A never-ending hot topic or so it seems. In Education for years, I never fully stopped to consider what my personal views were. Always on the front-line in Inner London Schools, toiling away to cover the Curriculum and touch students on some level and always held accountable. Of course, there were better days than others and some days I walked away feeling very dispirited and exasperated. But the long and short of it is that I worked with colleagues who strived to collectively make a difference.
My decision to step out of the classroom environment ( temporarily ) coincided with starting a family and moving here to Australia. But never more since leaving the UK and residing in Australia have I had countless conversations over Public vs Private Education. No-one actually comes out and says what they really think about the Public system but the underlying current that resonates with me is their fear of it, perhaps a lack of trust in it. Is it really that bad? I can not imagine that this would be the case in such a country. I have heard mention of the whole networking element in defense of the Private system. But, in defense of a Public School Education, I say that people from all over the world network in some form or other and they do not necessarily have to have had a Private Education. I listen attentively but at no point do I ever hear people mention the Teaching and Learning. In fact, when I put the question to them, they look at me quite bewildered. I have had the occasional - I imagine it would be good. Of course, I say. It is fee-paying so it is bound to be.
I can not say for sure how it works as I am currently out of the loop but from my personal experience as a teacher, there are good and and not so good schools in both sectors as both are comprised of good and not so good teachers. That is just the nature of the beast, like in any other work environment. Money does not and can not exclude that. Some might even argue that it shouldn't as children need to be placed in not-so-perfect situations for obvious reasons.
It is perfectly acceptable for parents to choose a Private School Education. It is and should be an alternative to the Public system. But at no point should it be better because it is fee-paying. A Public School Education should be its clear competitor. After all, don't all teachers join the profession because they want to make a difference? Private or Public, it is about teaching and learning, surely.
These are my ideals. Some may argue the point. I would love to know what people really think about the Public System here in Melbourne as I have but met a handful ( literally ) of people who are not scared to openly state their opinion and claim that the Australian Public System is worth fighting for and believing in and that sending their children there is not a gamble.
