff in A.C.T. schools, during school hours.
(Paragraph 7.87)
39. That where teachers have an approved part-time study commitment their
professional work load in the school or college be reduced. (Paragraph 7.88)
40. That leave on full pay for periods up to a year be granted to professional staff
prepared rigorously to pursue approved courses which will improve their efficiency
as teachers or administrators. (Paragraph 7.89)
41. That high schools and colleges be staffed so that each has a reasonable degree
of flexibility to determine and operate an optimum range of group sizes. (Paragraph
7.97)
42. That where class sizes are part of a formula in determining a school or
college's teaching establishment, they be a maximum of about 30 in the high school
and not more than 20 to 25 (depending upon the subject area) in the college, with
appropriate reductions for practical classes. (Paragraph 7.99)
43. That the teaching loads of teachers of comparable levels in high schools and
colleges be the same. (Paragraph 7.101)
44. That the beginning teacher, at least in his first year of teaching, have a reduced
teaching load. (Paragraph 7.103)
45. That as well as salary allowances and status, positions involving educational
leadership have an appropriate time allowance. (Paragraph 7.106)
46. That the teaching establishment and the ancillary staff of a high school and of
a college be of such a number and kind as to facilitate the achievement of their approved aims, objectives and methods. (Paragraph 7.108)
47. That the following time table be adopted to prepare for the opening of each of
the four new colleges in 1976:
(a) the principal should be known at the beginning of 1974 and should be
available for consultation with an expert Curriculum Advisory Board
also established on a permanent basis at the beginning of 1974.
(b) before the middle of 1974, the Curriculum Advisory Board should
brief interim committees with some full-time members to provide
suggested syllabus material by mid-1975.
(c) the principal and one deputy principal and the librarian should be appointed at the beginning of 1975 on a full-time basis to prepare the
general organisation for the opening of the College.
120
(d)
(e)
(f)
senior staff appointments should be known at the beginning of 1975.
These teachers should be available for consultation and planning
throughout 1975 with necessary relief provided from classroom
teaching.
during 1975, regular consultation with Form 4 students in existing
schools should be made in order to determine the range of courses to
be offered. They should make firm selection of courses by the end of
second term so that detailed organisation for opening the college can
proceed, although students may request variations at later stages.
staffing, purchase of basic equipment, provision of facilities (library,
etc.) should be well in hand early in third term 1975. (Paragraph
7.111)
Educational facilities
48. That all high schools and colleges be provided with adequate audio-visual
equipment, apparatus, and teaching aids, and that machinery be devised by the
Education Authority to ensure that these are available when the school or college
commences operation. (Paragraph 8.11)
49. That the initial library grant for new high schools and colleges be sufficient to
provide a resource collection to the Commonwealth Secondary Schools Library
Committee standard. (Paragraph 8.16)
50. That the Education Authority enter into negotiations with the Canberra
Public Library authorities with the aim of integration of facilities. (Paragraph 8.18)
51. That decisions related to the rationalisation of holdings of equipment, apparatus, and text-books should be left to individual schools, although there will be a
need for supplementary grants during the transition period. (Paragraph 8.26)
52. That adjustment in book stocks should be left to individual schools and
colleges. Libraries in high schools which lose their senior forms should not be dismembered. Those schools which will lose their junior forms should decide which of
their books will be no longer required and these should be made available to new
high schools. These two colleges should also receive an initial library grant.
(Paragraph 8.27)
53. That high schools and colleges be designed to permit maximum flexibility of
operation. This flexibility should be further ensured by provisions for modern
audio-visual equipment and the use of well-designed furniture in both new and existing buildings. (Paragraph 8.41)
54. That the Education Authority, as a matter of priority, give attention to the expansion of the teaching resources centre so that it may be able to give ready
assistance to teachers to implement our proposals. (Paragraph 8.51)
Implementation
55. That the strategies for introducing the new structure for secondary education
in Canberra recommended in this report be along the lines described below.
(Paragraph 9.32)
New college buildings should be constructed in both the Widen Valley and
in Belconnen along the lines of the design brief discussed with officers of
the then Department of Education and Science and the National Capital
Development Commission, to be ready for occupation before the beginning of 1976.
121
The existing Dickson and Narrabundah High Schools be converted to
colleges, with suitable modifications of the existing buildings.
This conversion take place during the period 1974-1977 with the first newstyle fifth forms operating in 1976.
There would be no first form enrolments in either Dickson or Narrabundah in 1974, and the fifth forms from the associated high schools would
transfer to these two colleges in 1976. In 1976, both these colleges would
have a residual fourth form, and the associated high schools would have a
residual sixth form. The conversion would be completed in 1977.
In 1976, fifth form students from the Woden Valley area would enrol in the
new Widen Valley College as would those at that level from Weston Creek
and Tuggeranong. A new college will be required in the Weston Creek area
in 1977, but those students who enrolled in the Widen College in 1976
would be able to remain there in 1977. It is expected that students at senior
level from the suburbs of Deakin and Yarralumla are likely to seek enrolment in Widen College. The associated high schools would have residual
sixth forms in 1976.
In 1976, fifth form students in the Belconnen area would enter the new
college. A second college in this area may be required in 1978. Canberra,
Belconnen and Ginninderra High Schools will have residual sixth forms in
1976. Students in the three suburbs at present known as Belconnen 2, 3 and
4 are expected to seek enrolment in North Canberra in the latter part of this
decade.
122
Appendixes
A List of submissions received.
B Secondary School Student Survey:
1. First Report on Canberra government high school students.
2. Second Report on comparative study.
C Staffing structures.
1. Extracts from Summary of Recommendations, Neal-Radford Report.
2. Submission on possible promotion structures, from T. Bardsley.
D Supplementary tables concerning school populations during transition.
123
APPENDIX A
Submissions to the Working Committee
on College Proposals for the A.C.T.
Submissions
P. Hughes (C.C.A.E.),
Some needs in secondary education.
Mrs Elizabeth M. Richardson,
Teacher training, etc.
D.G. Beswick (Education Research Unit, A.N.U.),
Social psychological considerations.
Mgr J.E. Bourke (Catholic Education Office),
The restructuring of secondary schooling in the A.C.T.
Dr. Joan Hughes,
The choice of courses to be provided in senior high schools.
L. Rose A.N.U.,
Reading as an information gathering skill.
I. Drury (District Guidance Officer),
Some thoughts on guidance.
Dr C.J. Morgan,
Vocation guidance for senior secondary colleges.
Kanangra Society,
Proposed inclusion of Aboriginal studies in colleges and high schools curricula.
Joint Commission for Church Development (А.С.Т.),
Religious education in colleges and high schools in the A.C.T.
D.E. Morgan,
Proposal and educational philosophy associated with the Senior Learning Centre
of the Department of Society Sciences at Melrose High School.
Aust. Computer Soc. Inc. (Canberra Branch) and Canberra Mathematical Association,
Computing in secondary schools in the A.C.T.
Aust. Council for Health, Physical Education and Recreation,
The role of health, physical education and recreation in secondary colleges in the
A.C.T.
Language Teachers' Association of А.С.T. and District.
The status of language studies in new arrangements for secondary education in
the A.C.T.
P.L. Edwards (Canberra Technical College),
Ari optional vocational or career-oriented program.
P.L. Edwards & D.B. Hughes (Canberra Technical College),
Recommendations on the development of colleges in the A.C.T.
Dr C. Duke
The role of the school in the wider education process.
T. Bardsley (Canberra High School),
Possible Promotion Structures.
124
Untitled submissions from:
A.C.T. Council of P. & C. Associations.
A.C.T. Secondary Teachers' Association.
A.C.T. Secondary Principals' Council.
Dickson High School P. & C. Association.
Humanist Society of Canberra Incorporated.
Canberra School Music Teachers.
C. Lynch,
History Teachers' Association of the A.C.T.
R. Gifford,
Society for Social Responsibility in Science.
Canberra Mathematical Association.
Mrs Bette Dobbins,
Association of Teachers of English as a Second Language.
Letters from:
C.W.F. Johns,
(President, Telopea Park P. & C. Association — Colleges for the A.C.T.).
P.E. Mann,
(President, Widen Valley P. & C. Association).
Dr D.H. Green,
(President, Macquarie Primary School P. & C. Association).
Prof. R. Johnson,
(Department of Classics, A.N.U.)
Dr R.S. Rosich
(C.C.A.E.).
P.J. McKeown,
(Canberra Grammar School).
T.J. O'Connell,
(Australian College of Education).
Mgr J.P. Kelly,
(Catholic Education Office).
D. Anderson,
(Education Research Unit, A.N.U.).
Prof. A.N. Hambly,
(Deputy Chairman, Board of the School of General Studies, Australian National
University).
H.B. MacDonald,
(Secretary, Public Service Board).
J.S. Dallas,
(Director, A.C.T. Employers' Federation).
Dr G.J. Aitchinson,
(Chairman, Admissions Committee, Canberra College of Advanced Education).
Mrs Kay Dodds and others,
re Asian studies (Referred by the then Minister for Education and Science).
125
B
Secondary School Student Survey
APPENDIX
The following reports were submitted by Dr D.S. Anderson and Dr D.G. Beswick
of the Education Research Unit, Research School of Social Sciences, at the
Australian National University, and incorporate their findings as a result of a twostage survey undertaken at the request of this Committee.
1. (April 1972)
(a) Introduction
127
(b) Attitudes to the college proposal
128
(c) Attitudes to other aspects of school
130
(d) Social background and vocational future
139
(e) Sociological and educational correlates
141
(f) Some interpretations
144
(g) Questionnaire
147
(h) Supplementary report on preference for part-time study (June 1972) 156
2. (November 1972)
(а)
(b)
(c)
(d)
(e)
(f)
(g)
(h)
(i)
(j)
126
Preface
Introduction
Sample and survey procedure
Opinion on the college proposal
Other changes students approve
General attitudes to school
Attitudes to teachers
Conclusion
Tables
Changes in the wording of questions
158
158
160
161
162
164
165
166
169
178
1. FIRST REPORT ON CANBERRA GOVERNMENT HIGH SCHOOL
STUDENTS'
(a) Introduction
At the request of the Working Committee to report on the proposal for fifth and
sixth form colleges established by the then Minister for Education and Science a
survey was made of students. The initial request was for a study of student opinion
on the college proposal; subsequently this was extended to a study which would
enable student opinions to be interpreted by relating them to students' social
background and vocational future, and to experiences in school.
The main steps in the survey were as follows. Following discussion with
members of the Working Committee, in which the objectives of the survey were
clarified, a series of 12 group interviews was held in б schools. These were used in
the construction of a draft questionnaire which was pilot tested in a fourth and a
sixth form. The results obtained were used in the preparation of the final instrument. This was answered by a representative sample of 1,271 students in fourth,
fifth and sixth forms in March 1972. Every Canberra high school with a fourth form
was represented in the sample which was one-third of fourth to sixth form school
population. The sample was constructed so as to be representative of the population in the final three years of Canberra high schools. Because it is such a large sample the responses can be taken as highly accurate indicators of the opinions of
students generally?
It is the purpose of this first report to inform the committee on the general trend
of student opinions. At the time of this report analysis of the data is still far from
complete but the general trends are quite clear. A longer report making use of much
valuable data on secondary school students' perception of their school environment
will be published at a later date. Comparative data gathered in other parts of
Australia will be discussed in the later report.
Entry to the schools was arranged through the good offices of the Chief Inspector and the principals of the schools concerned. Students were informed that the
survey was anonymous and that there was no way in which individuals could be
identified. It was also explained to them that the Education Research Unit at
A.N.U. was an independent body without connection with their schools or the
Education Department and that the results would be in the form of summaries
which showed the trend of student opinion. On the other hand it was explained that
the results would have considerable importance in planning Canberra's future
school system.
The response of principals, teachers and students was co-operative in the extreme. Principals and teachers readily made the arrangements necessary for the interviews and testing. The students who were interviewed were exceedingly frank and
their answers helped us define the areas to be probed in the main questionnaire. All
students in the sample completed the questionnaire and many wrote extensive
replies to the several open-ended questions. Some of the observations which
students made during the interviews or at the end of the questionnaire have been included in the text of the report. These are a few of literally hundreds of similar comments and are in no way atypical.
1 This Report was originally submitted under the title: D.S. Anderson & D.G. Berwick, Coolers Secondary School Sund• 6972. The
proposal to Introduce fijfh and sixth form colleges In the А. С. Т. First Report. Education Research Unit. Australian National University.
Canberra. April 1972.
2 We are indebted to the Bureau of Censer and Statistics for advice concerning the se1ectiоп of the sample.
1 27
The idea that their opinions might be taken into account in the determination of
educational policy was remarked on with approval by a number of students.
(b) Attitudes to the college proposal
The general form of the results can be stated very simply. There is a strong demand for widespread changes, including separate colleges. The overwhelming majority of the students favoured the college proposal. The question was asked in a
form which gave very little information about the kinds of changes which might be
introduced. The exact wording of the general opinion question was as follows:
It has been proposed that the school system in A.C.T. be changed so that, instead of the present six-year high schools, there would be high schools covering Forms 1 to 4, and after fourth
form students who are going on would proceed to colleges for the present fifth and sixth forms
which would be at a separate location.
Perhaps these colleges would offer a different range of courses than at present and would
operate a little differently from the present high schools, but details have yet to be worked out.
What is your opinion on the general proposal?
Generally in favour
1
Generally not in favour
2
Undecided
з
Only two students did not answer the question. Of the remaining 1,269 more
than three-quarters were in favour of the proposal and less than 10 per cent were
against.
Generally in favour
973 students
77%
Generally not in favour
114 students
9%
Undecided
182 students
14%
Of the students who expressed an opinion one way or the other 90 per cent favoured
the proposal.
Sixth and fifth forms were on average more in favour than fourth, the difference
being due not so much to more opposition to the idea in fourth form but to a larger
number of students who were undecided.
Table B1 — Attitudes to the College proposal (%)
Generally in favour
Generally not in favour
Undecided
Form 4
Form 5
Form б
70
11
19
100
82
7
11
100
81
8
11
100
It will be seen later that many of the undecided fourth formers were students intending to leave school after fourth form, often with intention of attending technical
college.
This result must be interpreted in the light of students' lack of experience of an
alternative system. Indeed some students made this point to us during the interview
and said that their attitude would depend on the characteristics of the colleges. In
order to discover students' views about the characteristics of college, or of the present system, which appealed to them, a follow-up question asked for reasons. Space
was provided for students to write in their views. Although a large number of
different answers was given three themes were sufficiently common to indicate the
majority had a similar frame of reference in mind when thinking of Colleges. These
themes were:
128
Content of schooling:
availability of a greater range of subjects
and hence more choice — opportunity of
specialisation and the development of
particular interests — 30%
Teachers and interpersonal relations:
teachers able to treat students as adults 13
Freedom:
less authoritarian discipline, fewer petty
rules, more freedom in non-academic
matters — 12%
The percentages are the students who mentioned that particular reason first. On
average students gave two or three different reasons and many mentioned all of the
above main topics.
The distribution of sorts of reasons is similar in fourth, fifth and sixth forms
although fourth forms are relatively less concerned about the content of schooling.
ТаЬ1е B2 — First-mentioned reason for and against colleges (%)
Form б
Content (for)
Teachers (for)
Freedom (for)
Others (for)
Others (against)
Form 3
Form 4
41
19
13
20
7
40
17
14
21
9
29
12
15
29
15
'00
100
100
The seemingly greater concern of fifth and sixth formers with content may be a
reflection of the switch, in the Wyndham Scheme, from a fairly broadly based
curriculum in fourth form to a somewhat more narrow and specialised set of studies
in fifth and sixth.
As can be seen, very few students gave as their first-mentioned reason an argument in favour of retaining the present structure. (In fact very few arguments in
favour were given at any point in the replies although the questionnaire was carefullу constructed so as not to bias students either way). Of the reasons against, about 3
per cent of the total concerned loss of leadership for the lower school, 1 per cent
thought the colleges would be impersonal and 3 per cent referred to disruption
which would occur in the change-over period.
It can readily be argued that the changes which students give as their reasons for
having colleges could be achieved equally well in the present 1 to 6-form high
school. We shall return to this point later. At present it is worth noting students'
views on this option. At a later point in the questionnaire students were asked: "Do
you think that any important changes you would like to see could be accomplished
equally well in the six-year high school or better in a separate college for fifth and
sixth forms." The results show that students are strongly of the opinion that the
changes they want would be better accomplished in separate colleges: 80 per cent of
sixth form, 88 per cent of fifth form and 80 per cent of fourth form.
As a further test of students' feeling on the college proposal they were asked if
they favoured colleges "even if there were no change in courses, teaching methods,
discipline, etc. for fifth and sixth forms." About half wanted colleges even under
129
these circumstances, the proportion increasing slightly from fourth to sixth form.
Table В3 — Prefer colleges even if no other change (%)
Form 4
Form 5
Form б
48
50
54
This result is probably indicative of a general dissatisfaction with the status quo
and a desire for change: an attitude which came through strongly at many points in
the inquiry. We shall be concerned to interpret this result subsequently.
Two more questions explored further some consequences of the college
proposal. One concerned where the break should be — after second, third, fourth
or fifth form. A majority of about two-thirds was in agreement with the general
proposal that the break should be after fourth form. It is significant, however, that
the largest deviation from this pattern came from fourth-formers, almost one-fifth
of whom thought the break should be after third form.
