Teacher hits out

By CASEY NEILL
A MENZIES Creek Primary School teacher says this month’s strike action was about far more than wages, and she’s unlikely to stay in the profession if proposed state government changes go ahead.
Riaane Comport and about 15,000 other Victorian teachers attended a rally outside Parliament House and at Hisense Arena on Thursday 7 June.
“Obviously I’m disappointed in Premier Ted Baillieu’s broken promise to make Victorian teachers the highest paid in Australia,” she said.
“However, my reason for striking goes far beyond that.
Ms Comport said she was “really angry and disappointed” at the government’s plans for performance pay.
Under the government’s offer, all teachers would receive a 2.5 per cent pay increase and then have the chance to receive a 10 per cent bonus based on their teamwork, contribution to children’s social development and wellbeing, and engagement with the school community.
Teachers and principals would set the measures each teacher would be assessed against, and these would differ at each school.
“We put our heart and soul into these kids’ education and performance pay is an insult to that,” Ms Comport said.
“How could I possibly work any harder or with any more passion than I already do?”
Ms Comport said there were professions where performance pay could improve results, but teaching wasn’t one of them.
“How can this be judged objectively by a principal, and how is it acceptable to expect principals to make this decision about their staff, who are usually their friends?” she said.
“Teaching is a profession where everybody in a school works together to improve results in all areas – academic, social and personal.”
She said it would pit teachers against each other.
“At the moment we work collaboratively – with our principals too – sharing ideas and resources in order to maximise our students’ learning,” she said.
“I do not see myself continuing to work in the public education sector if the Baillieu Government gets its way.”
Mr Baillieu said the strike was “unnecessary and unfair on Victorian families”.
“In August last year, we put a fair offer to Victorian teachers which would make the best performing teachers the highest paid in the country,” he said.
He said performance pay was about “embedding a system of constant assessment and evaluation of the value each teacher brings to each child and to the broader school community”.
“Each teacher will be assessed annually so all teachers, from graduate level to those of 20 or 30 years’ experience, will have an opportunity to receive the greatest bonus each year,” Mr Baillieu said.
“This is an important change to ensure that we are keeping our best and brightest in teaching.
“The system will also identify poor performers and provide principals and the broader school system with the clear indicators of which teachers need help to improve.”