School league table defenders skate on thin ice

Commenting on a story in today's Australian ('Ban on schools statistics slammed' 29 June, page 3), Dr Kaye said: "NSW Education Minister Verity Firth regularly reiterates her federal colleague Julia Gillard's opposition to simplistic league tables.
 
"The data protocol she signed commits all Australian governments to 'put in place strategies to manage the risk that third parties may seek to produce [simplistic league] tables or rankings.'
 
"That is exactly what the Greens amendment did.
 
"Verity Firth's actions speak much louder than her words.
 
"Her low shot criticisms of the Greens amendment suggest that her supposed opposition to simplistic league tables was all spin and no substance.
 
"For the past 12 years successive NSW Labor government maintained a similar ban on simplistic school comparisons.
 
"The Rees government is now happy to allow simplistic comparisons of schools to hollow out the curriculum, stigmatise excellent schools that serve disadvantaged communities and mislead parents.
 
"Our critics are unaware that nothing in the amendment stops parents, students and community members accessing information about schools including test results.
 
 "Coalition federal MP Brendan Nelson, commenting from the twilight zone of politics, now supports simplistic league tables, yet was unable to implement them in his five years as a Coalition education minister," Dr Kaye said.
 
For more information: John Kaye 0407 195 455