BARRINGTON Public School P and C has just received a State government Department of Education and Communities (DEC) blueprint for changes to rural and remote schools.
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In this blueprint the aim is to make small schools (classified as P5 and P6 schools with between 60 and 129 students) satellite schools of a larger school.
This affects Barrington Public School and many other schools in the district.
Barrington Public School P and C is holding an information session for Barrington families on Friday, November 22 from 5.30pm.
In the coming weeks there will be a community information night where we would like to see as many people as possible.
Barrington School has a proud history, and celebrates its sesquicentenary in 2014. It has huge community support and unparalleled parental support.
Students at Barrington Public School perform well in all aspects of their schooling, from team sports to individual sports, from team debating to individual achievements.
This year’s NAPLAN results show that the school performed above the State average, so it is clearly achieving to the satisfaction of everyone involved.
Obviously we have a winning formula - why change?
This reclassification of P5 and P6 schools includes the demotion of our principal to a ‘leading teacher’ who would be managed by the principal of the larger school.
All funds and grants for the ‘network’ of schools would ultimately be the responsibility of that principal.
Our school is highly resourced thanks to the hard work of our P and C through fundraising. We would be under threat of losing a lot of what we have - not only resources, but independence.
As a school in a rural area we value and thrive on our independence and autonomy. We know that a principal is on-site to deal with students, emergency situations and to meet with parents and community groups.
This is an extremely important aspect of our school’s harmony and gives us great confidence as parents. It offers leadership, a point of communication and credence to a school.
Downgrading a principal to a leading teacher is demeaning to the school, the principal and the community. It would seem that the DEC and government do not value rural communities nor the students in rural schools.
As a P and C, we feel that it shows the government’s complete disregard for rural education and rural communities. It is important that principal positions in P5 and P6 schools are maintained as they stand.
Barrington Public School P and C is strongly opposed to any moves to reclassify the principal of our school or any other small schools.
We do not want to have to refer to an off-site principal or to a larger school outside our community to set the educational direction for our children.
We do not, nor will we in any way support any changes that remove the position of principal directly from our school.
We will not support the replacement of the position with a leading teacher, nor do we support the idea that our school should come under the auspices of a larger school.
Is bigger better? Over the years history has demonstrated that efforts to combine resources with the aim of improving efficiency and increasing cost effectiveness are fraught with problems.
What actually happens is that contact with the community is lost, decisions are made at a level which has no comprehension of ‘grass roots’ thinking and bigger actually translates to becoming remote with less community and parental involvement and support.
Broadly, cost savings are not based on realistic estimates and after a period of time the ‘big’ mistake is realised. Efforts then made to decentralise fail as the damage can not be undone.
We need to act before this happens.
Trudy Schultz
Incoming President
Barrington Public School P and C