Table В4 — Level at which colleges should start (%)
after 2nd form
after 3rd form
after 4th form
after 5th form
Form 4
Forn 5
Form б
2
18
70
10
1
7
81
1I
0
6
85
9
In later analysis we shall check on the possibility that the fourth formers wanting the switch to colleges to come early are students who themselves plan to leave
early. There was a strong personal identification of students with the questions of
the survey and a common question asked of the interviewer was "will the change be
in time for us?"
Finally, in relation to the specific college proposal, students were asked what the
effect would be on students left in Forms 1-4 if fifth and sixth forms were removed.
The possibility of the younger students being disadvantaged by removal of
leadership is a matter for concern among some educators and has been put to the
Working Committee as an argument against the proposal. If there were substance
in the argument from the students' point of view, the fourth formers would be expected to express more concern than the sixth formers. In fact there were no
differences between the forms: 80 per cent of students in all forms replied that the
college proposal would be an advantage to students left in Forms 1-4.
(c) A ttitudes to other aspects of school
As indicated above, this strong response in favour of colleges must be interpreted. One way to do this is to discover what sorts of students are for and against
the proposal. Before doing this, however, it will be instructive to examine students'
attitudes on other issues. We have already suggested that since students have no
direct experience of colleges the massive vote in favour is indicative of a general
desire for change, and a dissatisfaction with schooling as it now is.
There is a high degree of consistency in the kinds of changes which students
would like to see introduced at fifth and sixth form level. A number of opinion
statements were derived from students' comments in the group interviews and
presented in the questionnaire (Questions 14-29). Besides showing their extent of
agreement or disagreement with each statement, students were asked to indicate
130
which matters they considered most important in planning colleges for fifth and sixth form. In the ranking of attitude items as most important two characteristics
stood out very strongly (Table В5). These were a desire for continuous assessment
rather than end of the year examination and a greater emphasis on subjects which
are useful in a job. About 40 per cent of students considered these two changes
amongst the three most important that they would like to see out of the possibilities
present. After these two matters were a group of opinions on content and method of
schooling which were rated as most important by about 20 per cent of the students.
These included curriculum changes indicated by a desire to introduce social science
subjects such as sociology, anthropology, political science and technical as well as
academic subjects. Voluntary attendance at classes also featured prominently
among the features ranked most important in the planning of colleges.
Table В5 — Percentage of all students in each form ranking each topic among the three most important in
planning fifth and sixth form colleges.
Less weight should be given to exams
and more to continuous assessment of
work throughout the year
There should be more emphasis on
subjects which are useful in a job
Social sciencesubjects like
sociology, anthropology and political
science should be available
Attendance at classes should be
voluntary
Teaching methods should include some
lectures to large classes and
tutorials for small groups
Technical as well as academic subjects
should be offered in the same school
We need less talk from teachers and
more discussion
There should be more time for private
study and individual assignments with
less time in class
External exams like the Higher School
Certificate are necessary and cannot
be replaced by internal exams marked
by your own teachers
School uniforms are not appropriate
at the senior level in school
Form 6
Form 5
Form 4
50
45
36
40
42
47
27
24
19
26
21
18
25
24
18
24
23
21
22
23
23
17
20
28
17
15
17
12
21
22
(The remaining six items were generally among the 'three most important' for fewer than 10% of students).
Each item was also rated independently on a five-point scale ranging from
"strongly agree" to "strongly disagree" (Table Bб). The pattern of responses is consistent with the rankings. Ninety per cent of all students agreed that more emphasis
should be placed on `useful subjects' and 83 per cent favoured giving less weight to
examinations and more to continuous assessment. More social science subjects was
favoured by 81 per cent and technical subjects by 84 per cent. Rated at a similar
level of importance were several opinions concerned with teaching methods. A
combination of lectures and tutorials was favoured by 71 per cent; voluntary attendance at classes favoured by 49 per cent and opposed by 44 per cent; less talk from
teachers and more discussion, 75 per cent; and more time for private study, 67 per
cent. Similarly rated was the proposition that there should be no uniforms at senior
131
level in school and this was agreed to by 68 per cent. The question of whether there
should be external exams or internal exams marked by their own teachers was rated
as most important by almost as many students (15 per cent). However, this was not
always because students wished to have external exams abolished; 38 per cent
believed that they should be retained and those who rated the question most important were divided between those who wanted the exams external and those who did
not.
Table Bб — Rates of agreement with attitude items
Percentage ojagreement (a)
Tota!
Form S Form 6
); опп 4
There should be more time for private
study and individual assignments with
less time in class
We need less talk from teachers and
more discussion
Attendance at classes should be voluntary
Teaching methods should include some
lectures to large classes and tutorials for small groups
External exams like the Higher School
Certificate are necessary and cannot
be replaced by internal exams marked by
your own teachers
Less weight should be given to exams
and more to continuous assessment of
work throughout the year
Classes should be scheduled at various
times during the day and evening,
not just in normal school hours
Technical as well as academic subjects
should be offered in the same school
Social science subjects like
sociology, anthropology and political
science should be available
There should be mote emphasis on
subjects which are useful in a job
People who have left school for some
years should be able to return at any
time апд continue their studies
Older people, say over 30, should
not be allowed in the same class
with 16 to t8-year olds
There should be more opportunity to
work and study part-time at a normal
school (say go to school 2 days a week)
School uniforms are not appropriate
at the senior level in school
Corporal punishment may sometimes
be necessary
Most discipline should be handled by
a student council
75
63
57
67
78
42
77
52
73
60
76
49
68
75
74
71
36
48
29
38
83
82
86
83
36
30
24
31
87
82
85
81
77
84
83
81
94
90
88
91
79
81
76
79
52
51
47
50
49
47
42
47
76
64
59
68
43
32
33
37
64
61
55
61
(e) Students rated each item on a five point scale ranging from 'strongly agrec to 'strongly disgrå (see the quationaire (uppondix В )(g)).
The percentage agreement in the above tabic combines the ratings given to the first two points.
The preoccupation of students with examination pressures is evident in the
following exchange which took place in one of the sixth form group interviews.
Interviewer:
Boy I:
Interviewer:
Giri 1:
I 32
What about exams?
Too much pressure!
In what way'?
In everything — every single thing is orientated towards exams — some say exams don't really matter .
..
Girl 2:
No, they say you've got an exam, you've got to work,
you've got to do it, especially Mrs.... every single thing is
orientated towards exams .. .
Boy and Girl. ... stupid exams ... pressure is put on by teachers and
parents and everybody.
Parents as well?
Interviewer:
Girl 1:
Parents more so.
Girl 2:
Certainly parents.
You meet people and they say "what form are you in now"
Girl ЗΡ:
— "sixth form" you say — "ha", they say — "lots of
work".
Interviewer:
So it's even more general than teachers and parents?
Girl 3:
Yes, everyone.
Interviewer:
Well, how can assessments be made? Do you think no
assessments at all?
Internal examinations.
Girl 1:
Not even an internal exam but just assessments, maybe litGirl 3:
tle tests throughout the year or something. No major exam,
it's really bad for one's ego.
In sixth form the entire thing is based on the exam and
Girl 1:
that's really terrible.
So you would prefer to see continuous assessment?
Interviewer:
Yes, there are too many discrepancies in exams, people failBoy 2:
ing in things they shouldn't fail in.
You get nervous. Often you're so tired.
Girl 1:
You get wrong sort of questions, things you haven't
Boy 3:
prepared for. Like history — you could be prepared for
some such things — there's too much 'work, you don't
know what you're going to be tested on.
You can't do the whole course.
Girl З:
It's the same in science and maths, there's too much work
Boy 3:
to do, you can't learn it all.
The strong demand for technical subjects and for subjects which are useful
seemed to reflect two underlying positions. One is clearly a vocational orientation
which is very strong indeed — students want negotiable skills. This point was made
many times. Apart from this, however, some made explicit the idea that manual
training, while it will not be of direct occupational value, is a broadening experience. Furthermore, it provides relaxation from intense concentration on
academic subjects.
Assuming you are all going to university, wouldn't these courses like
typing and accountancy be irrevelant?
Fifth form boy: Well, look. Philip and I are doing a course in welding at the Tech at
present. This is a sort of thing we could have been taking at the school
and it would have been to our advantage because our other subjects
could be organised around taking a welding course. We could fit in
better instead of spending an entire night once a week on welding
when it could be fitted into six periods during our school week and
fitted more sensibly than it is.
If you're bright you can generally cope with a lot of academic stuff,
Second boy:
but you can't stick at that all week — it gets boring, so it's nice to have
something to do that's fairly easy. You can just take a break to do
this. it's creative. recreative, it sort of helps life, frees you up a bit.
Interviewer:
It should be noted that interpretation of attitude responses is a complex matter.
The particular wording of an item can influence responses and overall there can be
response sets, for example a tendency to agree with any proposition irrespective of
its content. There may also be an inclination of students to be 'agin the
government'. Some checks have been built into the questionnaire; also the second
stage of analysis uses techniques designed to get at the underlying dimensions. In
the meantime some insight can be gained by comparing the strength of responses
given by different groups.
1 33
While there is a general consensus between forms, Table BЬ does reveal a few
differences which are instructive. Sixth formers, who have private study time, are
relatively less concerned with this issue than fourth form, who do not. Nonetheless,
a majority of sixth form would like even more time for private study and individual
assignments than there is now.
As might be expected, fourth formers are more in favour of a greater vocational
emphasis in school; even so an overwhelming majority of all students want more
attention given to subjects which are `useful in a job'. A somewhat similar
difference is revealed in attitudes to the idea of combined work and study, slightly
more fourth and fifth formers (about half) being in favour than sixth formers.
Some insight into fourth form attitudes to discipline is revealed in the responses
to corporal punishment and school uniforms. Fourth formers are even more strongly against uniforms than fifth and sixth; however, approaching one-half admit that
corporal punishment may sometimes be necessary. Taken in conjunction with the
attitude towards voluntary attendance at classes (fourth formers not as strongly in
favour) the results make it appear as if fourth formers, while strongly in favour of
individual freedom, recognise to some extent the custodial function of school and
the need for some external constraint to encourage disciplined behaviour. As might
be expected, fifth and sixth formers are more inclined to regard student responsibility as a sufficient source of discipline. This is a complex subject and will be the subject of much more detailed analysis.
Some additional questions, including special aspects of curriculum concerned
with social or moral questions, the relationship between work and study, the structure of authority in the school and characteristics expected of teachers, indicate
further the kinds of institutions which the students would like the colleges to be.
With regard to driver education, sex education and instruction in the uses and
dangers of drugs, the students clearly favour their inclusion in the normal school
curriculum, well over 90 per cent saying these kinds of instruction should be given
on either a voluntary or compulsory basis. It may be of particular interest that
special emphasis is given by the students to the dangers of drugs in that 53 per cent
of them considered that instruction in this matter should be compulsory.
Table В7 — Attitudes to the provision of special topics at school (%)
Сотpиlвогу
Driver education
Sex education
The uses and dangers of drugs
Religion taught by a clergyman
or church representative
Religion taught by a regular
member of the teaching staff
134
Voluntary Not at а!!
27
„
53
70
60
44
3
2
3
100
100
100
2
62
36
100
1
30
69
100
The committee may wish to take into account student opinions on the place of
religious instruction in schools. Almost none of the students agreed with compulsory religious instruction. However, 61 per cent agreed that it should be
available on a voluntary basis if given by clergy or church representatives. Only 30
per cent would allow it to be taught by a regular member of the teaching staff, 69
per cent claiming that religion taught by a regular member of the teaching staff
should not be allowed at all.
The integration of work and study or the place of the colleges in the transition
from school to work is a matter on which the students have opinions which would
conflict with the notion of the colleges as a mere continuation of high school or an
academically specialised matriculation college. In the attitude question (Table B6)
78 per cent agreed that people who have left school for some years should be able to
return at any time and continue their studies. That there should be opportunity to
work and study part-time at a normal school was agreed by 47 per cent; 42 per cent
were opposed to the idea and 10 per cent undecided on this question. When asked
about their own future plans nearly half of the students who planned to go on to
tertiary education said they would prefer to spend a year or two at work after completing school before beginning tertiary education. When asked about their attitude
to work at the present time 42 per cent said they would prefer part-time school and
part-time work, 40 per cent said they would prefer full-time school, others would
prefer to have left school and be at work although some said they may wish to
return later. It must be observed, however, that while many students indicated a
preference for the kind of institution that would allow for a combination of work
and study and for a possible re-entry at a later date, these issues were not rated as
the most important questions in the planning of the colleges as the students saw
them.
A majority of students did not favour the idea of 'older people, say over 30
(being), in the same class with 16 to 18-year-olds'. This response illustrates how experience can change attitudes. In the pilot test the response of one particular fourth
form was found to be overwelmingly in favour of having older persons in class. On
investigation we found that there was indeed an older person in this class — a lady
of over 30 who was back at school to gain qualifications she had not obtained
earlier. Many children in this form wrote comments expressing their satisfaction at
the arrangement. The lady herself subsequently wrote to us explaining why she was
at school and how her initial trepidation was overcome by the accepting attitudes of
the young students.
With regard to the government of a school, the students favoured the idea of a
governing council rather than the principal alone having authority. However, they
do not give clear preference to a broadly representative council. A large majority
want the council to include senior students and teachers but not other local citizens
or government officials. They are ambivalent with regard to the place of parents; 21
per cent are uncertain in their opinions, 39 per cent would not want parents on the
council and 32 per cent would. Seventy-nine per cent specifically rejected the idea
that there should be only the principal in control with no council.
135
Table B8 — Who should be on ■ school governing-council (%)
('no answer' excluded)
Form б
Form 4
Form 5
Yes No or Yes No or Yes No or
uncertain
uncertain
uncertain
Teacher
Parents
Other local citizens
Senior students
Government officials
No council, only Principal
55
31
5
89
9
5
45
59
94
II
91
95
73
36
10
94
12
3
27
64
90
6
88
97
87
40
9
94
18
4
13
60
91
6
82
96
Students' opinions of teachers and teaching cannot always be taken at face value
and interpretation of attitude item responses is sometimes a difficult and highly
technical matter. Such attitudes are important, but this report does not seek to give
policy guide-lines, so much as to set out the students' responses systematically.
Even with that restriction some further caution is necessary. If it can be said that the
general trend of the results summarised above indicates a high degree of dissatisfaction with schools as they are now, then it can only be expected that students will express dissatisfaction with teachers. The extent to which negative attitudes to
teachers can be interpreted as frustrated students kicking the nearest visible object,
rather than as responses to specific difficulties they have with teachers, is a difficult
matter to determine. We have gained some insight into this problem from the extensive notes which students wrote on their questionnaires and from the group interviews which where conducted before the questionnaire study.
Before looking at some data on teaching we might first note what the students
consider most important in a teacher. Two-thirds rated skill in communicating
ideas as most important, 18 per cent said that an informal friendly attitude was
most important, and 14 per cent gave preference to expert knowledge of the subject.
When asked in what respect they thought teaching at the senior level most need to
be improved the students again said "skill in communicating ideas" (52 per cent),
but expert knowledge of the subject (24 per cent) received more attention than in
the previous question. There were some quite strong differences between forms on
this question of how important expert knowledge of the subject is. It was ranked
most in need of improvement by 31 per cent of fourth formers but only by 1 б per
cent of sixth formers. This might not be an indication of what students expect in the
colleges .but rather a response to the qualifications of teachers who teach at the
different levels in the present schools: and it must be emphasised that when forced
to choose, the students clearly direct attention to communication rather than expertness of teachers in their area, or to friendliness. However, the free comments at
the end of the questionnaire left no doubt that students also appreciate being
treated as human beings and resent authoritarian attitudes in their teachers.
The quantitative information on students' opinions of teachers in general is
derived mainly from a set of items which invited students to indicate the reality and
the ideal: what the situation is in their school and what it should be (Questions 33
and 39). This technique has been used a great deal as a measure of motivation in industrial settings. It has also been used successfully in studies of educational institutions. In a recent study of university students dissatisfaction scores from a
series of such questions predicted academic performance and dropping out.
I 36
In the introduction to the questions on reality and ideal students were told "So
far no decisions have been made on the sort of teachers that would be in the
colleges; perhaps they would be the same as they are now in high school, or perhaps
they would be selected differently. We would like your ideas about teachers in the
senior part of the school —what they are like and what you think they should be
like. Your answer should concern teachers generally, not any one particular
teacher, and should relate to the senior level about fifth and sixth form". They were
then presented with a series of paired questions, the first of each pair asking
whether teachers did something, and the second part asking whether they should.
So, for example, the first question said "Teachers do spend a good deal of time talking with individual students" and the second part of it "Teachers should spend more
time talking with individual students". The discrepancy in the rates of agreement
between the two parts of such questions can be taken as an index of dissatisfaction.
Without answers from students in other school systems these discrepancies are
difficult to interpret. By comparing items and cluster analysis of the Canberra data
it has been possible to detect areas where dissatisfaction of students is strongest. It
must be kept in mind, however, that these questions invite agreement responses.
The area of greatest discrepancy was again in students not rating teachers as being as good at communicating in the class room as the students believed they should
be. The next highest discrepancy occurred with the question quoted above, concerning taking time to talk to individual students. Lack of expertise in the subject came
next and insistence upon being addressed formally, together with not listening to
what students have to say, were other areas of significant complaint. In these
respects the survey results confirmed opinions expressed at greater length in the
group interviews and supported by the comments that students made when asked to
say at the end of the questionnaire what they liked most about school, what they
liked least and what changes they would like to see. However, as mentioned above,
in the written comments there was a much greater emphasis upon authoritarian discipline which was seen by students as the most objectionable characteristic of
school as they know it.
