Yet another band aid measure that fails to understand the teaching environment. If the State Government is looking to emulate Finland’s well-documented success in education it needs to do more than just insist that teachers have Masters Degrees. I work in a school where a number of teachers have Masters Degrees (I have one) and a couple have PhDs. Teachers with higher qualifications do not currently receive any additional salary. A Masters Degree or PhD does not guarantee excellence in teaching. What makes Finland successful is not just teachers being required to have Masters Degrees (which are fully subsidised), it is much more than this. Teaching is a popular and well-respected profession. It is highly competitive and teachers come from the top 10 per cent of university graduates. Other measures include students starting school later, as compulsory schooling does not begin until the age of seven. Nearly 30 per cent of Finland’s students also receive some kind of additional support during their first nine years of schooling. Special education teachers do an extra year (six-year course) of training and are recompensed for this by receiving slightly higher salaries than regular classroom teachers. There is only one standardised test, which is taken when children are sixteen. No NAPLAN! There are no rankings of schools. No My School websites! Finland’s schools are all publically funded. There are also very generous social welfare measures for parents. If the State Government wants SA to be like Finland, it had better start looking for the cash. Excellence in education is not just about higher degrees, it is so much more than this. adelaidenow.au/news/south-australia/all-new-south-australian-teachers-will-need-master-degrees-in-shakeup-of-education-standards/story-fni6uo1m-1226768270969
Posted on: Mon, 10 Mar 2014 08:04:05 +0000
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