Victoria’s private schools would choose between abolishing fees and entrance exams or losing all government funding, under a proposed radical education overhaul adapted from Ontario.
Non-government schools would accept all students within their geographical zone, fee-free, and receive full government funding or continue selecting fee-paying students and be cut off, as part of a plan designed to prevent social segregation.
Teacher and Waiting For Gonski author Tom Greenwell, who detailed the plan in a report he co-authored, Choice and Fairness, said the current education system allowed private schools to pluck the brightest students from classrooms with little accountability for delivering quality.
“Overhauling our system to create fully publicly funded, fee-free local schools in all sectors will produce fairer educational outcomes, stronger communities, and a more liveable and sustainable city,” Greenwell said.
In their report, Greenwell and co-author Chris Bonnor, a former principal and head of the NSW Secondary Principals’ Council, argue that non-government schools that agree to no fees and no selectivity should receive full public funding to meet recurrent and capital costs on the same needs-basis as government schools. Religious schools would be free to continue teaching faith-based education, and all non-government schools would be free to operate independently of the Department of Education.
Non-government schools that continued to charge fees or reject inclusive enrolment obligations would no longer receive public money.
In Canada, each province runs its own school system, and the national government plays no part in education.
The result is contrasting schooling systems whereby some provinces have socio-economically diverse schools and other systems are more comparable to Australia’s – which experts agree is one of the most segregated in the OECD.
In Ontario, both the Catholic and secular school systems are fully publicly funded, resulting in 93 per cent of students attending a fully publicly funded, fee-free school which serves students from a local enrolment zone.
Under Greenwell and Bonnor’s plan, school zones would be regularly revised to maximise socio-economic balance, and schools would compete on student outcomes rather than their capacity to attract resources and the “right” students.
Greenwell said private schools had an incentive to accept the proposal because full public funding provided long-term financial sustainability.
“Absent the need to charge fees, non-government schools will be in a position to grow their enrolment share. That goes to the heart of organisational self-interest,” he said.
“But there is also genuine concern amongst many non-government school communities that fees exclude the less fortunate. The opportunity for faith schools to enrol children from all families in their community, not just those who can afford the fees, is a significant factor.”
Both Bonnor and Greenwell travelled to Canada as part of a study tour investigating international education systems.
Greenwell said Ontario’s schools exhibit greater socio-economic diversity than Australia’s, and the province has consistently outperformed Australia in every Programme for International Student Assessment domain in every round since the test’s inception.
“Right now, in reading ability, a year 3 student in a disadvantaged school will be an average eight months of learning behind a peer from the same background in a more advantaged school ... Eight months! By year 3! That’s according to the Productivity Commission,” Greenwell said.
“If we can create a more socially mixed system, those eight-year-olds are much more likely to find themselves sitting next to kids with a wider vocabulary who have already absorbed a broader general knowledge to apply it to.
“And they are more likely to find themselves in classrooms where teachers aren’t overwhelmed by a preponderance of learning difficulties and behavioural challenges – which means the class spends more time on task, and the child receives more individual attention from the teacher.”
Greenwell said the urban benefits of all schools being required to enrol all local students who applied included reduced traffic, house prices and pollution.
“There’s not much point in having a 15-minute city if families routinely hop in the SUV and drive 45 minutes or more to do the drop-off,” he said.
“The current scenario increases carbon pollution, noise and air pollution and reduces quality time enjoyed by families and individuals, as well as stress on road and other transport systems.”
Greenwell said housing affordability in the nation’s largest city, which Melbourne is set to become by about 2032, was clearly one of the most important and challenging issues.
“Local schools that are as attractive as any others – because they are just as well resourced and have a socially mixed cohort – is a vital piece of the puzzle,” he said.
“The cutthroat competition to get into leafy green suburbs the right side of the preferred school zone is the stuff of real estate legend. It’s not going to cease completely. But it is possible to take the heat out of it by ensuring that every suburb, especially those furthest from the CBD, has a range of local schooling options where families are excited to enrol their children.”