Some idea of the feeling which lies behind these statistics is conveyed by
students' free comments in the interviews and in the descriptive sections of the
questionnaire. A sixth form girl who had been to school in the United States and
Switzerland used her comparative experience to support her contention that there
should be:
No uniforms! No external exams! Voluntary attendance! More change instead of staying
traditional just for the sake of staying traditional. Students should be allowed to have more say
and their opinions should be considered. Should have a student council elected by students.
The American schoot I was in had all the above except voluntary attendance and I enjoyed
school much more for those reasons. Also the students seemed to have a much better attitude.
They came to learn, which is not apparent here.
There is no argument for uniforms (family income shows up just as much) but not having uniforms is much more comfortable. When you wear what you choose you can relax.
Voluntary attendance allows for attending classes that will assist your study and missing those
that will just take up time. Also the school wouldn't have to worry about all the excuses and
late passes, etc.
External exams means teachers don't have time to branch off from the curriculum into more
interesting matters which otherwise they could and examine the pupils on the related topics.
It's all education. Why should we have to stick rigidly to all these things that don't interest us.
A little variation would make it interesting.
Australia is so backward in the school system. It is too afraid to change. That's the impression
I get from being in American and Swiss schools.
137
A recurrent theme in the written comments concerns pupil freedom. Fir example, a fourth form boy responded to "What do you like least about school?" with:
I would like to see the syllabus changed, because it is irrelevant, antiquated and suppressive to
the individual. I would want most kinds of discipline abolished; the only sort that would be
used would be when assault or theft were involved. Teaching methods should be changed, the
formal, classroom, teacher-up-the-front attitude to be abolished and replaced with a friendly
informal discussion type of method. Classrooms, as such, should be turned into study and
'resource' centres somewhat like a small library. A college system is the only effective way to
achieve all such aims.
Behind the sometimes strident language of many teenagers one can detect in
their comments an appreciation of teaching which requires students to take initiative and to interact with one another.
Interviewer:
Sixth form girl:
What sort of teaching methods do you find best?
When we were first introduced to this (English) teacher we all hated
her. She gave us group discussion. There was a topic and you were to
separate into about five groups for discussion. At first of course we all
just laughed at this, but the fact remained that we learnt, and we talk.
ed and we got a lot of ideas that we wouldn't have got otherwise.
A fifth form boy at another school made the point that teachers in the senior
school also had to teach junior forms. "They also teach us and this unconsciously
makes them treat us like first form and second form." The interviewer asked "then
how should a teacher teach sixth form, what is the ideal?" to which the reply was
"teachers should take part, not just sit up front and dictate notes. It should be like a
conversation". Another interviewer with another fifth former asked "what teaching
methods are best?" to which the answer was "friendly ones, that's amazingly true.
I've learnt French over the last three years merely because I've got on with the
teachers. If I hadn't, my French would just be hopeless".
In addition to what we called `democratic methods' and the desire for friendly
relations between teachers and students there was a desire on the part of some
students for greater autonomy in learning in which the student takes more initiative
and the teacher becomes a resource person. The following exchange illustrates the
point.
Interviewer:
Girl 1:
Boy 1:
Boy 2:
Girl 2:
Boy 2:
Elizabeth, you made the point that teaching in sixth form should be
different from that in first. What do you want, what should a sixth
form teacher be like?
Like a university where you have lectures and you have tutorials and
they (lecturers) go around and give very personal sort of help.
Well, I don't agree with that because there is a different state of mind
in different people. Some people need explanation, some people can
listen to the lecturer and receive all the information. But 1 agree that a
teacher should be more of a reference for us, but I don't think they
should be simply lecturers.
I think we would get more out of a course if we were told what we had
to do and we were left to go on ourselves. If we came up with a
problem, we would ask the teacher, instead of the teacher telling us
what to do and ignoring us at other times.
With some subjects you could do that, but with others it would be impossible.
This way you would be able to educate yourself to be able to refer to
teachers when you came across problems, rather than just listen to
them. This would be the main function of a sixth form teacher I think.
As mentioned in the introduction, the free comments and group interview exchanges we have quoted are typical of hundreds of similar remarks. Representativeness of the main themes is shown by the tallies we made of first-mentioned or
I 38
dominant themes in answers to the questions "What do you like most about
school?", "What do you like least about school?" and "What changes would you
like to see and why?".
The responses to these open-ended questions clearly indicated the social importance of school for the students. Friendships with other students were much more
frequently mentioned as the thing `most liked about school' than any other qualities
of school life, this theme being dominant in the answers of 37 per cent of the
students, while 'expanding knowledge and interest' predominated for only 1б per
cent, and other categories were much less frequent. When asked to comment on
what they liked least about school an even greater concentration fell on one
category and this was in the comments referring to authoritarian discipline, lack of
freedom and school rules, 42 per cent of the students being classed as liking school
least in this respect. A further 13 per cent were most concerned about unimaginative
teaching, stifling of originality and lack of variety of experience.
A somewhat similar set of themes appeared in the students' quite extensive
answers to the question "what changes would you like to see and why?". Three
categories of answers were fairly common: (1) more freedom and responsibility in
general and particularly less supervision of social activity (which was the dominant
theme of 18 per cent of the answers); (2) a more comprehensive course, a wider
choice of subjects, more job relevance and other curriculum changes (the principal
concern of another 15 per cent); and (3) easier communication between student and
teachers, especially a request for a more informal relationship (the first or main
theme of 14 per cent). These were the most common categories of changes the
students would like to see and were much more common than, for example, a request to change the examination system, which was mentioned as important by only
7 per cent. It may be noted that these comments, which were free comments not
structured by more detailed questions, give a somewhat different picture of the
students' concerns than do the attitude items discussed previously in this report.
The social emphasis is much clearer in these free comments.
(d) Social background and vocational future
In order to assist in interpreting the responses, information was obtained about
students' social background and about their likely educational and vocational
future.
Sociologically, Canberra differs from most other Australian cities in that there
is a large proportion of migrant families; and that most families have shifted to
Canberra, if not from overseas, from elsewhere in Australia. The significance of this
for adolescents is that roots do not go as deep into the community as in communities where students, and perhaps their parents, have lived all their lives.
Secondly, the occupational structure of the Canberra community is more discernibly hierarchical than elsewhere. The main avenue of employment is the Public
Service which is, of course, visibly hierarchical in terms of status and rewards. A
division of particular significance for education is the barrier between Third and
Fourth Division. Outside the Public Service the main areas of employment are the
professions and manual occupations, both skilled and unskilled. Here again there is
a clear division of prestige and reward which is also correlated with educational
level. These divisions exist elsewhere but the significant thing about them for young
people in Canberra is that here they are more visible and that alternative oc139
which do not fit so clearly into a hierarchy, in business and industry for
example, are less numerous. This situation, we suggest, places Canberra students
under even greater pressure to succeed than is the case elsewhere.
Finally, Canberra differs from other communities in the very large proportion
of the adult population which has itself completed secondary schooling and has tertiary qualifications. This very likely leads to greater parental pressure on children to
succeed in school. The extraordinarily high retention rates in Canberra schools is
indicative of this. The greater drop-out rate of girls from upper secondary level is
less in evidence in Canberra than elsewhere and in sixth form they are just under 49
per cent.
Some of the statistics from the survey illustrate the peculiar sociology of
Canberra:
Father born overseas
37 per cent
Student born overseas
24 per cent
Students who have attended secondary schools overseas
15 per cent
Fathers with a university degree'
20 per cent
5 per cent
Mothers with a university degree
19
per cent
Father in professional job
Students' own educational and vocational ambitions match the position in the
community. The two-thirds fourth formers intending to stay on at school to sixth
form is extraordinarily high for Australia:
Fourth formers expecting to leave after fourth form
29 per cent
Fourth formers expecting to leave after fifth form
2 per cent
Fourth formers expecting to leave after sixth form
69 per cent
The proportions intending to undertake further training after high school is also
far greater than the figures of actual enrolments for Australia as a whole.
cupations
Table В9 — Further training immediately after high school (%)
Technical college
Teachers college
CAE—part-time
CAE—full-time
University — part time
University — full-time
Other professional, e.g.
nursing, military
Most likely to start work after
school with no further training for the time being
Form 4
Foui 3
Fornt b
26
7
2
2
6
26
14
9
4
8
6
37
13
6
4
10
5
3б
17
12
10
14
100
10
100
16
100
The proportions nominating `college of advanced education' seem disproportionately low. It may be that the Canberra Advanced College, being a relatively new
institution, is not yet well known among Canberra secondary students. The future
occupations nominated by students suggested that a number who nominated
`technical college' may well wish to undertake courses at the Advanced College.
Apart from this possible confusion between technical and advanced college, the
' This figure is consistent with the data from the 1966 Census which revealed that 17 per Øt of the males aged 40-44 in the A.C.T.
metropolitan area had university degrees. The corresponding figure for Australia is 2.3 per cent.
140
careers which students said they are most likely to take up match the further training they expect to undertake.
Tablе 810 — Students' likely careers
Form 4
University Professional (32)
Medical doctor
Law/economics
Engineering
Science
Agriculture/Veterinary
Architect
Social science/Humanities
Teacher
Pub is Service
Other inc. Military
All University Professional
Other Professional (32)
Pharmacy & paramedical
Nursing
Social science
Teacher
Journalism
Librarian
Computing, electronics, draftsmen
Commercial art, art
Accountant
Other inc. Military
All other Professional
Other White Collar( I3)
Police
Secretary
Public servant
Clerical
Personal service
All Other White Collar
Self employed (0.6)
Manual (10)
Skilled
Semi or unskilled
All Мапиul
Undecided (13)
3
4
2
5
2
I
2
5
I
4
29
Fornt 5
Form б
5
5
6
8
2
3
8
5
1
2
45
3
2
5
10
1
I
9
9
2
3
40
2
4
3
8
1
9
1
0
5
2
1
6
35
4
3
0
13
I
I
7
3
2
5
38
2
11
I
0
7
4
3
4
39
I
9
3
3
3
19
1
2
2
4
2
1
11
0
1
4
2
4
I
12
I
16
3
19
12
4
0
4
9
4
I
5
23
100
100
100
(Bracketed figures are the percentage of all students in each main class)
Undecided and 'no answer' cases are deleted from the calculation of percentages given in the body of the table. Percentages given in
parentheses вrе of the total sample. In both respects percentages may not all add up to 100 because of rounding.
There is a strong correspondence between the Occupational area which students
expect to enter and that which their fathers are in. Students' expectations are,
however, skewed very strongly to the upper status occupations and the number
stating that their likely career is in the professions (64 per cent) is three times that
among fathers. These figures will alter somewhat when analysed by sex; none the
less they do represent a very high, and perhaps to an extent unrealistic, level of anticipation among Canberra youth.
(e) Sociological and educational correlates
Research in many countries including Australia has established that there are
very strong links between the sort of family a student belongs to and his schooling.
In general, students from better-off families and families where the parents
141
themselves have had a high level of education are the students who remain at school
longer and who obtain better results. Canberra is no exception. In this survey
students from High SES families (the term refers to a composite measure comprised
of parental educational level, father's occupation and father's income) are much
more likely to have a Commonwealth secondary scholarship, be in a first or advanced level class and be destined for higher education and a professional career .
It will be important for the planners of Canberra's future schools to understand
the needs and ambitions of various sorts of students. The evidence which follows
suggests that the present arrangements are most suited to a particular sort of student — the high-achieving student from a professional family.
In this section the opinions on the college proposal are compared with students'
social backgrounds, their status in school, attitudes to schooling and vocational
future. The differences between the various groups are generally small and it is
noteworthy that there is a remarkable consistency in the proportion favouring the
college idea.
The results have been summarised in Table B11.
Table Bil
Т ре
of variable
Groups nroct in favour
of the college idea
Sociological
• lower SES
migrants from N. Europe
•
•
girls(a)
Status in school
• fifth and sixth form
students in middle levels (as distinct from top or
•
bottom levels — see graphs)
students who expect to win a Commonwealth
•
secondary scholarship (fourth form only)
students in science courses
•
Attitudes
• students who dislike school
•
students who feel teachers are not communicating
students likely to leave early
•
Vocational future
• early leaving for work or technical college
(a) Sex ray he considered a sociological variable in that society prescribes distinct roks for males and females. The effect of this is dear in
the data of this survey which revals that girls have different educational•and vocational ambitions from toys.
These results have been obtained from simple cross-tabulations of the data.
Inferential statistics have been computed for only some of the effects listed, but the
results of contingency and regression analyses give sufficient support to the conclusions for us to be reasonably sure that statistical significance will be maintained
when further analyses are completed. In general the effects are small because they
are superimposed on a general trend which is overwhelmingly in favour of colleges.
Obviously many of the variables are interconnected and at this stage causal
significance cannot be attributed to any particular association. For example SES,
school performance, attitudes and vocational future are all related to one another
and their connection with the college proposal is quite complex. Multiple regression
analyses are being made in order to estimate the separate contributions of the
several classes of variables. It should also be noted that the association between the
variables is not always a simple additive one. The link between level in school and
The dynamics of these connections are compkx. In general students from upper SES families do better at school beгвии of e higher level
of aspiration. a more stimulating environment at home and better resources for studying.
142
attitudes to colleges illustrates this. As may be seen in the graphs, students in an intermediate level are more inclined towards the college proposal than advanced or
lower level students. The pattern exists in each form.
Form 4
Form 5
Form б
90
50
Low
High Low
High Low
High
A verage subject level
Subsequent analysis will attempt to discover the underlying variables which
cause the middle level students to favour colleges even more than the extremes. One
hypothesis is that students in the upper levels are relatively more suited by the present arrangements; or perhaps they can cope better. They are able, and tend to have
a more satisfying syllabus and teaching. Because they are grouped with similar
students they are not subject to the distractions likely to occur in a class of second
level students where for a variety of reasons motivation is lower. On the other hand,
the lowest level students, while suffering similar or even greater 'in-school' disadvantages than the middle level students, are likely to be under less pressure to
succeed, either from their families or their school.
We have no direct evidence from the survey that upper level classes do receive
'better teaching. Some students and some teachers have told us that this is the case.
Indirectly the survey evidence supports the notion: in fourth form, more students in
upper level classes than in lower level classes reported that their teachers were good
at communicating. (The difference is statistically significant). If it is the case that
the less 'able' students are provided with inferior conditions for teaching and learning the self-fulfilling prophecy may well operate: that is, students whose achievement is lower are provided with conditions that help keep it that way. Similarly
there is evidence from students that the more qualified teachers predominate in fifth
and sixth form. This point was referred to above in differences between forms where
it was noted that fourth form students more often nominated 'expert knowledge of
the subject' as the quality most in need of improvement.
Summing up the differences which have been found, it appears as if the colleges
are most favoured by groups of students who are generally ambitious but for whom
the task of succeeding is a little harder in the present system. These are students
from certain classes of migrant families, students from lower. SES families, students
with middle levels of achievement, students with vocational rather than academic
orientations and (dare we suggest it) girls. Included among these are students who,
143
in other regions of Australia or in other times, would have left school for work or
technical training.
(f) Some interpretations
The point has already been made that the massive vote for colleges is best seen
as part of a much more general desire for change. This desire is also manifested in
attitudes to the syllabus, to teaching and to social relations in the school. There is
no doubt at all that morale in Canberra high schools is low. The evidence is consistent for all schools, and all forms, and comes from a diversity of sources.
We shall be endeavouring to interpret this response in the remainder of this
report but particularly in the subsequent report which will have benefit of additional evidence and more analysis. It is important at this stage to note that student
opinion is not a sufficient basis for determining policy. Even where the opinion is
valid it is the case that educators `know better'. This is a more contentious issue in
universities than secondary schools. None the less it is worth making the point that
the broad objective of schooling is the transmission of a culture from one generation to the next. Those who are being initiated into that culture are not in as good a
position to make judgments about what should be taught and how it should be
taught as those who are already expert. None the less there is a strong case for student opinion to be taken into account. Universities now recognise this and have set
up procedures whereby students participate in government and provide feed-back
on teaching. This is not just a matter of raising student morale but of the institution
benefiting from the experiences of those who are mainly on the receiving end. These
same general advantages apply to planning secondary schools but to our knowledge
there are no other cases in Australia where student opinion has been sought before
a major policy decision is taken. As mentioned earlier in the report, students
remarked with favour to us on the idea that their views might be worth considering.
The comparison made with universities is not exact. Not only are secondary
students less experienced but secondary schools have broadly two functions, to
promote learning and to keep students in custody, whereas universities have only
the former. In many ways the custodial function of the school conflicts with its
function of promoting learning and of helping students become autonomous
learners. When students have to be kept at school (by law in the case of under 15year-olds) teachers are faced with the task of maintaining order among students
with varying degrees of motivation. In many cases it seems as if fairly authoritarian
methods are regarded as indispensable. The problem of maintaining order exists
with older students too. While these students are legally free not to attend school,
they are under family and social pressures to do so. The survey revealed that fifth
and sixth formers are, on average, a little more favourably disposed to school than
fourth formers but none the less there are still very large proportions for whom
school is distasteful or at best a mixed experience. This is summed up in an overall
Table В12 — Ratings of students' attitudes to school (%)
Hates school
Tolerates with difficulty
Ambivalent
Generally favourable
Likes it very much
144
Form 4
Form S
Form б
9
17
37
35
2
5
15
41
37
4
4
18
33
41
5
'100
100
100
rating of each student's attitude to school made on the basis of the free comments to
the final three questions.
