Standing Up For Public Education
Members of the SSTUWA have been quick to stand up and be counted when it has come to defending the public education or children in Western Australia. Join us in the fight for a Quality Education for every West Australian student.
What are the benefits of SSTUWA Membership?
For over a hundred years teachers, school administrators and lecturers in WA government schools and TAFE colleges have joined together to look after their interests and to fight for improved conditions and salaries, to improve professional standards and to promote public education.
SSTUWA New Educators Support.
Beginning teaching is an exciting yet stressful time. The SSTUWA Provides training, support and resources for newly graduated teachers to support the transition into full time teaching. A case of teachers helping teachers, new educators can gain from the wealth of experience held by the union.
Educational Leaders need support.
In the ‘real world’ school administrators would command high respect and compensation - leading the equivalent of a medium to large business. School administrators take responsibility for hundreds of staff and students and are answerable to thousands of parents.
Occupational Safety and Health.
The SSTUWA is a major provider and supporter of OSH in the school and TAFE workplace. With a full time OSH Organiser and access to the leading OSH figures in the country, SSTUWA members can rely on their union to help fight for safe and healthy workplaces.
National Curriculum.
The Interim National Curriculum Board is responsible for the development of rigorous, world class national curriculum from Kindergarten to Year 12 by 2010, starting with the learning areas of English, mathematics, the sciences and history.All teachers and public are encouraged to contribute to the debate.
Canning union celebration week a huge success As part of Union Celebration Week, the SSTUWA visited 12 schools in the Canning District, last week. The SSTUWA completed a similar successful exercise in the Goldfields, during Term 1. "Feedback has been extremely positive. We are sure we leave each school with pride in their union and greater confidence to promote union matters, and invite non-members to join." said SSTUWA President Anne Gisborne Ian Daw, who was mainly responible for the envet added, "The week was very successful with significant numbers of members joining from all the schools visited. Feedback from ... Read more Union News | Wednesday, 1 July 2009 |
Last Chance to Enrol for Industrial Education in the Pilbara This is your last chance to enrol for Industrial Education for SSTUWA Pilbara Members. Deadline for registration: Friday 3rd July 2009 5.00 p.m.The Industrial Educator will be in Hedland during Week 3 commencing 31st August subject to sufficient demand for union training. Under our Award all members (schools & TAFE) are eligible to 5 paid “trade union training” leave days per year or ten days in two years. School members may access up to ten days in a two year period. Below is a list of the training on offer to ... Read more ETC News | Wednesday, 1 July 2009 |
Half Year Cohort Update #2 The UnSSTUWA intends to begin a media campaign to alert the community of the Half Year Cohort issue. Union reps and members are requested to direct letters to the editor, contact talkback radio and lobby their local politicians on this issue. As well as activities taking place by organisers and union staff, members can help greatly by becoming invloved in this way. We are building a portal on this site to collect information and encourage members to join the online group and discussions on the member message forum as well as ... Read more Half Year Cohort | Wednesday, 1 July 2009 |
$810 million for new SLCs in schools across Australia Announced today. 537 science laboratories and language learning centres to be built or refurbished under the first stage of the Science and Language Centres for 21st Century Secondary Schools' (SLC) element of the Building the Education Revolution (BER).The process was competitive and DEEWR says the key criterion was demonstrated disadvantage and need. A breakdown of the results of today’s announcement by sector, amount and by State/Territory/Australia is attached.Information about each of the 537 successful projects – state, sector, school, project name, amount funded – is available at ... Read more Union News | Wednesday, 1 July 2009 |
The Creation and Publication of League Tables Must Be Stopped The teaching profession has reaffirmed the call for a legislative response to stop the creation and publication of league tables. A joint statement (attached) has been sent to Deputy Prime Minister Julia Gillard and her state and territory counterparts.Dear Minister, Along with other peak associations in education, we wrote to you in March this year to express our deep concerns about the potential misuse of school and test data to be published as a result of MCEETYA’s national testing and data collection program.We urged you to take legislative action prohibiting ... Read more AEU Releases | Monday, 29 June 2009 |
