Recent high school student protests in France over understaffing and in Albania due to rising education costs and corruption highlight that young people are not passive observers of educational instability. Monash University education experts warn Australia risks ignoring its own “expert witnesses of schooling” and call for student perspectives to be included in workforce policy decisions before disengagement deepens.
Available to comment:
Professor Jo Lampert, Head of the School of Curriculum, Teaching and Inclusive Education and Co-Leader of the Education Workforce for the Future Impact Lab, Faculty of Education, Monash University
Contact: +61 3 9903 4840 or [email protected]
Read more of Professor Lampert’s analysis and opinion
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Teacher workforce shortages and educational equity
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Curriculum and social transformation in schooling
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Disadvantage and regional educational policy
The following can be attributed to Professor Lampert:
“When staffing pressures affect the quality and continuity of learning, young people notice. The lesson for Australia is not that similar protests are inevitable, but that student perspectives on the school system should be taken seriously before frustrations become entrenched.
“Schools are not only workplaces, they are places of learning. If teaching is fundamentally relational work, having constant staff turnover directly impacts a student’s sense of continuity, belonging and engagement.”
Associate Professor Fiona Longmuir, Associate Professor in Educational Leadership, Faculty of Education and Co-Leader of the Education Workforce for the Future Impact Lab, Faculty of Education, Monash University
Contact: +61 3 9903 4840 or [email protected]
Read more of Professor Longmuir’s analysis and opinion
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Educational leadership and school culture
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Student voice and participation in educational policy
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Student-teacher relationships and classroom engagement
The following can be attributed to Professor Longmuir:
“Students are the primary stakeholders in our education system, yet they are rarely asked directly about how teacher shortages shape their daily lives and futures.
“Recent TALIS data shows 42 per cent of Australian principals believe teacher shortages are negatively affecting instructional quality. By focusing almost exclusively on teacher workload and retention, we risk producing only a partial account of the problem. We must listen to the lived experiences of young people for whom these schools exist.”
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For any other topics on which you may be seeking expert comment, contact the Monash University Media Unit on +61 3 9903 4840 or [email protected]