In this discussion we are making the basic assumption that in order to achieve
the objective of teaching students to become autonomous learners, schools must
have students who are motivated to learn. We have referred to the conflict of the
custodial function with the learning function. While this is a matter which should be
of considerable importance to educational planners — that is the amount of
pressure on students to attend school — we will not discuss the subject in great
detail. It is a topic of lively debate in educational circles throughout the world, one
extreme position being represented by the 'de-schooiers' led by Ivan Illich. It is
noteworthy that among Canberra students there is a large number who prefer work
to school, many who would like part-time work and part-time school and a strong
sentiment in favour of the option of re-entry to school after having been at work.
This attitude undoubtedly reflects a feature of adolescence in Western
technologically advanced societies. This is that society defers the assumption of
adult roles (as worker, citizen, sexually mature person) long beyond the period
where young people are physically and intellectually capable of assuming these
roles. The hankering to enter the world of work also perhaps unconsciously reflects
the view being argued so forcibly by Illich and others, that schools are artificial institutions which, far from preparing students for roles in society, insulate them from
those very experiences which would be most helpful. Probably the nearest example
in Australian State education to this approach to learning (and to overcoming the
problem of poor motivation) is the Swinburne community school in Victoria. Here
attendance at classes is voluntary and a good deal of the learning takes place in settings outside the physical boundaries of the school.
The question of assessing motivation in conventional school settings is of central relevance to this study. We have reported that student morale is very low, so
low in fact that the teaching and learning functions of schools must be seriously inhibited. This is not merely a Canberra problem. Research elsewhere in Australia
and from overseas reports similar results. A study just being started of schooling in
Oslo for example has as its starting point the low morale in Norwegian secondary
schools. The Sydney University study of adolescents has reported that a fifth of the
young people are bored with school and half are indifferent. The question we shall
be studying when data are available from other States is whether the antagonism of
Canberra students towards their schools is a characteristic common to secondary
students throughout Australia, a feature associated in some particular way with the
N.S.W. system of education, or a Canberra phenomenon.
The extent of the antagonism and alienation among the Canberra students inclines us to the view that there is a local component over and above more general
causes operating throughout society. However, some educationists familiar with
schooling elsewhere in Australia with whom we have discussed our findings believe
we will find similar results in other systems. We have referred earlier to sociological
conditions in Canberra which make it different from the rest of Australia and which
would promote alienation of the young. There is a visibly hierarchical (and
therefore competitive) social structure and there are strong pressures to do well in
this competitive situation. Such conditions, superimposed on the normal adolescent
inclination towards rebellion, are likely to cause aggressive responses — of which
there were a very large number in the survey — or alienation, that is, a 'switching145
off from the values of adult society and the seeking refuge in a peer group subculture. Again there is considerable evidence of this response in the survey. Another
question for further study is whether, in addition to causes embedded in the
sociology of Canberra, there are conditions in Canberra schools reinforcing the
students' attitudes. The competitive structure within schools is fairly strong and
'designed so that there must be some who fail, no matter how hard they try and
how well they do. Not all can secure a position in an advanced class, win a Commonwealth secondary scholarship, pass Higher School Certificate or gain university
entry. Rather than submit meekly to failure, or anticipated failure, it is natural that
some 'will kick at the nearest available object' or simply 'switch off'.
These hypotheses however are unlikely to be sufficient to explain the complete
range of responses which we obtained. There remains the fact of negative attitude
even among those able students who are succeeding in the system. For these
students, and for many others in the middle and lower ranges of achievement who
want to continue schooling, it is urgent that motivation be improved. We are not
suggesting that all students can learn to love school. For many who attend because
of pressure, we believe it would be better to discourage further schooling — for the
time being. If re-entry is readily available some will return when learning has more
point for them.
For the others a key to improved motivation lies in the social relations among
students and between students and teachers. A clue to this is the extraordinary frequency with which students in their own free comments referred to the most satisfying aspect of school as relations with their friends, and expressed the wish for
greater mutual respect between students and teachers.
A line of advance could be to instigate processes which have been successful in
raising motivation and performance in other settings and give student groups
greater responsibility for defining and carrying out their own learning tasks. A
student's colleagues often represent the least recognised, least used and possibly the
most important of all resources available to him. The detailed techniques of group
and syndicate methods of study are beyond the scope of this report. We refer to
them because they are one way forward out of the present unsatisfactory situation
and because they have implications for the micro-planning of future schooling in
Canberra.
So far we have refrained from discussing the particular proposal for colleges.
The massive student vote for them is, we have suggested, to be seen as a vote for
change, rather than an argument in favour of colleges. Some of the reforms which
have been implied in our discussion could be achieved in the present structure. The
question for the committee would be whether they can be accomplished better in a
different institution. Colleges are not a guarantee of improvement. Clearly it would
be possible to have colleges in which student morale remained much as it is now.
The study has also forcibly reminded us that there are educational problems
affecting students in Forms 1 to 4 which are at least as important as those in Forms
5 and 6. If the college proposal is adopted we believe the committee should consider
what steps might be initiated simultaneously to overcome problems at junior level.
The central question is whether the changes which are desirable for all levels can
be more satisfactorily achieved in a separate institution. The evidence which we will
obtain from other States where colleges have been instituted will help in answering
this question. In the meantime the main consideration seems to be the facility with
146
which the senior part of schools can cater for a diverse set of interests and also be
organised to permit the older students to act as more autonomous, self-motivated
beings.
There are several implications of this proposal. One is that students should be
offered much more freedom in conducting their own lives: in deciding whether to
attend school and classes, in how they spend their own free time, and in relatively
trivial things like dress and smoking. A second is that the linchpin of the school,
viewed as a system aimed at producing learning, should be the relations between
students and students, and between students and staff. if students are to have more
autonomy in their learning activities the role of staff becomes more as resource personnel, exercising general guidance and at other times being available when particular problems arise. A third consideration is the provision of more curriculum
options than are at present available. We do not have in mind adding Greek or
computing, although both might be desirable, but making available subjects to
meet the needs of the large number of 'middle level' students who are not adequately catered for at present. Included among these would be subjects of a technical and
vocational nature. Finally it seems important to us that many adolescents should be
able to enter the world of work earlier than at present, but that their future options
be kept open by the opportunity to re-enter formal schooling either part-time or
full-time.
We have avoided making policy recommendations on the basis of this survey.
Our aim has been to raise issues and perhaps to indicate desirable qualities which
might be included in a practical course of action. There are, no doubt, many policy
alternatives which could take account of the matters we have discussed. This is not
to say that the evidence from student opinions has no bearing on the important
decisions to be made. Indeed, the seriousness of the current and probably increasing
alienation of youth gives some urgency to the implementation of policies which aim
at a closer integration of educational institutions with the life and work of the community as a whole. This problem of overcoming alienation in a time of accelerating
social change is common to all modern technological societies. In some respects
Canberra is probably a few years 'ahead' of the rest of the country in having to face
the social and educational consequences of rapid change and that, of course, again
emphasises the importance of decisions the Working Committee will make and advice it will give.
(g) Form of questionnaire
CANBERRA SECONDARY SCHOOL SURVEY — 1972
EDUCATION RESEARCH UNIT — THE AUSTRALIAN NATIONAL
UNIVERSITY
We are making a study of school students' opinions about schools — what they are
like now, what should be changed and what should be kept as it is.
The results will be of considerabla importance in planning Canberra's future school
system.
Most of the questions can be answered by placing a circle around the number opposite a question. For example, if you are in fifth form you answer the first question
as follows:
1
What form are you in? Fourth
г
Q
Fifth
3
Sixth
147
Many questions ask for your opinion — if the alternatives given do not correspond
to your position circle the number of the answer which is closest to your opinion.
There is space between questions — use this to elaborate your answers.
Do not write your name on the questionnaire. The survey is anonymous. There is
no way in which individuals can be identified. The published results will include
statistical summaries which show the general trend of student opinions.
1. What form are you in?
2.
3.
What is your age now?
Fourth
Fifth
Sixth
1
2
under 13
14
15
1б
17
18
19 or over
3
1
1
2
2
3
4
5
6
7
male
female
What is your sex?
Do not
write in
this
column
1
2
3
4. What subjects are you taking this year? Write in any of your subjects
not listed below and circle one number in each row to show the level at
which you are studying the subject.
Subject
English
Foreign language
Maths
Science
History (modern)
Social studies
Geography
Craft
Others (write in)
148
Not
Level
Advanced Credit Ordinary taking
this
or 2nd
or 3rd
or I st
I
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
2
2
2
2
2
2
2
2
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
4
4
4
4
4
4
4
4
1
1
1
1
1
2
2
2
2
2
3
3
3
3
3
4
4
4
4
4
4
5
5. In general what kind of subject do you like best? (Circle one number
only)
1
Humanities (e.g. history, foreign language or social studies)
Science
2
б
6. (Fifth and Sixth forms only)
Do you have a Commonwealth
secondary scholarship?
Yes
No
7
1
2
7. (Fourth form only)
Do you expect to win a Commonwealth
secondary scholarship?
Yes
No
1
2
8. When your training is complete what career are you most likely to take 8
up?
9. It has been proposed that the school system in A.C.T. be changed so
that, instead of the present 6-year high schools, there would be high
schools covering Forms 1 to 4, and after fourth form students who are
going on would proceed to colleges for the present fifth and sixth forms
which would be at a separate location.
Perhaps these colleges would offer a different range of courses than at
present and would operate a little differently from the present high
schools, but details have yet to be worked out.
What is your opinion on the Generally in favour
general proposal?
Generally not in favour
Undecided
9
1
2
3
10. What are the reasons for your answer to the previous question?
10
149
11. If the present secondary
schools were to be divided,
at what level would this be
best?
After 2nd form
After 3rd form
After 4th form
After 5th form
1
2
3
4
11
12. Would you favour separate
colleges even if there were
no change of courses,
teaching methods, discipline, etc., for fifth and
sixth form?
Yes
No
1
2
12
13. Generally speaking what
would be the effect on
students left in forms 1-4 if
the fifth and sixth forms
were removed?
Advantage to them
Disadvantage
1
2
13
Listed below are opinions sometimes expressed by students. Think about
them especially with regard to what you would like to see at fifth and sixth
form level. Indicate whether you agree or disagree by circling the appropriate number opposite each item. Circle 1 if you agree strongly with
the statement and 5 if you disagree strongly. Otherwise circle 2 or 4 to show
that you tend to agree or disagree and circle 3 only if it is really impossible
to decide.
Strongly Strongly
Agree ? Disagree
14. There should be more time for private
study and individual assignments with
less time in class
15. We need less talk from teachers and
more discussion
16. Attendance at classes should be
voluntary
17. Teaching methods should include some
lectures to large classes and
tutorials for small groups
18. External exams like the Higher School
Certificate are necessary and cannot
be replaced by internal exams marked
by your own teachers
19. Less weight should be given to exams
and more to continuous assessment of
work throughout the year
I 50
1
2 3 4 5
1 2 3 4
14
5
15
1 2 3 4 5
16
1 2 3 4 5
17
1 2 3 4 5
18
1 2 3 4 5
19
Strongly
Strongly
Agree ? Disagree
20. Classes should be scheduled at various
times during the day and evening,
not just in normal school hours
21. Technical as well as academic subjects
should be offered in the same school
22. Social science subjects like
sociology, anthropology and political
science should be available
23. There should be more emphasis on
subjects which are useful in a job
24. People who have left school for some
years should be able to return at
any time and continue their studies
25. Older people, say over 30, should
not be allowed in the same class
with 1б to 18-year-olds
26. There should be more opportunity to
work and study part-time at a normal
school (say go to school 2 days a week)
27. School uniforms are not appropriate
at the senior level in school
28. Corporal punishment may sometimes
be necessary
29. Most discipline should be handled
by a student council
1 2 3 4 5
20
1 2 3 4
5
21
1 2 3 4 5
22
1 2 3 4
5
23
1 2 3 4 5
24
1 2 3 4
5
25
1 2 3 4
5
26
1 2 3 4 5
27
1 2 3 4 5
28
1 2 3 4 5
29
30. Now go back and look at your answers to questions 14 to 29 on the 30-45
previous page and put a double circle around those three you think
would be most important for planning colleges for fifth and sixth
forms.
31. Do you think any important changes you would like to see could be 46
accomplished
equally well in the present six-year high school9
1
or
better in separate colleges for fifth and sixth form?
2
32. Do you think the following subjects should be provided at school?
(Circle one number in each row)
Compulsory Voluntary
Driver education
Sex education
1
1
2
2
Not
at all
3
3
47
48
151
Compulsory Voluntary
The uses and dangers
of drugs
Religion taught by a
clergyman or church
representative
Religion taught by a
regular member of the
teaching staff
Not
at all
1
2
3
49
1
2
3
50
1
2
3
51
So far no decisions have been made about the sort of teachers that would
be in the colleges. Perhaps they would be the same as they are now in high
schools, or perhaps they would be selected differently. We would like your
ideas about teachers in the senior part of the school: what they are like and
what you think they should be like. Your answer should concern teachers
generally, not any one particular teacher, and should relate to the senior
level — about fifth and sixth form.
In each of the following questions you are asked to indicate your agreement
or disagreement
(i) with what teachers and teaching are like now
(ii) with what teachers and teaching should be
Strongly
Strongly
Agree ? Disagree
33. (i) Teachers do spend a good deal of
time talking with individual
students
(ii) Teachers should spend more time
talking with individual students ....
34. (i) Teachers are generally expert
in their subject area
(ii) Teachers should be more expert
in their subject area
35. (i) Teachers do listen to what
students have to say
(ii) Teachers should listen more to
what students have to say
36. (i) Teachers do encourage students
to express their own views
(ii) Teachers should encourage students
to express their own views
37. (i) Teachers are good at communicating•
in the class room
(ii) Teachers should be good at
communicating in the class room ..
38. (i) For students who need it
teachers do help out of normal
school hours
152
1 2 3 4 5
52
2 3 4 5
53
1 2 3 4 5
54
1 2 3 4 5
55
1 2 3 4 5
56
1 2 3 4 5
57
1 2 3 4 5
58
1 2 3 4 5
59
1 2 3 4 5
60
1 2 3 4 5
61
1 2 3 4 5
62
1
Strongly
Strongly
Agree ? Disagree
(ii) For students who need it teachers
should help out of normal school
hours
39. (i) Teachers insist on students
addressing them formally
(ii) Teachers should insist on students
addressing them formally
I 2 3 4 5
63
I 2 3 4 5
б4
I 2 3 4 5
65
40. Which do you think is most important in a teacher? (Circle one б6
number only)
1
Expert knowledge of the subject
2
Skill in communicating ideas
3
An informal friendly attitude
41. In what respect does teaching at the senior level most need to be im- б7
proved? (Circle one number only)
1
Expert knowledge of the subject
2
Skill in communicating ideas
3
An informal friendly attitude
42. If there were a governing council for each school who should be
represented on it? (Circle one number in each row)
Yes Uncertain No
Teachers
Parents
Other local citizens
Senior students
Government officials
No council, only principal
1
1
I
I
I
I
43. When do you expect to leave high school?
After fourth form
After fifth form
After sixth form
2
2
2
2
2
2
3
3
3
3
3
3
68
69
70
71
72
Second
Card
1
21
3
44. Do you expect to do further training immediately after high school? If 2
so at what sort of institution?
Technical college
1
Teachers' college
2
College of advanced education, part-time
3
153
4
5
6
7
College of advanced education, full-time
University, part-time
University, full-time
Other professional training, e.g. nursing, military
Most likely to start work after school
with no further training for the time being
8
45. Would you like to be at work more than at school?
Yes, would like to be at work permanently
Yes, but may wish to return to school later
Would prefer part-time school, part-time work
No, prefer full-time school to work
1 3
2
3
4
46. Would you prefer to spend a year or two at work after completing
school before going on to tertiary education (university, teachers'
college, etc.)?
Yes
1
2
No
Not likely to attend university
3
or other tertiary institutions
4
Background information
43. What was your country of birth, and where were your parents born?
(Circle one number in each column of the following table)
Self Mother Father
Australia
Other English-language country
(e.g. Britain, Canada,
N.Z., U.S.A.)
Northern Europe
(e.g. Germany, Holland)
Southern Europe
(e.g. Italy, Greece)
Asian or Pacific Country
Other Countries
1
1
1
5
2
2
2
6
3
3
3
4
5
6
4
5
6
4
5
6
7
48. Describe the present or last main occupation of your father (or guar- 8
dian). Please be as precise and detailed as possible, stating both the
grade and nature of the occupation — e.g. senior clerk in bank, principal of primary school, barrister, motor mechanic employed in a garage, owner of one-man mixed business.
154
Please do not use vague terms such as public servant, clerk, teacher,
wholesaler, etc.
49. Very approximately, what level of income did your father have last
year? Which general group indicated below is closest to his (or your 9
guardian's) income before tax? Make a guess if you don't know.
Low-average (about $3000, a little below national average, or
approximately $60 per week) ...
1
Middle (about $6000, above average, or
approximately $120 per week).