Exciting work underway at Swan TAFE, Balga A recent visit to Swan TAFE, Balga Campus, uncovered an exciting project that is underway, down in the Carpentry & Joinery area. Robert Moseley, Carpentry & Joinery Lecturer, was one of the originators of the planning, organising and building of transportable demountables, to be used as half-way houses which are put into the community by the government, after completion. Pre-apprentices doing Certificate 1 get to cut their teeth on this project by gaining valuable tool and worksite experience. Apprentices have the task of fitting out the ... Read more TAFE News | Monday, 29 June 2009 |
SSTUWA Canning Celebration Dinner Last night members, their families, the President, Senior Vice President and General Secretary of the State School Teachers' Union WA, organisers and office staff descended on Gosnell’s Ogdens, to enjoy a meal to celebrate this week’s success. It was a great chance for members, staff and leadership to mix and discuss issues in a relaxed and social environment. Thank you to all who made the SSTUWA Canning Celebration Week a huge ... Read more Union News | Friday, 26 June 2009 |
SSTUWA Canning Celebration Day Five Gosnells Primary School welcomed the SSTUWA to their school, today, the last day of this week’s Union Celebration where we have met hundreds of members and enjoyed the warm welcome at their schools. Principal Rob said that he “..fully support(s) the union. What you do for our profession is wonderful. You guys work in the background for us and it is more than appreciated.”We will be back at Gosnells PS next week for their music concert- look out for a ... Read more Union News | Friday, 26 June 2009 |
SSTUWA Canning Celebration Day Four The union staff today visited Southern River College and Willandra PS, on their 4th day of this week’s State School Teachers' Union Canning Celebration Week.It was a great chance for union officers to meet members and explain how to get the best from their union membership by taking advantage of the range of services and benefits afforded to members.Anne Gisborne, SSSTUWA President, dropped by Southern River College to join in the morning tea and discuss matters with union ... Read more Union News | Thursday, 25 June 2009 |
AEU response to new NSW legislation The Australian Education Union has today welcomed new legislation in NSW aimed at stopping the creation and publication of league tables.The Education Amendment (Publication of School Results) Bill 2009 was passed by the NSW Upper House yesterday evening and introduces penalties aimed at stopping the creation and publication of league tables.“We call on the Commonwealth and all state and territory governments to introduce similar legislation.“All education ministers have consistently declared their opposition to the creation and publication of ‘simplistic’ league tables.... Read more AEU Releases | Wednesday, 24 June 2009 |
Gosnells PS puts on a show If this morning’s performance by Gosnells Primary’s recorder ensemble is anything to go by, then this school has not allowed NAPLAN to shut down the creative side of education. Music Specialist teacher Mike Leadabrand has taught at Gosnells PS for 21 years, after finishing his own professional music career in Melbourne. Today’s rendition, for the last assembly of Term 2, was a strong and beautiful arrangement from the 1992 movie, The Last of the Mohicans, and showed every ounce of his passion for teaching children the music he loves. And the parents ... Read more Education Issues | Friday, 3 July 2009 |
How To Vote Week Schools encouraged to participate in Enrol to Vote Week 2009 The Australian Electoral Commission (AEC) is encouraging more secondary schools to register for national Enrol to Vote Week to be held from 27 July to 2 August this year. Electoral Commissioner Ed Killesteyn said over 1550 secondary schools and colleges across Australia had already registered to participate in Enrol to Vote Week and there was still time for other schools to get involved. “Enrol to Vote Week involves the AEC working in partnership with Australian secondary schools to encourage 17- and 18-year-old students ... Read more Education Issues | Wednesday, 1 July 2009 |
Court threat for pupils' parents Parents of unruly pupils could be taken to court by teachers under plans to be announced by ministers.The initiative will be used to support existing home-school agreements which set out what is expected of parents and their children in the education system.Schools Secretary Ed Balls says the move is aimed at a small number of parents who disregard the agreements.The proposal will be included in the wide-ranging schools white paper to be unveiled on ... Read more Education Issues | Monday, 29 June 2009 |
