August 2014

Principal classificationFederation’s role in award negotiations restored conditions the Department of Education and Communities proposed to cut. The very title of principal was maintained, along with release time, no loss of salaries, conditions and entitlements. No currently serving principal will go backwards in terms of salary or status.

From 2016, any principal in a small school (defined in the new structure as having a budget less than $1.04 million) may remain in their cur-rent position for as long as they wish, with all exist-ing conditions and entitlements maintained. This includes the release time entitlement the Depart-ment of Education and Communities sought to cut.

The only change for small school principal members is the addition of the word “teaching” in the actual award. Teaching Principals 1 will be in schools with budgets of less than $415,000 and Teaching Principals 2 will be in schools with budg-ets of $415,000 to $1.04 million.

These are award classifications only. Principals remain principals. It is similar to the title “Assistant” which many of us commenced our careers as. We were teachers but for the purpose of the award and administration, we were classified as assistants.

Much angst was caused because in the early period following the award’s terms of settlement, school communities felt they would be steam-rolled by bureaucracy into acceptance of a “hub and spoke” model of running their school whereby they would lose autonomy and be forced to hand funding and management of their school to a larger school. This is not Federation’s intent and this whole notion should be seen as contestable. The letter from NSW Education Minister Piccoli to John Kaye of The Greens, dated May 15, is critical on this matter and should allay any fears:

“When a Teaching Principal position becomes vacant the school community will be consulted about whether to appoint a Teaching Principal or an Associate Principal. A current Teaching Prin-cipal, following consultation with the school com-munity, may also elect to become an Associate Principal. Please be assured that any decision to appoint an Associate Principal to a school would only be made after thorough consultation, includ-ing with the school community.

“Importantly, while an Associate Principal will receive the same salary as a Teaching Principal, they would have a reduced administrative work-load. The details of the tasks and activities that could be performed at a larger school nearby will be determined following consultation and will take account of different circumstances. The intention is to enable Associate Principals to have more time in the classroom teaching students and less time dealing with administrative issues and red tape.”

Mr Piccoli went on to say:“Any future decisions for small schools to retain

a Teaching Principal or explore further opportuni-ties available by choosing an Associate Principal, where the school will be able to network more closely with other schools, will only be made after consultation and agreement with those respective communities.”

The final line, especially, of this statement is critical and the key words are “consultation and agreement” and not simply consultation followed by acceptance of a predetermined position.

The Small Schools Committee is keen to hear from members who have specific operational ques-tions that need to be answered regarding the imple-mentation of the principal reclassification. The committee will compile these questions and forward them to appropriate officers within the Department.

Federation Senior Officers have attended many meetings across the state where the principal reclas-sification has been a major focus. These meetings will continue and members should attend their local teachers association meetings to have such visits put on the agenda for future meetings.

School visitThe Small Schools Committee travelled to Brooklyn Public School on the banks of the Hawkesbury River on April 3 where commit-tee members were welcomed by principal Jeanie Brown.

Accompanied by Federation Organisers Fionie Stavert and John Pratt we enjoyed a tour of the school and met with Jeanie, Mt Kuring-gai PS principal Glenn O’Neill and Field of Mars Environmental Education Centre principal Steve Papp. Many discussion points were raised and it was decided to convene a larger meet-ing of principals from P5 and P6 schools from Sydney’s North and Inner West.

Small schools surveyIn term 4, 2013 the Small Schools Committee surveyed members in small schools to iden-tify the issues of most concern. Answers were ranked on a scale of 1 to 10. The top 10 issues for the 250 respondents were:1. Learning Management and Business Reform (LMBR)2. School Transport Scheme3. access to casual teachers4. work health and safety5. cleaning time allocations6. prolonged temporary engagements of principals7. incentives to attract teachers to remote areas8. potential amalgamation and school viability (most number 1 responses)9. salary levels10. access to school counsellor services.

The committee will now set about determin-ing strategies to deal with the matters raised.

Authorised by Maxine Sharkey, Acting General Secretary, NSW Teachers Federation, 23-33 Mary Street, Surry Hills 2010. 14129

Small school spotlight

School: Kentucky Public School

Located: New England region, 30 minutes south of Armidale

Enrolment: 52 — from the local village, surrounding farms and nearby townships

Principal: Danny Spillane

Staff Entitlement: 3.562 Teaching plus 1.396 Non-Teaching.

Allowances: Socio-Economic, Isothermic (cold)

Transfer Points: 2

Famous Alumni: None recorded, however, a propeller from Charles Kingsford Smith’s “Southern Cross” is mounted in the

school’s foyer.Local programs and highlights

• base for the Small Schools Marimba Ensemble (regular appearances at the Sydney Opera House and Schools Spectacular)

• member of the Stephanie Alexander Kitchen Garden Program• ”Wheelie Wednesday” weekly bike skills program• free fruit platter mornings (twice per week)• interactive technology in all classrooms• sealed tennis court• pine forest cross country running/bicycle track.

Students proudly show off their garden produce On stage at the Sydney Opera House