2
High (say about $12,000, or over $200 per week)
3
4
Not applicable (father retired, etc.)
50. What was the highest level your mother and your father reached in
school? Circle one number in each column. Make a guess if necessary
and write in the name of a school or qualification you don't know 10
where to place in the list.
Some primary school
Completed primary school
Less than four years secondary education
Four years secondary school
Five or six years secondary school
(e.g. Leaving, Matriculation, or
Higher School Certificate)
Some university subjects
Completed university degree
Other tertiary certificate or diploma
(e.g. senior technical college or
teachers' college)
Other special training after
secondary school (please specify)(
51. Have you attended a secondary school outside of N.S.W.
or A.C.T.?
)
Yes
No
Mother
Father
1
2
3
4
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
5
6
7
8
8
9
9
11
1
2
12
155
52. Have you attended a secondary school in another country?
Yes
No
1
2
13
53. What do you like most about school?
14
54. What do you like least about school?
15
55. What changes would you like to see and why?
16
17
18
(h) Supplementary report on preference for part-time study
There were two questions in the survey which referred to the possibility of combining part-time work with part-time school. One was an attitude item in which the
students were given the option of agreeing or disagreeing with the general proposition that there should be more opportunity to work and study part-time at a normal school (say go to school two days a week)'. Forty-seven per cent of students
agreed. The second question was personal and asked students whether they would
prefer to be at work or at school now and offered as one alternative part-time work
and part-time school. Forty-two per cent answered that they preferred part-time
work/part-time school.
The question has been raised of whether this preference for part-time school is
associated with social background, level of performance and educational
aspirations of the students. It is important to note that there are different patterns
of response to items of this nature when they refer directly to the respondent as in
the school question, and when they are classed as general attitude items. However,
with minor exceptions the answers to the two items are distributed similarly across
social classes and it is clear that the least `privileged' groups are more likely to
156
prefer part-time work/part-time school than are the `upper' class groups. Similarly,
students who are apparently doing well at school and who expect to enter a higher
status occupation tend to prefer full-time school more often than they prefer parttime school. Students who are in the lower performance groups or who expect to
enter the lower status or manual occupations tend to prefer part-time school. The
preference for part-time work/part-time school by this group is probably a compromise between the desire to escape from school and the knowledge that material
advantages may be gained from further education. The upper class group, on the
other hand, finds schooling a relatively more satisfying experience.
Preference for work rather than school is most strongly associated with
students' future careers. Of students who expect to enter a manual occupation, onethird would prefer not to be at school at all, 50 per cent prefer part-time work/parttime school and only 17 per cent say they prefer full-time school at the present time.
By contrast, students who expect to enter the upper professional group of occupations generally say they prefer now to be at school full-time, 55 per cent being
in that category, 37 per cent preferring part-time work/part-time school and 8 per
cent saying that they wished they were at work now. Students who expect to enter
lower professional and lower white collar or clerical types of work are intermediate
in the percentages preferring part-time work, but it is worth noting that students
who expect to enter the lowest level of white collar occupations are just as strongly
in favour of part-time study/part-time work as are the students who expect to enter
manual occupations. As might be expected, the level at which students are studying
now (which can be taken as a measure of ability) is also related to preferences for
school and work. Those at the advanced level prefer full-time school, those at the
lowest level would prefer part-time work/part-time school. Nevertheless it should
be noted that in every level of study and in every future career group there is a very
significant number of students who prefer the part-time work/part-time school idea
and this percentage never falls below 37 per cent.
Of the three indicators of socio-economic status — father's occupation, income
and education — father's education is the one most strongly related to preferences
for school and work. Of students whose fathers have four years or less of secondary
schooling, 46 per cent favoured part-time work/part-time school, 34 per cent
preferred full-time school and 20 per cent preferred full-time work. Of the
students whose fathers have more than four years secondary education, 40 per cent
preferred part-time work/part-time school, 47 per cent preferred full-time school
and 14 per cent preferred full-time work. The difference between the extremes is
very great indeed: more than three times the proportion of students whose fathers
have degrees favour full-time school for themselves than students whose fathers
have not completed primary. This pattern is confirmed by the associations of the
preference with both father's income and father's occupation.
With regard to the attitude items the picture is somewhat less clear. A similar
pattern of association emerges when responses to the general proposition that there
should be opportunity for part-time work/part-time school, is compared with
social and academic status. The strength of the association is not so strong,
nevertheless it is again the students who expect to enter manual occupations or who
have a relatively low level or performance in school who most strongly favour the
idea of making part-time study easier. This may be that they want part-time work to
I5
be made easier, or a more realistic option, rather than that they are asking that parttime study be allowed. As mentioned above, students from upper class backgrounds
also favour the idea of part-time study being easier. These students also tend to be
the ones who expect to enter the professions and who are performing at the highest
level in their school subjects.
Least in favour of the idea of part-time study being made easier are students in
the middle ability level. This is interesting because it is this level of ability group
which is most in favour of the college idea. Note, however, there is a positive
association between favouring the college idea and favouring making part-time
study easier. These seeming contradictions are due to counterbalancing trends.
Another difference in attitudes is that males are more in favour of the idea of
part-time studies than are females; males also say they would prefer that combination of part-time work/part-time study for themselves more often than do females
who tend to give a slight preference to full-time school. There is very little difference
between boys and girls in the numbers who would prefer to be at work full-time;
they differ with respect to the part-time option.
There are other minor variations between subgroups which need to be explored.
The general finding is, however, quite clear. There are large numbers of students
who favour the idea of creating an option allowing part-time school and part-time
work; many of these students say that they would take up this option themselves.
This preference is stronger among those from non-professional families and those
in lower academic streams.
2. SECOND REPORT ON COMPARATIVE STUDY
(a) Preface
This is the second main report to the committee established by the then Minister
for Education and Science to advise him on the proposal to introduce separate
schools or colleges for fifth and sixth form students in the A.C.T. The first report
Canberra Secondary School Student Survey 1972: The proposal to introduce fifth ond
sixth fоrnг colleges in the A.C.T. First Report by D.S. Anderson and D.G. Beswick
was presented in April 1972. Subsequently a brief supplementary report on
students' requests for part-time study was prepared in July 1972.
The change of title to Australian Secondary School Student Survey 1972 is made
necessary by the larger sample of over 5,000 students from several States and the
comparative nature of the study. However the full report on the survey cannot be
completed until early 1973. More time is necessary for appropriate treatment of the
data. Field work has been completed only very recently and some data are not yet
available for analysis. This limited report is confined to certain matters arising from
the first report and is most concerned with implications which might follow from
the Canberra population being atypical of Australia as a whole.
Dr Anderson has taken a full part in the design and organisation of the project,
but due to his being overseas on study leave he is unable to participate in writing
this report in the time available.
(b) Introduction
Findings from a survey with a restricted sample often indicate the need for a
wider investigation. The survey of opinions of senior secondary school students in
I This Report was originally submitted under the Title: D.G. Beswick. Australian Secondary School Student Sutter l ,72; SF(O nfl Repua to
the Committee on the proposal ro tistahlwh fifth and sixth fomr colleges in the A.Г.T. Education Research Unit. Australian National
University. Canberra, November 1972.
158
public high schools in Canberra raised a number of interesting and important
questions. It was hoped to answer some of these questions by comparison of
Canberra students' attitudes to various aspects of school organisation and function
with those of students in independent schools and government schools in other
parts of Australia. The proposal to introduce separate schools or colleges for fifth
and sixth form students in the A.C.T. was the focus of the initial survey, but the
structure of secondary education and the nature of changes desired by students are
important concerns also in other places where there is no such proposal. It was
hoped that a wider survey would increase our understanding of the basic processes
involved in the organisation of education for the age group as well as provide a
broader perspective for interpretation of findings from the initial survey.
The first report based on a sample of Canberra students in public high schools
was submitted to the committee in April 1972 and a supplementary report on the
preference for part-time study on the part of some students was prepared subsequently. This report gives some of the initial findings from the wider survey after
testing fourth, fifth and sixth form students in independent schools in Canberra,
state and independent schools in Melbourne, matriculation colleges and high
schools in Tasmania and fifth form students in the Sydney North Shore area. The
final report of the enlarged study will not be available until 1973.
Data have been collected from over 5,000 students. Findings at this stage can be
regarded as well based in evidence but limited in respect to the range of topics
covered and the sophistication of methods of data analysis which may be applied to
refine our understanding of the relationship of students' attitudes to social conditions. The final published report of this research will present a much more detailed and comprehensive analysis than is possible in the time available before the committee on the colleges proposal will submit its final report to the Minister for
Education.
In the original survey in Canberra we found a strong student opinion in favour
of the proposal to establish separate schools or colleges for students at the level of
the present fifth and sixth forms. At the same time we found a strong desire for
change generally in the direction of making the latter part of secondary school more
like tertiary institutions in choice of courses, teaching methods and control of student affairs. We noted with some concern widespread negative attitudes to school in
general and to teachers in particular. Although we were able to relate these attitudes
and opinions to a number of background factors and school characteristics we were
unable from within the Canberra sample to reach any conclusion on whether these
attitudes of Canberra students were peculiar to Canberra or whether they were
shared by other young people in different kinds of schools and in other parts of the
country. The Tasmanian matriculation colleges were included in this comparative
study as schools of special interest in considering the kinds of innovation which
have been proposed for the A.C.T. schools.
In addition to the samples on which this report is based additional data have
been collected from schools in the Sydney North Shore area and a rural district of
Gippsland in Victoria. These two additional samples will help us to understand
further some of the significant socio-economic factors in students' attitudes, expectations and achievements. However, we are not able at this stage to report on those
parts of the study, except for some limited preliminary results from the Sydney sample.
159
(c) Sample and survey procedure
The questions raised by the Canberra survey required a more diverse sample
than was available at that time. We had noticed in Canberra a higher level of education and income, greater mobility of the population and other factors which were
perhaps likely to produce some of the signs of alienation we found in students'
responses to our questionnaire. In order to check on this we planned to sample
areas of Sydney and Melbourne which would be comparable with Canberra in
socio-economic status and to compare these with other areas with different kinds of
population in urban areas. Another question which arose was the possibility that
effects we found could be due to a particular State's educational policy and method
of administration. Public (or government) schools in the A.C.T. have been administered by the State of N.S.W. Thus we sampled independent schools in
Melbourne and Canberra as well as state schools in Melbourne. Hobart is a city
about the same size as Canberra, although dissimilar in its much longer history and
different distribution of the population across occupational groups.Tasmanian
fourth form students from the Hobart area thus provide the useful point of comparison in parallel with our special attention to matriculation colleges in Hobart
and Launceston. Sydney North Shore students provided a comparison group of
similar affluence within the N.S.W. State system.
The original Canberra sample of 1,271 students from fourth, fifth and sixth
forms was retained for the public high schools and another 587 students were added
from fourth, fifth and sixth forms in the six independent schools in the Canberra
area. Four of these schools are Catholic secondary schools and two are Church of
England grammar schools. In fact a larger number of students than this was tested,
but we included in the sample for analysis only the number required to give a
representative sample of the total secondary students population in Canberra in the
latter years of secondary school. In Canberra we were able to collect data from all
students. In Melbourne we tested about the same number of students (1,923) from
about the same number of schools, but the students had to be chosen in a manner
judged to be representative of the whole metropolitan area. Six independent schools
were included, some selective and some parochial; there were four Catholic and two
other independent schools. In the State sector we sampled both technical schools
and high schools. With the assistance of the Victorian Education Department and
advisers in the School of Education at La Trobe University and the Faculty of
Education at Monash University, representative schools were selected in the inner
and outer areas and eastern and western suburbs. There were ten high schools and
three technical schools in the Melbourne metropolitan sample. The small sample of
Sydney fifth form students consisted of 138 students from two high schools in the
North Shore area. In Tasmania we had a total of 446 students, 254 from the
matriculation colleges and 192 from fourth form schools. We have not at this time
tested any students in Tasmanian independent schools. The fourth form sample was
chosen from high schools in areas of Hobart judged to be representative with the
assistance of the Research Branch of the Tasmanian Education Department. All
three matriculation colleges in Tasmania were included in the study.
In all areas we received willing and helpful co-operation from the local
educational authority and universities. We are particularly indebted to staff and
graduate education students from Melbourne, Monash and La Tribe Universities,
University of Tasmania and the Research Branch of the Tasmanian Department of
160
Education for assistance in administering questionnaires. Mr Robert Newton at La
Tribe University and Mr Russell Docking at Monash University assisted in the
organisation of field work.
Questionnaires were normally administered in classrooms under the same conditions as in the original Canberra study. In a few schools questionnaires were administered in larger groups.
The same questionnaire was used as in the Canberra study except for some
minor changes of wording to suit differences in terminology between the regions.
The revised question concerning the general policy of establishing separate colleges
for the fifth and sixth forms now made no reference to the particular A.C.T.
proposal and allowed for the possibility that students might already be in such institutions. Questions relating to the level and type of subjects students were studying had to be changed in a manner which allowed for less precise classifications of
students according to ability level. The exact form of words used for these changed
questions is attached to this report. Otherwise the full questionnaire may be seen attached to the first report.
(d) Opinion on the college proposal
A large majority of students in both independent and State schools in all regions
said that they were generally in favour of the college proposal. Those most strongly
in favour were the students already in similar schools in Tasmania. Those least in
favour were the students in State secondary schools in Melbourne. In Canberra,
students in independent schools voted almost exactly the same way as did those in
the public high schools. (See Question 9 in Tables В 13 and В 14).
We should perhaps note immediately that there were big differences between
fourth form students in Tasmania (who were in four-year high schools) and
students in the matriculation colleges. As shown in Table В 14, 92 per cent of those
in the matriculation colleges, compared with 62 per cent in fourth form, were
generally in favour of the college idea. By comparison in Canberra, fifth and sixth
form students were 82 per cent in favour, and fourth form people 71 per cent. In all
areas students who did not answer"generally in favour" were more often undecided
than directly opposed and this is especially the case in the Tasmanian fourth form
group where 30 per cent were undecided.
Preliminary results from the Sydney North Shore area which are not included in
the tables in this report, show that amongst fifth form students 85 per cent are
generally in favour of the college proposal and 9 per cent are undecided. In no area
studied so far is there any significant opposition amongst the students, although
some show some doubts by way of being undecided or apparently lacking in interest.
Opinions differ somewhat from fourth to sixth form in all areas as we found in
the original Canberra sample. In general the more mature students are more stronglу in favour of dividing the secondary schools. (See Tables B16 and В17.)
In the first report we referred to evidence that underprivileged groups were more
likely to favour the college proposal and the kinds of change in secondary education which they expected to be part of such a division of secondary school. Results
from other schools and areas throw some doubt on this proposition with regard to
the college proposal itself. The less privileged groups generally appear to favour
some specific changes, but the college proposal itself is more strongly supported by
161
children whose fathers are in the professional and managerial occupations than by
those whose fathers are in other kinds of occupations. (See Table B 16 and Table
В17, where the High SES group is defined as those whose father's occupation is upper or lower professional, or large-scale employers or managers. The Low SES
group could perhaps better be called middle and low status. It includes small-scale
employers, intermediate non-manual workers, foremen and skilled manual workers
as well as junior non-manual and semi-skilled manual workers, and farmers). A
more refined index of socio-economic status has been developed for use in later
analyses, but it is unlikely to change the general conclusion regarding the popularity
of the college proposal. In Melbourne and Tasmania, separate colleges for fifth and
sixth form are more strongly favoured by professional and managerial groups than
by others. The difference is most strongly evident at fourth form level. By contrast
the lower socio-economic section of the Canberra sample in fourth form was slightly more inclined to favour the college idea. The small Sydney sample appears to be
similar to Canberra in this matter.
After the students had been asked about some of the parQcular changes they
would like to see at the senior level in secondary schools, they were asked whether
they thought that these changes could be accomplished equally well within six-year
schools or better in separate colleges. This question was in part a check on the
results obtained in the direct question on the college proposal. The results given in
Table В17 separately according to father's occupation and form show the same
pattern as for the direct question. Separate percentages for State and independent
schools and for boys and girls can also be seen in Table B 17.
There is a general tendency for girls to favour the change more than boys do,
although in other respects girls appear to be more satisfied with schools as they are
now. (See Tables В21 and В26).
(e) Other changes students approve
Rates of agreement with change on questions of organisation, teaching methods
and curriculum which were suggested by students in Canberra can be seen in the
answers to questions 14 to 29 in Tables В l3 and В 14. For the most part students in
other places and in independent schools responded in the same way as did those in
the public high schools in Canberra. The request for continuous assessment rather
than end of the year examination was even more strongly endorsed in Melbourne
and Tasmania. Similarly, the request for more emphasis on subjects useful in a job
was found to be very highly favoured in all areas. More students considered this an
important change than any other item except continuous assessment amongst those
topics listed in this set of questions. As in the Canberra study, a number of other
propositions were endorsed by about one fifth of the students as most important in
planning future colleges: items concerning private study, class discussions, voluntary attendance, lecture and tutorial methods, no external exams, technical and
academic subjects in the same school, social science subjects and no uniforms.
Those items considered to be amongst the three most important in the questions 14
to 29 are somewhat different from the matters mentioned when students were asked
in an open-ended question about the changes they would like to see (e.g. question
55).
Preliminary results from the Sydney North Shore area show that fifth form
students responded almost exactly in the same way as Canberra students in their
162
opinions on changes they would like to see in school. Table В15 gives the corresponding figures for questions 14 to 29. The Sydney sample corresponded very
closely to the Canberra sample in the distribution of'fathers' occupations and level
of education.