Radical reform necessary in Indigenous education The Australian Education Union (AEU) announced at its 2009 Annual Federal Conference a plan to improve educational outcomes for Indigenous students in response to what it deemed an inadequate and misguided approach by the Federal Government in its first term. AEU Federal President, Angelo Gavrielatos said the Prime Minister’s goal to halve the gap in achievements for Indigenous children within a decade was worthwhile, but would fail without the development of a comprehensive policy and a solid funding commitment. The AEU’s plan to improve outcomes for Indigenous students and their communities includes:The ... Read more Aboriginal & Torres Strait Islander | Friday, 1 May 2009 |
Mayor Bloomberg’s Crib Sheet ARNE DUNCAN, the secretary of education, has urged the nation’s mayors to take control of their public schools so that they can impose radical reforms. He points to New York City as a prime example of a school system that made sharp improvements under mayoral control. Actually, the record on mayoral control of schools is unimpressive. Eleven big-city school districts take part in the federal test called the National Assessment of Educational Progress. Two of the lowest-performing cities — Chicago and Cleveland — have mayoral control. The two highest-performing cities — ... Read more Education Issues | Thursday, 30 April 2009 |
New Tests Will Impoverish Education The public education advocacy group Save Our Schools has accused the Rudd Government of turning classrooms into test preparation factories. SOS National Convenor, Trevor Cobbold, said that the education of an entire generation of students will be impoverished by the Government’s plan for national reporting of school results. “We are on the way to turning our classrooms into test preparation factories. The evidence is mounting around Australia that teachers are being pressured by education officials to spend more time on test preparation because of the high stakes involved in reporting ... Read more Education Issues | Wednesday, 15 April 2009 |
WIPC:E 2008: Melbourne Australia report Kaya (welcome Noongar)To the SSTUWA I would like to say thank you for the opportunity to embark on a journey of discovery and sharing with other Indigenous peoples from around the world. This report has just been a short journey of my experiences in Melbourne.To the Kulin Nation the traditional owners of the land thank you. To the Victorian Aboriginal Education Association the organisers your time and efforts in putting the Conference together is much appreciated.Respecting tradition, shaping the future was explored through global cafes, conversations, workshops and through Guest ... Read more Aboriginal & Torres Strait Islander | Wednesday, 8 April 2009 |
Practical Lessons in League TablesPrimary school league tables were published in England this week. They provide practical lessons about the implications of the Rudd Government’s decision to publish league tables in Australia.The results for all primary schools for Key Stage 2 exams (end of Year 6) were published by the Department of Children, Schools and Families on its website (http://www.dcsf.gov.uk/performancetables/primary_08.shtml ). The results are reported in tables for each of 150 Local Authority areas and by region. Schools are listed in alphabetic order.The tables give information on the achievements of pupils in local primary ... Read more Research Reports | Tuesday, 7 April 2009 |
Public sector wages policy Brief Ministerial on Public Sector Wages Policy : Mr Speaker, I am pleased to announce the Western Australian Government’s new public sector wages policy. The new wages policy strikes art appropriate balance between encouraging greater efficiency and productivity in the public sector, while protecting the real wages of public sector workers in. challenging economic circumstances. Over the last term of the previous Government, a blow-out in public sector employee expenses and numbers saw an average increase, in total wage costs of 9.6% per year over the last four financial years. ... Read more Government & Opposition Policy Statements | Thursday, 2 April 2009 |
Close the gapThe historic formal statement of support from the federal government for the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples occurring this Friday should be backed immediately with a comprehensive national action plan to Close the Gap in health equality between Indigenous and non-Indigenous Australians, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Social Justice Commissioner Tom Calma said today.Commissioner Calma, who is also the Chair of the Close the Gap steering committee and whose 2005 Social Justice Report spearheaded the Close the Gap Campaign, said the right to good health was ... Read more Aboriginal & Torres Strait Islander | Thursday, 2 April 2009 |
Canning union celebration week a huge success
Gosnells PS puts on a show