The opinion that more emphasis on useful subjects is an important change
varies according to fathers' occupations and year at school. So also does the
strength of agreement with the idea. Rates of agreement given in the tables are the
percentages answering either"agree"or"strongly agree': Combining these categories
usually makes little difference but with regard to the emphasis on subjects useful in
a job an interesting pattern is obscured. In the Melbourne sample the percentage
who "strongly agree" that there should be more emphasis on useful subjects falls
from 73 to 36 from fourth form to sixth form for High SES students, and from 81 to
47 for the Low SES group. The trend is the same in Canberra but the difference
between forms is less. The opinion in favour of part-time study shows a similar
pattern.
The relative importance of emphasising subjects useful in a job is greater for
Canberra students than for Melbourne and Tasmanian students, but this may be
due to the greater importance given to continuous assessment by the students in
Melbourne and Tasmania. As shown in Table В 18, the importance attached to subjects useful in a job is greatest in the fourth form level for both high and low socioeconomic status levels. There is no difference between State and independent
schools in this question.
There are some points at which the Tasmanian matriculation colleges students
stand out: for example, in the opinion that there should be no uniforms (see Tables
В20 and В 21 and question 27 in Table В l4). Tasmanian students in general are
more opposed to uniforms than are those elsewhere, but those in the matriculation
colleges consider it a less important question than other items of change, whilst
fourth form students in Tasmania from the professional and managerial occupational backgrounds tend to think it a more important question than do other
groups. This may be a contrast effect in which students in fourth form compare
themselves with those in fifth and sixth years who are in matriculation colleges and
are given considerable freedom in the matter of uniforms. In fact uniforms have
been abolished at one of the colleges since the questionnaire was administered and
such rules as did exist were often not enforced. On the other hand the Tasmanian
matriculation college students, by contrast with both the fourth form students in
Tasmania and students at all levels in Canberra in public schools, showed a
stronger preference for changing the external examination system and being able to
return to school after having left for a year or two. Matriculation college students
were also much more favourable to the inclusion of older people in the same classes
as sixteen to eighteen-year-olds and were more likely to favour student discipline
being handled by students themselves.
Concerning instruction on social issues such as driver education, sex, drugs, and
religion, the same general pattern occurred in other places as in Canberra and in independent schools as well as government schools. (See Tablеs В 13 and В 14, question 32). Except for the teaching of religion the only difference was in the proportion of students favouring instruction on particular matters being compulsory
rather than voluntary. Melbourne students tended to be more in favour of compulsory instruction in general, whilst the Tasmanian students in the matriculation
colleges were more inclined to favour voluntary instruction. (See e.g. Table В22).
163
With regard to religion the same preference for clergy rather than a regular member
of the teaching staff is shown in all areas although it is much less clear in independent schools. Everywhere there is a strong opinion that religion should be taught
only on a voluntary basis.
Students do not always appear to have understood the question on government
of a school by council. Nevertheless, the results are interesting. As in Canberra,
students elsewhere indicate a preference for a council on which there are teachers
and senior students as well as the principal. Inclusion of parents is a matter on
which there is somewhat less agreement, while other local citizens and government
officials are not thought to be necessary. The ideal of a representative council including teachers, parents and senior students is in general more likely to be approved by the more mature students. (See Table В 14, question 42 and Tables В23
and В24.)
There is a socio-economic status effect with respect to teachers, but not regarding parents. In Tasmania there is a strong contrast between the students in fourth
form and those in matriculation colleges in their readiness to accept the idea of
teachers on the school council. There is a hint here that students in the Tasmanian
fourth forms might have less favourable attitudes to their teachers than do the
students in other forms in other places.
(f) General attitudes to school
Before looking at the students' attitudes to teachers in more detail it might be
useful to consider the more general attitude of students to school as a whole as far
as this can be assessed. The questions at the end of the questionnaire which ask
students what they like most about school, what they like least and the changes they
would like to see, provide a basis for making some judgments on their general attitudes. The responses to each question were coded into a number of categories and
afterwards the research assistants who were coding the material made a rating on
how much each student liked school. These ratings are not very reliable but
differences in the means for very large groups are highly significant. On the basis of
these ratings, Tasmanian students liked school more than those on the mainland.
There was no difference between Canberra and Melbourne but within each there
was a strong tendency for students from professional and managerial backgrounds
to like school more than those whose fathers had other occupations. The same
pattern appears in a comparison of government and independent schools in
Canberra and Melbourne (see Tables В25 and В26). It is interesting to note that in
every example section the girls were rated as liking school better on average than
were the boys.
Melbourne students complained less than Canberra students about
authoritarian discipline and the Tasmanian students showed much less concern
about this matter than did Melbourne students. On the other hand, in what they liked about school Canberra and Melbourne students showed an equal inclination to
mention meeting their friends as the best thing about school, while Tasmanian
students were more inclined to refer to other attributes of the school experience.
Table В 29 indicates the very sharp difference between students in fifth and sixth
forms in Canberra and those in the Tasmanian matriculation colleges in what the
students liked most about school. Canberra students nominated peer groups and
made escapist comments while Tasmanian students mentioned expanding
knowledge and interests, and other matters more directly related to the formal pur164
pose of schools. Tasmanian students also listed freedom and being treated as adults
as things they liked about school, whereas Canberra students mentioned these
possibilities in contrary terms.
In another approach to this overall attitude to school twenty questionnaires
were selected at random from the Canberra fifth and sixth forms and twenty from
the Tasmanian matriculation colleges. The free comments at the end of the
questionnaires in answer to the open-ended questions were typed on plain sheets of
paper and geographic reference was deleted. These sets of comments were then
given to a psychologist who had no knowledge of the project. He was asked to make
a rating of the students' comments in terms of the evidence for alienation which
they contained. The meaning of alienation was discussed with him in terms of a
sense of isolation and powerlessness. He sorted the cases into three groups, those in
which there was strong evidence of alienation, weak evidence and no evidence.
When he returned the sets of comments which had been in random order they were
then sorted back into their regions of origin and it was found that most of those
which had been classified as containing evidence of alienation came from Canberra,
while most of those which contained no evidence of alienation came from Tasmania
(see Table В30).
It is important to note that these differences between Canberra and Tasmanian
students cannot be explained in terms of differences in socio-economic status, as indicated by father's occupation. It may also be noted that similar contrasts occur
when we compare fourth form with fifth and sixth form within Tasmania.
(g) A ttitudes to teachers
In the first report we emphasised the fact that negative attitudes to teachers by
students need not be a reflection of a real state of affairs in teachers' behaviour. It
was possible that a negative attitude to school generally was being expressed with
regard to teachers in particular because teachers were the nearest visible embodiment of demands which school made upon them. It is important to keep this reservation in mind when we look at the results of the survey in those items which invited
students to criticise teachers. The nature of these items is described in the first
report.
An index of dissatisfaction was computed for each of several items of teacherpupil interaction by comparing what students said about the way they would like
teachers to behave with their opinion of what teachers did now. The mean discrepancy scores for questions 33 to 39 are given for various sample sections in
Tables 113 and В l4. A comparison of Canberra fifth form with Sydney North
Shore fifth form students is given in Table В 15. Further cross-tabulations by
fathers' occupational status and students' form (or year) are given in Tables В31,
В32, В33 and В34.
The conclusions to be drawn from these tables are not always obvious and they
should be interpreted with some care in the light of other information.
Nevertheless, there are a number of clear patterns: students whose fathers are in
professional and managerial occupations are more critical of teachers than are
those in other socio-economic groups. (Total discrepancy scores in Table В31 show
this effect in all States or regions. It does not, however, apply to all aspects of
teacher-pupil interaction.) In Canberra, Melbourne and Tasmania students from
high status backgrounds complain more than others about their teachers' lack of
165
willingness to spend time talking with individuals and their inability to communicate in the classroom. In Canberra and Tasmania, the high status group also
complained more about their teachers' lack of expertise in the subjects they teach.
While Canberra and Melbourne samples differed only slightly, the Tasmanian
students showed some very marked differences in their attitudes to teachers compared with their mainland peers in Canberra and Melbourne. On every relevant
item greater satisfaction with teachers in the Tasmanian matriculation colleges is indicated than in fifth and sixth forms in Melbourne and Canberra for high and low
socio-economic status groups. This effect is exaggerated for the high status groups
who in Tasmania show more, and on the mainland less, satisfaction than do their
lower status peers.
We have only a small sample of fifth form students from Sydney, but the
evidence for negative attitudes to teachers is very strong for both high and lower
status groups (see Table В34). Indeed the Sydney students total discrepancy score is
exceeded only by the high social status section of the fourth form classes in Hobart.
One interaction effect which could be of considerable importance is in the set of
very high discrepancy scores on the teacher items obtained in the Tasmanian fourth
form sample for high status groups. In almost every respect these students showed
more dissatisfaction with teachers than did any other group in the study, while the
lower status students in Tasmanian fourth form classes expressed attitudes very
similar to those of similar status in Canberra and Melbourne. The same dissatisfaction is found when we look at the percentage of students in each section of the samp1e who agree that they should be more expert in their subjects. This is simply looking in more detail at the responses on one of the items which made up the teacher
discrepancy scores. In Table В35 all groups are similar in believing that teachers
should be more expert in their subjects except those in the Tasmanian matriculation
colleges, and within that section of the sample there is a slight difference between
socio-economic status groups, with the high status group in the Tasmanian colleges
being most satisfied.
Table В36 showing students' perception of the way things are now gives a slightlу different impression. In Canberra all groups were similar, in Melbourne there is a
strong tendency for students in the higher forms to see their teachers as more expert
in their subjects. The same occurs in Tasmania where there is a greater difference
between fourth and fifth form students in their appraisal of their teachers. The very
low proportion (26 per cent) of the higher status students in fourth form in
Tasmania who regarded their teachers as expert in their subjects is particularly
noteworthy and a sharp contrast to the 88 per cent of the same opinion amongst
fifth year students of the same socio-economic status. Somewhat similar effects are
seen in Tables В37 and В38 regarding the teachers' willingness to listen to students
and to talk with individuals.
It seems impossible to avoid the conclusion that students in Tasmania see a
sharp contrast between teachers in the fourth year high schools and those in the
matriculation colleges.
(h) Conclusion
The Working Committee will have independent evidence on some of the matters
covered in this report. Furthermore, it has not been the purpose of this research to
formulate policy proposals. While avoiding any specific recommendations we
166
remarked in the first report on the need for some sense of urgency in introducing
some changes in secondary education. We note now that the Minister has decided
in principle to implement the colleges proposal as recommended by the committee.
The Working Committee is now preparing its full report and this second survey
report will serve chiefly to reinforce decisions already made. It is to some extent a
check on the conclusions drawn in the first report and it will help to indicate the
relevance of data and policy to conditions elsewhere in Australia. The sense of
urgency is no less now than it was in April, except that some action has already been
taken, but the reasons for concern have been found to be less a product of local conditions in the A.C.T. than might have appeared at first. It is this broader perspective
that we hope will be of some value to the committee.
The very widespread approval for the iďea of dividing the secondary school is
supported by a constant high rate of agreement with the need for particular changes
such as revised methods of assessment, a more comprehensive choice of subjects
and student control of student affairs. The Canberra students are fairly typical of
their age group in the Australian population in desiring this kind of change.
That Tasmanian matriculation college students who have already experienced
some of these changes most strongly approve of the college proposal, and give the
same reasons for doing so, as Canberra students, helps to confirm the Canberra
students' opinion that the structural change will be beneficial. Tasmanian senior
secondary students like school more and have much more positive attitudes to their
teachers than do their mainland peers. Other evidence strongly suggests that the
Tasmanian students have a more positive attitude to school because of the structural change and not because they live in Tasmania.
It might be true nevertheless that social conditions in Canberra indicate a
greater need for changing the system of secondary education as proposed than is the
case in most Australian cities. If students of similar backgrounds on the Sydney
North Shore or in the eastern suburbs of Melbourne have similar opinions, it is
probably for the same reasons but this does not alter the fact that Canberra is composed of such a selected population. If the A.C.T. included in addition a large industrial population the policy implications might be different. However, the
evidence from Melbourne indicates a widespread need for change if not necessarily
along the same lines as in Canberra.
The high proportion of the Canberra population in professional and administrative types of occupation made it necessary to group students by socioeconomic status (SES) before making comparisons with other areas with different
occupational distributions. When these controlled comparisons were made we
found a slight disagreement with our initial conclusion that new colleges were likely
to appeal most to the more underprivileged sections of the population. To be more
exact, what we found in the initial Canberra study was that the proposal was most
strongly favoured by those whom we regarded as unlikely to have reached this level
of education a few years ago. It is possible to interpret the results so far available
from the wider survey to show that this remains true but that in Melbourne and
Tasmania there are large sections of the population who have not yet reached a
level of educational advancement where they would anticipate the same benefits.
That is, it might not be the poor so much as the not-so-rich who hope to gain most.
Indeed there is evidence in the original survey to support this conclusion even in
Canberra.
167
The findings on detailed changes like continuous assessment, vocational
relevance, student discipline, instruction on social questions, and school government all point in the same direction. There are interesting inter-State differences,
and social background factors have predictable effects, but the policy implications
would appear to be similar to what might have been inferred from the initial study.
Some of the changes desired by students can be brought about by other more
conservative means; and more radical restructuring of secondary education is possie. We do not know how well alternative procedures would have been received, but
students everywhere did reject the idea that the changes they want could be accomplished equally well within the present six-year secondary schools. That
students in independent schools were of the same opinion as those in the government schools could point to the need for some rethinking of the relationship
between the two systems expecially at the senior secondary level.
The negative attitude to teachers has been found to be widespread but not universal. In the Tasmanian matriculation colleges the students are much more
satisfied with their teachers. Statistics for individual schools cannot be published
but it might be noted that there are some other schools where attitudes to teachers
are noticeably less negative than is generally the case.
An effect of socio-economic status on attitudes to teachers was found in all
regions. It is probable that greater dissatisfaction of students whose fathers are in
professional and managerial occupations is simply a function of higher expectations. However, the greater readiness of students from less favoured backgrounds
to accept authority as it is given is evident in their answers to other questions such
as those on sex and drugs. It is a complex question, but the implication for
Canberra schools is clear. With many more students from the kind of backgrounds
likely to result in dissatisfaction more demands will be made on the teachers'
professional skill and academic knowledge. To recognise this should not obscure
the fact that although such students complain more about teachers they
nevertheless appear to like school more than their less favoured classmates who
would probably respond to policies based on a presumption of social maturity.
The finding of a strong contrast between the fourth form students in the Tasmanian high schools and those in the matriculation colleges will be interesting to the
committee. We should perhaps place some slight reservation on this finding. The
fourth form sample came from four schools in the Hobart area, while the matriculation colleges included a small proportion of students who had come from rural high
schools in both the North and South of the State. Until the Gippsland data are
analysed we will not have a rural comparison group. However, the results are so
clear-cut that it is most unlikely that they will be more than slightly modified.
If we assume that the different perceptions of those students with high expectations represent real differences in teachers' qualifications or abilitý then the question of how to staff the colleges without having a detrimental effect on the remaining four-year schools becomes a matter of serious concern. There is a similar but
less obvious difference between fourth form and sixth form in Melbourne. It should
not be forgotten that throughout this investigation we have found more evidence of
student dissatisfaction in fourth form than in the later years. This research was not
designed to discover what might be done to avoid further difficulty in the middle
years of secondary school, but the problem is obvious. Even though students in
fourth form consider it an advantage to them to have the senior students removed
168
to a separate college, they could easily see that the colleges have other advantages
which would also benefit them.
The greater part of the work on the relationship of students' attitudes and expectations to school, community and family characteristics in the wider survey
remains to be done. At this stage we can give general support to the findings of the
original Canberra study and change one or two emphases. Problems similar to
those found in Canberra do exist elsewhere and sometimes to the same degree. On
the other hand we have found evidence of innovations producing a positive
response. We have seen the need for careful thought to be given to conditions likely
to develop in the four-year schools after the separation of senior forms.
The importance of recognising the greater maturity of senior students remains.
The desire for changes in teaching methods and school organisation towards the
style of tertiary institutions is shared by the majority of students in all areas.
Preparation for a final academic examination is seen as an unnecessary source of
anxiety. It is difficult also to avoid their request for more vocational relevance
although there are sound educational reasons for resisting any move towards
narrow vocational training that may be unsatisfying and soon made obsolete. The
desire for work experience could be considered as part of the same concern. In the
first report we referred to the need for closer integration with the life and work of
the community.
Reforms more radical than those implied in the survey questions are probably
beyond the understanding of most of the students at this time. We found little insight into other possibilities in our group interviews. Yet the characteristics of many
students appear to be basically incompatible with the objective requirements of the
educational system. There is a need to keep open the possibility of growth in unexpected directions.
It is extremely difficult to evaluate what is happening in schools in terms of their
long-term social consequences. Difficult though it may be, planners must try, and
yet avoid the temptation to think they can thereby cure the deeper maladies of a
society. The students expect such responsible thought in planning and they demand
that it be applied to present conditions as well as future outcomes. Many would indeed place the emphasis more on the quality of school life as they experience it now
and would agree strongly with Christopher Jencks:"Some schools are dull, depressing, even terrifying places, while others are lively, comfortable, reassuring. If we
think of school life as an end in itself rather than as a means to some other end, such
differences are enormously important. Eliminating those differences would not do
much to make adults more equal, but it would do a great deal to make the quality of
children's (and teacher's) lives more equal. Since children are in schools for a fifth
of their lives, this would be a significant accomplishment."
(i) Tables
Table В 13 — Percentage response in selected category for different areas and types of schools.
(See Australian Secondary Students' Survey questionnaire)
Canberra
Question
I.
2.
Form б
Age, 17+
Melbourne
Tasmania
Public
IndepenIndepen(govt.) dent State dent St аt е
25
31
25
31
17
27
29
32
25
22
169
Table В13 - Percentage response in selected category for different areas and types of schools.
(See Australian Secondary Studentš Survey questionnaire)
Canberra
Question
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
11.
12.
13.
14.
15.
16.
17.
18.
19.
20.
21.
22.
23.
24.
25.
26.
27.
28.
29.
30.
31.
32.
Ta.smaпia
Public IndepenIndepen(govt.) dent St аte dent State
Sex, Female
49
45
Subjects, Sc., (I)
31
22
Level, High (1,2)
49
53
Sub. liked (Hu)
53
62
Com. schol. (or Exp.)
23
20
Career(UpperProf.)
37
41
For College
77
78
Reason choice (I)
36
36
Divide at fourth year
77
76
Colleges even if
50
52
Advantage Form 1-4
79
81
Private study (1 +2)
67(23)
67(27)
Discussions
76(23)
65(16)
Voluntary attendance
49(21)
44(18)
Lecture - tutorial
71(21)
77(30)
External exams
38(16)
43(15)
Cont. assessment
83(42)
81(44)
Various times
31(10)
27(7)
Tech. and Acad
84(22)
74(23)
Social science
81(23)
77(20)
More useful subjects
90(44)
88(43)
Able to return
79(7)
73(4)
Older people, no
50(3)
51(4)
Study part-time
46(8)
45(9)
No uniforms
68(19)
67(19)
Corporal punishment
37(3)
34(4)
Student discipline
61(13)
58(15)
Three most important for planning colleges (% in parentheses,
Separate colleges
в2
Driver ed. (comp., vol.)
27, 70
Sex education
38,60
Drugs
53,44
Religion, clergy
2, 62
Religion teacher
1,30
33-39. Mean discrepancy scores below for teacher items
33.
Talk with individual
1.71
за.
Expert in subject
144
35.
Listen to students
1 35
36.
Encourage expression
1 26
37.
Good communicating
I 98
38.
Help outside hours
1 17
39.
(Not) insist formal add.
1 37
40.
Most im. skill, com
67
41.
Need improvement
53
42.
School council, teachers
69
Parents
35
Local citizens
8
Sen. students
92
Govt officials
12
No council, principal
4
Expect sixth year
43.
84
Expect university
44.
38
45.
Prefer part-time sch /wk
42
46.
Work before tert. ed
39
I 70
Melbourne
в1
33,64
40, 58
53,42
3, 69
3, 60
1.49
1.07
1.19
1.15
1.85
0.96
1.15
75
61
77
43
5
93
8
б
90
50
38
52
43
41
27
54
54
22
47
75
26
59
51
79
72(28)
71(16
48(16)
79(30)
27(25)
89(53)
26(6)
78(20)
83(14)
88(38)
74(6)
44(3)
56(12)
68(16)
32(3)
60(11)
5г(1о)
71
34,63
43,55
58,38
2,63
1,35
77
28, 69
47,5'
68,3'
5,68
4,53
85
24,60
38,60
50,48
2,63
2,40
1.50
1.26
1.72
1.04
1.21
0.79
1.02
0.91
1.87
0.85
1.02
73
63
64
35
5
93
8
9
71
27
37
38
29
49
41
14
28
Ь8
26
57
51
80
73(26)
88(21)
57(20)
71(23)
24(21)
87(51)
38(9)
75(14)
79(17)
88(35)
83(8)
44(3)
64(11)
84(19)
34(3)
61(10)
above)
1 .38
1.27
1.10
1.92
1.27
1.22
Ь0
56
73
1. 26
1.81
52
1.21
1.36
74
61
82
46
12
91
15
10
61
29
42
37
95
8
9
86
47
36
49
б
50
28
48
51
15
32
81
27
76
62
84
68(26)
7з(г5)
59(2з)
72(20)
35(22)
87(56)
24(6)
67(14)
83(16)
89(37)
84(9)
33(4)
55(12)
77(14)
28(4)
Тab е В 13 - Percentage response in selected category for different areas and types of schools.
(See Australian Secondary Studentš Survey questionnaire)
Melbourne
Canbérra
Question
47.
48.
49.
50.
51.
52.
53.
54.
55.
Born Australia
Mother
Father
Father'soccup. Up. Prof
Lower Prof
Managerial, large
Self and small emp.
Interred. non-manual
Junior non-manual
Foreman, skill work
Semi-skilled
Farmers
Father's income, high
Mother educ. (tertiary)
Father educ. (tertiary)
Sec. Sch. another State
Sec. Sch. another country
Like most, friends
Like least, discipline
Change, exams
Freedom, respon.
Easier communication
Comprehensive course
Rating, like school
Tasmania
IndepenPublic Indepen(govt.) dent State dent State
77
66
64
22
15
6
15
13
9
15
6
1
25
14
36
24
15
41
45
8
21
16
17
3.15
85
73
74
38
9
9
18
7
5
6
5
4
39
17
46
20
13
40
35
9
25
9
20
3.22
78
60
58
11
11
8
21
5
7
22
15
1
14
5
17
6
8
37
27
11
14
12
11
3.01
91
77
73
14
11
17
24
5
5
11
8
5
28
12
29
4
4
45
38
14
21
10
14
3.36
89
76
72
11
8
5
18
10
8
22
13
6
14
12
20
6
5
30
22
12
12
10
12
3.31
Table В l4 - Percentage responses in selected categories by year of schools in A.C.T. and Tasmania
(see Australian Secondary Studentš Survey questionnaire)
Question
Canberra public (govt.)
Tasmania State
Form 4 Form 5 Form б Form 4
I.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
11.
12.
13.
14.
15.
1 б.
17.
18.
19.
20.
21.
22.
23.
Form 6
Age, 17+
Sex, Female
Subjects, Sc. (1)
Level, High (1,2)
Sub. liked (lu)
Com. Schol. (or Exp.)
Career (Upper Prof.)
For College
Reason choice(1)
Divide at fourth year
Colleges even if
Advantage Form 1-4
Private study (I + 2)
Discussions
Voluntary attendance
Lecture - tutorial
External exams
Cont. assessment
Various times
Tech.and Acad
Socialscience
More useful subjects
3
49
12
58
50
35
28
71
30
70
48
78
75(28)
78(23)
42(18)
68(18)
36(17)
83(36)
36(11)
87(21)
77(19)
94(47) .
26
49
53
4.4
48
15
44
82
40
81
50
81
63(20)
77(22)
52(21)
75(24)
48(15)
82(45)
30(10)
82(23)
84(24)
90(42)
100
90
49
42
37
65
14
44
81
41
85
54
80
57(17)
73(22)
60(26)
74(25)
29(17)
86(50)
24(8)
85(24)
83(27)
88(40)
1
45
21
58
47
15
28
62
21
65
60
77
84(41)
83(27)
45(18)
67( I I )
32(14)
90(56)
30(7)
82(12)
75(10)
94(38)
Fonn 5.6
40
36
54
33
41
53
15
49
92
32
83
64
89
58(17)
66(23)
67(27)
75(26)
37(27)
85(56)
19(5)
58(15)
88(20)
86(37)
171
Table В14 - Percentage responses in selected categories by year of schools in A.C.T. and Tasmania
(see Australian Secondary Studentš Survey questionnaire)
Question
Canberra public (govt. )
Tasmania State
Form 4 Form 5 Form 6 Form 4 Form 5.6
24.
25.
26.
27.
28.
29.
30.
31.
32.
Able to return
79(6)
81(6)
76(9)
Older people, no
52(5)
51(I)
47(4)
Study part-time
49(8)
47(7)
42(8)
No uniforms
76(22)
64(21)
59(12)
Corporal punishment
43(3)
32(3)
33(3)
Student discipline
64(16)
61(15)
55(7)
Three most important for planning colleges (% in parentheses, above)
Separate colleges
80
88
80
Driver ed.(comp., vol.)
25,71
34,64
25,73
Sex education
36,63
40,57
39,59
Drugs
56,40
54,42
46,54
Religion, clergy
2,59
2,63
1,66
Religion, teacher
1,30
0,25
1,37
33-39. Mean discrepance scores below for teacher items
33.
Talk with individual
1.61
1.79
1.88
34.
Expert in subject
129
1.54
1.59
35.
Listen to students
153
1.43
0.91
36.
Encourage expression
1.36
1.27
1.08
37.
Good communicating
1.99
1.99
1.95
38.
Help outside hours
124
1.10
1.13
39.
(Not) insist formal add.
150
1.56
0.87
40.
Most imp. skill, com.
56
70
84
41.
Need improvement
46
56
63
42.
School council, teachers
55
73
87
Parents
31
36
40
Local citizens
б
10
9
Seniorstudents
89
94
94
Govt officials
9
12
18
No council, principal
5
4
3
43.
Expect sixth year
69
95
100
44.
Expect university
32
43
40
45.
Prefer part-time sch/work
45
44
35
46.
Work before tertiary ed.
31
45
49
47.
Born Australia
75
80
74
Mother
66
67
64
Father
61
67
65
48.
Father's Occup. Up. Prof.
15
23
33
Lower Professional
15
16
14
Managerial, large
6
4
8
Self and small emp.
17
18
9
Interred. non-manual
12
13
13
Junior non-manual
9
11
6
Foremen, skilled work
18
12
II
Semi-skilled
8
4
5
Farmers
I
I
0
49.
Father's income, high
21
29
27
50.
Mother educ. (tertiary)
10
15
21
Father educ. (tertiary)
27
40
44
51.
Sec. Sch. other State
22
24
28
52.
Sec. Sch. another country
14
13
21
53.
Like most, friends
35
43
47
54.
Like least, discipline
48
50
33
55.
Change, exams
5
6
i5
Freedom respons.
23
26
II
Easier communication
15
18
14
Comprehensive course
17
18
16
Rating, like school
3 06
3.19
3.26
172
70(6)
53(6)
66(15)
78(20)
34(5)
56(8)
92(11)
22(3)
48(10)
76(9)
24(3)
50(11)
73
34,65
48,50
62,35
4,59
2,36
93
17,83
31,66
41,57
1,66
2,42
1.14
1.54
I.8I
1.31
2.20
1.11
1.21
59
48
40
28
7
91
4
9
41
22
39
39
88
74
70
15
6
7
20
6
4
23
17
2
15
14
19
5
6
35
25
6
15
12
14
3.09
1.27
0.34
0.55
0.67
1.67
0.69
0.90
82
72
79
41
4
94
10
9
89
31
35
37
89
78
73
9
10
3
16
13
II
21
I0
8
14
1I
21
6
4
26
20
17
10
8
II
3.48
Table В15 - Percentage rates of agreements with attitude items and mean discrepance scores on teacher
items for fifth form students in Sydney and Canberra
Question
Sydney
Form 5
Canberra
Fornt 5
14.
15.
16.
17.
18.
19.
20.
21.
22.
23.
24.
25.
26.
27.
28.
29.
59 (14)
83 (24)
68 (29)
78 (29)
45 (14)
87 (44)
31 (9)
87 (25)
90 (24)
89 (36)
84 (4)
45(l)
48 (7)
73 (25)
27 (2)
67 (14)
63 (20)
77 (22)
52 (21)
75 (24)
48 (15)
82 (45)
30 (10)
82 (23)
84 (24)
90 (42)
81 (6)
51 (1)
47 (7)
64 (21)
32 (3)
61 (15)
I.64
1.68
1.75
1.64
2.09
1.48
1.62
1.79
1.54
1.43
1.27
1.99
I.10
1.56
33.
34.
35.
36.
37.
38.
39.
Private study (1 + 2)
Discussions
Voluntary attendance
Lecture -tutorial
External exams
Cont. assessment
Various times
fech. and Acad.
Social science
More useful subjects
Able to return
Older people, no
Study part-time
No uniforms
Corporal punishment
Student discipline
(See Table В14 for explanation of parentheses and means)
Talk with individual
Expert in subject
Listen to students
Encourage expression
Good communicating
Help outside hours
(Not) insist formal add.
Table В 16 - Percentage in favour of college proposal (Question 9)
(Remainder not in favour or undecided) (a)
Father's
occupation
Canberra
Melbourne
Tasmania
High SES
Low SES
78
78
76
68
88
79
83
83
70
86
80
73
84
76
70
76
72
61
100
88
81
97
89
60
High SES
Low SES
Form 6
Form 5
Form 4
Form 6
Form 5
Form 4
(a) Proportion undecided is two or three times proportion not in favour in mon cells of this table.
Table В 17 - Percentage accomplish change better in separate college (Question 31)
Father's
occupation
Canberra
Melbourne
Tasmania
80
90
81
80
100
100
Form 6
Form 5
Form 4
78
83
85
82
77
81
72
66
89
97
91
71
Boys
Girls
Boys
Girls
8l
84
77
86
69
74
80
72
79
79
-
H igh
Form 6
Form 5
Form 4
Low
School Type
State
Independent
173
Table B18 — Percentage `more useful subjects' important change (Questions 30, 23)
Father's
occupation
High
Low
Form 6
Form 5
Form 4
Form 6
Form 5
Form 4
School Type
State
Independent
Canberra
Melbourne
Tasmania
38
37
42
43
45
52
27
29
38
30
40
43
36
36
34
32
40
41
44
43
35
38
37
—
Table В 19 — Percentage `continuous assessment' important change (Questions 30, 19)
Father's
occupation
High
Low
Form 6
Form 5
Form 4
Form 6
Form 5
Form 4
Canberra
Melbourne
Tasmania
48
44
39
51
45
37
59
65
45
53
62
38
56
50
59
51
58
53
Table В20 — Percentage 'no uniforms' important change (Questions 30 and 27)
Father's
occupalion
High
Low
Canberra
Meihourne
Tasmania
13
22
22
12
20
22
10
17
21
14
16
24
8
9
32
14
7
13
Canberra
Melbourne
Tasguania
Form 6
Form 5
Form 4
Form 6
Form 5
Form 4
62
62
71
60
63
76
72
71
72
87
78
79
82
80
83
88
66
88
Boys
Girls
Boys
Girls
81
55
77
55
89
76
90
50
86
78
-
Form 6
Form 5
Form 4
Form 6
Form 5
Form 4
Table В21 — Percentage agree 'no uniforms' opinion (Question 27)
Father's
occupation
High
Low
School Type
State
Independent
1 74
Table В 22 — Percentage for 'compulsory' instruction drugs (Question 32)
Father's
occupation
High
Low
Canberra
Melbourne
Tasmania
44
58
58
47
53
54
57
64
68
61
61
61
26
30
63
40
48
64
Form 6
Form 5
Form 4
Form 6
Form 5
Form4
Table BB — Percentage 'yes for teachers on school council (Question 42)
Father's
occupation
H igh
Low
Canberra
Melbourne
Tasmania
90
82
70
84
70
53
97
85
76
95
80
56
93
78
52
76
76
39
Form 6
Form 5
Form 4
Form 6
Form 5
Form 4
Table В 24 — Percentage 'yes' parents on school council (Question 42)
Father's
occupation
High
Low
Canberra
Melbourne
Tasmania
38
41
38
44
39
32
60
45
50
59
49
41
41
39
33
42
42
28
Form 6
Form 5
Form 4
Form 6
Form 5
Form 4
Table 125 — lean ratings of liking school (Questions 53-55)
Father's
occupation
Canberra
Melbourne
Tasin ania(a)
High SES
Low SES
3.26
3.14
3.27
3.10
3.41
3.34
(a) See next tai e and note
Table 126 — Mean ratings of liking school (Questions 53-55)
Canberra
laie
Female
Public
lndepend
State
3.00
3.31
3.12
3.34
2.87
3.20
Melbourne
lndepen.
Tasmania(a)
3.28
3.33
3.26
3.50
(a) Different estimates of the total sample meun occur because of the correlation of missing data (no answer. etc.) with ratings of liking
school. Similar problems will appear in other tables.
Table B27 — Percentage disliking school most for authoritarian discipline (Question 54)
Father's
occupation
Canberra
Melbourne
Tasmania
High SES
Low SES
41
43
36
29
23
23
I 75
Table В 28 - Percentage liking school most for peer group (Question 53)
Father's
occupation
Canberra
Melbourne
Tasmania
High SES
Low SES
43
39
43
39
35
29
Table В29 - Summary percentages within categories of responses to what do you like most about school
Canberra
Forms
5 and б
Tasmania
Marrie.
Colleges
42
21
25
8
24
40
б
7
23
4
100
100
Canberra
Tasmania
Total
12
7
1
4
4
12
1б
11
13
20
20
40
Peer group relations
Escapist comments and sport
Expanding knowledge and interests, particular
teachers, subjects or learning situations, job
qualifications, discussion of social issues
Others (including freedom and being treated
as adults')
Not answered
Table В30 - Rating of alienation from students' comments
Evidence of
alienation
Strong
Weak
Not any
,v' = 14.13
p = .001
Table В31 - Total of mean discrepancy scores on teacher items (Questions 33-39)
(controlled for status of father's occupation)
Father's
occupation
Canberra
Melbourne
Tasmania
High SES
Low SES
9.99
9.63
9.86
9.58
8.65
7.27
Table В32 - Mean discrepance on particular teacher items (controlled for status of father's occupation)
Father's occupation
Teacher attitude item
Melbourne
Canberra
Tasmania
High Low High Low High Low
Talk to individuals
Expert in subject
Teachers listen
Encourage opinions
Good communicating
Help outside hours
Insist formal address
1.72
1.43
1.21
1.21
1.97
1.14
1.31
I76
1.58
1.25
1.32
1.22
1.90
1.08
1.28
1.82
1.17
1.28
1.21
1.94
1.22
1.22
1.51
1.16
1.35
1.13
1.86
1.26
1.31
1.52
0.91
1.17
1.04
1.99
1.09
0.93
1.05
0.76
0.95
0.83
1 .87
0.80
1,01
Tabie В 33 - Mean discrepancies on teacher items separately by SES (occupation) and year of study (form)
Canberra
High SES
Low SES
4th
5th & 6th
4th
5th & 6th
Talk to individuals
Expert in subject
Teachers listen
Encourage opinions
Good communicating
Help outside hours
(Not) insist formal add.
1.68
1.43
1.30
1.27
1.90
1.20
1.36
1.73
1.43
1.15
1.17
2.01
1.11
1.27
1.45
1.16
1.51
1.36
1.95
1.11
1.43
L70
1.34
1.13
1.08
1.84
1.04
1.13
Talk to individuals
Expert in subject
Teachers listen
Encourage opinions
Good communicating
Help outside hours
(Not) insist formal add.
1.83
1.52
1.41
1.24
2.09
1.32
1.31
1.81
1.01
1.22
1.20
1.87
1.18
1.17
1.46
1.34
1.69
1.26
1.92
1.30
1.30
1.56
1.02
1.08
1.04
1.82
1.22
1.34
Talk to individuals
Expert in subject
Teachers listen
Encourage opinions
Good communicating
Help outside hours
(Not) insist formal add.
1.63
2.10
1.87
1.52
2.48
1.69
1.37
1.42
0.11
0.58
0.62
1.56
0.59
0.54
0.88
1.34
1.66
1.13
2.10
0.94
I.08
1.16
0.41
0.52
0.65
1.71
0.71
0.96
Melbourne
Tasmania
Table В 34 - Teacher discrepancy scores. Sydney North Shore. Fifth form only (N - 137)
Talk to individuals
Expert in subject
Teachers listen
Encourage opinions
Good communicating
Help outside hours
Insist formal address
Total
High SES
Low SES
1.64
2.15
1.86
1.51
1.83
1.41
1.63
1.68
1.51
1.69
1.69
2.22
1.47
1.30
12.03
1 1.56
Table В 35 - Percentage agree teachers should be more expert In subject (Question 34)
Father's
occupation
High
Low
Form 6
Form 5
Form 4
Form б
Form 5
Form 4
Canberra
Melbourne
Tasmania
88
90
87
84
88
83
83
84
89
82
85
87
69
68
87
75
75
81
177
Table В36 — Percentage agree teachers are expert in their subjects (Question 34)
Father's
occupation
High
Low
Form 6
Form 5
Form 4
Form 6
Form 5
Form 4
Canberra
Melbourne
Tasmania
46
49
47
50
49
50
61
51
42
59
51
46
72
88
26
75
64
44
Table В37 — Percentage agree teachers do listen to students (Question 35)
Father's
occupation
High
Low
Form 6
Form 5
Form 4
Form 6
Form 5
Form 4
Canberra
Melbourne
Tasmania
64
52
52
65
54
46
64
50
50
67
54
44
55
80
39
74
73
49
Table В38 — Percentage agree teachers do talk to individuals (Question 33)
Father's
occupation
High
Low
Form 6
Form 5
Form 4
Form 6
Form 5
Form 4
Canberra
Melbourne
Tasmania
34
24
27
27
27
29
39
36
32
42
34
26
41
52
24
54
39
44
(j) Changes in the wording of questions
In Victoria and Tasmania the questions concerning subjects being studied were
changed to allow for the student's own judgment of his level of performance rather
than specifying the level of difficulty of the subject as in the N.S.W. curriculum. The
revised wording of Question 4 is given below.
The wording of Question 9 was changed to suit conditions outside the A.C.T.
where there is no proposal to introduce colleges or where students were already in
similar schools.
Some other minor changes of a consequential and similar nature were made to
several questions, but response categories should have the same meaning in all
areas.
Question 49 on the approximate level of father's income was omitted from the
version used in Sydney as required by the New South Wales Department of Education.
The slightly different sets of instructions and minor changes of wording results
in several versions of the questionnaire identified by different titles:
"Canberra Secondary School Survey — 1972" for A.C.T. public schools
"Australian Secondary School Survey — 1972" for Victoria and Tasmania
178
,
"Secondary School Survey — 1972" for A.C.T. Independent schools
"Secondary School Survey — 1972 (Oct.)" for N.S.W. schools
Question 4
What subjects are you taking this year? Write in any of your subjects not listed
below and circle one number in each row to show what standard you think you
have reached compared with the rest of the class in the whole school. Use the results
of tests and your own judgment.
Subject
English,
etc.
Level
In the
top 20%
ofall
students
Above
average
but not
in top
fifth
Below
average
but not
in
lowest
one
About
averagefifth
1
1
2
2
3
3
4
4
In the
lowest
20% of
all
students
Not
taking
this
5
5
6
6
Question 9
It is being proposed in some places that the school system be changed so that, instead of the present six-year secondary schools, there would be junior secondary
schools covering perhaps the first four years, and after that students who are going
on would proceed to colleges for, say, the last two years, which would be at a
separate location. Some schools are now like this and perhaps you are in one.
These colleges may offer a different range of courses than at present and would
operate a little differently from the present secondary schools, but details vary.
What is your opinion on the general
proposal?
Generally in favour
Generally not in favour
Undecided
1
2
3
179
APPENDIX C
Staffing structures
1. Extracts from Summary of Recommendations in W.D. Neal & W.C. Radford,
Teachers for Commonwealth Schools (Canberra 1972), pp. 85-87.
School organisation and staffing
(15)The staffing organisation of schools should become more flexible to enable
each school to determine its own appropriate pattern within a total points
allocation based on general and special factors.
(l б)The principles of differentiated staffing and functional specialisation should be
applied to school staffing so that teachers undertake different and more
specialised roles and so that different positions of responsibility in schools will
emerge and will call for a variety of leadership skills.
(17)The levels of positions of responsibility between the Head and general teachers
should be limited to two. The junior level should contain some positions which
would be occupied on a temporary basis to meet special needs. Both levels
should provide some positions which are oriented more towards those who
specialise in teaching roles and related leadership activities.
(18)The position of Deputy Head as another separate level just below the Head
should be discontinued and other means, as outlined in the Report, should be
used to provide for the duties that are necessary.
(20)The number and type of ancillary staff in all schools should be increased with
special attention being given to such positions as the school bursar and
paraprofessional staff working directly with teachers in the classroom and in
the design, selection and preparation of learning materials.
(2l)Attention should be given to the selection and preparation of ancillary staff and
to appropriate career structures.
Teachers
Professional development
(22)The onus is on the individual teacher to be responsible for his own professional
development but there should be an extensive expansion of facilities provided
by the school, the Authority and the Commissioner.
(23)Some of the suggestions in the Report for professional development are:
• greater responsibility on the Head and senior staff;
• the establishing of teachers' centres on an experimental basis;
• regular study leave to the extent of one term every seven years;
• the expansion of in-service education courses but directed with more purpose;
• the use of newer learning techniques and support materials in such
programs as courses, part-time study and correspondence work;
the
development of new, advanced and sophisticated courses in post•
secondary institutions for teachers on three months' study leave and for
other students.
180
(24)Professional development activities should be planned and co-ordinated by
central staff and by representative committees — one for the whole Authority
and another for the Commonwealth Teaching Service.
(25)Special attention should be given to the needs of the beginning teacher.
(26)Advanced qualifications should be prescribed and acquired before a teacher
can obtain senior positions.
Career patterns
(27)Positions within the service should be grouped in four broad bands with additional qualifications (referred to in Recommendation 26) being required for
appointments in the senior bands, i.e. III and IV.
(28) Positions within each band should be regarded as equivalent and, as far as
possible, teachers occupying these positions should be interchangeable.
(29)Attempts to distinguish minor differences in professional responsibilities
should be discouraged.
(30)Caг eer patterns should be similar for pre-school, primary and secondary
teachers.
2.
Submission from Mr T. Bardsley, Canberra High School
Possible promotion structure
Four levels each with a salary range by annual increment.
Transfer from level to level would be by application.
Status within levels would improve with experience and additional qualifications.
Level I (Five-year salary range, period or pay allowance in 2-6).
1. Teaching only.
2. Teaching + service on school executive councils.
3. Teaching + in-service education course.
4. Teaching + mentor to junior teachers and trainees.
5. Teaching + extra-curricular activities.
6. Teaching + educational research.
Combinations would increase status for promotion.
Level 2 (Five-year salary range)
1. Teaching only: teacher may elect to remain in this category.
2. Teaching + Form Master (Counselling).
3. Teaching + teacher supervision of up to four teachers.
4. Teaching + preparation of curriculum and/or programs.
5. Counsellors.
6. Librarian.
7. Teaching and in-service education course.
8. Teaching + in-charge extra-curricular activities.
Combinations of two or more would enhance promotion.
Level
Deputy Principal — a number of positions embracing one or more duties.
Possible duties:
1. Audio-visual/texts/library/films.
181
2. Guidance: co-ordinate Counsellors and Form Masters.
3. Timetabl ing: day to day organisation.
4. Chairman and administrative officer of administrative councils.
5. Student mentor.
6. Staff mentor.
7. School facilities, equipment, buildings, grounds.
8. Assist Principal in duties.
9. Teaching.
10. In-service education.
Combinations would improve promotional prospects.
Level 4
Principal.
182
APPENDIX D
Tables giving further details of projected
enrolments under our proposals
Table Dl — Projected secondary enrolments — North Canberra
Individual forms
COLLEGE
August
1972
1973
1974
1975
1976
1977
1978
1979
1980
1
2
3
4
5
207
170
204
205
170
163
190
190
160
152
155
180
180
150
66
85
85
100
390
400
400
360
325
Pa rchment
Primary
6 Total Schools
76
Ь0
80
80
90
335
350
350
315
868
865
705
520
630
735
750
710
640
CAMPBELL
1972
1973
1974
1975
1976
1977
1978
1979
1980
183
84
790
161
149
120
93
205
830
180
80
80
150
135
245 200 165 135 90 70 905 Ainslie
225
970
240
150
90
80
185
80 795 Campbell
185 220 225 165
800
210
180
205
205
140
695
205
185
165
140
615
135
190
150
575
140
135
175
125
WATSON
1972
1973
1974
1975
1976
1977
1978
1979
1980
191
220
310
315
295
265
270
270
270
833
67
186
144
88
157
885
80
190
165
145
85
220 165 150 85 75 1005 Watson
1135
75
310
150
90
195
80 1150 Downer
315 280 1X0
1105
295
285
260
1065
265
265
265
1020
270
245
235
995
270
215
240
LYNEHAM
1972
1973
1974
1975
1976
1977
1978
1979
1980
220
215
245
200
195
155
110
110
110
79
225
185
I11
230
160
65
190
225 195 160 95 50
255
190
165
95
205 220 160
190
200
175
160
155
175
140
155
115
100
125
115
875
920
970 Lyneham
980
75
75 855 Turner
720
600
520
450
55
Ь0
N.B. From and including 1974, pupils from Hackett would attend Watson High, 65% of North Ainslie
pupils would attend Campbell High and the remaining 35% would attend Lyneham High.
183
ТаНе D2 — Projected secondary enrolments — South Canberra
Individual forms
2
1
3
NARRABUNDAH
August
195
183
122
1972
1973
175
190
150
1974
170
155
1975
140
1976
1977
1978
1979
1980
Catchment primaries 1973 — Narrabundah, Red Hill
Accepts fifth form enrolments from Telopea Nark in 1976
4
S
б
Total
163
115
145
150
135
86
105
75
95
210
195
165
155
135
84
75
95
65
85
200
185
155
150
833
810
640
450
430
395
350
310
285
186
165
175
145
140
230
220
195
195
140
145
130
135
127
140
145
130
135
981
945
1040
1105
1025
940
840
755
705
No first form intake in 1974.
TELOPEA PARK
August
1972
1973
1974
1975
1976
1977
1978
1979
1980
160
155
285
270
240
240
180
180
180
188
155
150
275
265
235
235
175
175
180
185
155
150
245
235
205
205
155
Catchment primaries 1973 — Forrest, Griffith
1974-80 — 1/3 Forrest, Griffith, Narrabundah, Red Hí11
Table D3 — Projected secondary enrolments — Widen Valley Including Deakin
/
2
3
4
5
6
201
110
95
90
143
175
95
85
Total
WIDEN VALLEY (Chifley, Garran, Curtin South, Lyons/
August
1972
1973
1974
1975
1976
1977
1978
1979
1980
161
147
140
148
596
220
140
130
130
620
230
195
125
120
670
285
200
170
115
770
280
250
180
160
870
300
245
225
165
935
335 265 220 205 1025
295 295 235 200 1025
295 260 265 215 1055
344
285
190
175
80
940
905
860
945
950
935
1025
1025
1055
MELROSE (Pearce, Torrens, Mawson, Farrer)
1972
1973
1974
1975
1976
1977
1978
1979
1980
184
204
215
157
191
767
230
205
215
155
805
145
225 230 205 215 875 120
255
225
230
205
915
160
275 240 215 220 950
285
260
230
205
980
325 270 250 220 1065
290 310 255 235 1090
290 275 295
245 1105
767
145
950
130 250 1125
105
265
1180
145
145
1095
980
1065
1090
1105
Taы е D3 — Projected secondary enrolments — Widen Valley including Deakin
1
2
4
З
5
6
108
120
120
115
93
90
III
100
95
Total
DEA KIN
1972
1973
1974
1975
1976
1977
1978
1979
1980
175
245
335
305
320
295
290
290
290
171
168
162
676
160
155
160
720
215
145
155
850
300
205
140
950
275
290
195
1080
285
265
270
1115
265 275 250 1080
1060
255 255 260
255 245 240 1030
201
210
220
215
95
877
930
1070
1165
1175
1115
1080
1060
1030
CьΡ chment primaries 1973 — Curtin North, Hughes, Yarralumla
1974-80 — Curtin North, Hughes, Yarralumla. 2/3 Forrest
COLLEGE
1976
345
1977
430
1978
480
1979
510
1980
520
345
730
850
930
965
300
370
420
445
Table D4 — Projected secondary enrolments — Weston Creek and Tug>;еr апопg
Individual forms
1
2
З
4
WESTON CREEK
1973
1974
1975
197Ь
1977
1978
1979
1980
220
300
235
350
160
170
180
190
205
285
225
340
155
165
175
185
175
250
200
2Ч0
130
140
150
155
165
220
185
265
125
130
130
140
HOLDER
1975
197Ь
1977
1978
1979
1980
180
210
230
250
280
300
175
205
225
245
275
295
150
175
190
210
230
245
145
155
180
200
205
220
TUGGERANONG
1977
1878
1979
1980
280
360
420
470
270
345
405
455
230
295
345
385
220
275
320
365
COLLEGE
1976
1977
1978
1979
1980
Total
6
5
!4П
/15
150
125
85
75
765
1195
1110
1370
570
605
635
670
735
820
К25
905
990
1060
1000
1275
1490
1675
2 б 5Га1
320
370
415
450
245(а )
285
315
350
265
565
655
730
800
(a) Pupils would be expected to attend Widen College.
1 85
Tai е D5 — Projected secondary enrolments — Belconnen
Individual forms
/
2
3
4
5
6
Total
CANBERRA
1972
1973
1974
1975
1976
1977
1978
1979
1980
140
225
145
360
340
175
175
180
185
160
205
215
210
385
160
160
165
165
126
165
190
210
195
135
140
140
145
175
140
160
205
220
120
125
125
130
171
95
115
130
135
170
85
110
120
907
1000
910
1225
1260
590
600
610
625
BELCONNEN
1972
1973
1974
1975
1976
1977
1978
1979
1980
193
305
325
190
200
225
230
235
240
142
298
240
335
200
205
210
215
215
129
235
185
230
310
175
180
185
190
105
200
150
180
215
295
155
155
155
G INN IN DER RA
1974
1975
1976
1977
1978
1979
1980
200
280
365
355
295
315
325
195
245
305
330
350
290
295
160
200
230
230
305
325
250
140
175
195
185
205
290
300
BELCONNEN D AND BELCONNEN E
255
275
1977
295
405
1978
395
425
1979
430
465
1980
270
245
270
360
95
275
240
320
135
100
130
95
III
160
115
115
90
95
569
1170
1160
1180
1040
900
775
790
800
790
1100
1190
1100
1155
1220
1170
895
1220
1330
1575
COLLEGE (HAWKER)
1976
1977
1978
1979
1980
455
500
320
330
330
405
430
260
260
455
905
750
590
590
COLLEGE (MELBA)
1978
1979
1980
235
260
275
205
210
235
465
485
186