The ''Education Debate'' is on again. The Labor Government is running scared of the Gonski review and the Opposition is chasing after them trying to make as much political capital as possible. The debate will be characterised by screaming headlines about ''class war''. It will focus on how much money we need to throw at private schools to keep the voters onside and how much we should allocate to disadvantaged schools to make it look like we really care. It will be about money and it will largely miss the point. There is no question that money needs to be spent on schools and education. That's obvious. It's also obvious that we need to keep up with the rest of the world, although I'm not quite sure how you measure that.
It's certainly not quantifiable by test results. They don't take into consideration what goes on in the classroom in terms of behaviour and discipline. Sure, kids in some Asian countries might get better results in tests. They might also sit up straight and do as they are told.
Whether we like it or not our kids are free-spirited and not easily cowered. They are also savvy. They know their rights. If you want them to learn you need to make sure they have a good relationship with their teachers. That is the key to good learning.
You can throw all the money you like at education but if the kids aren't listening it won't have the impact it should. Obviously disadvantaged schools need resources. That is a given. So do all schools. The point is no amount of glossy brochures will ensure that kids realise their potential in the classroom. That will only happen it they are responsive to their teachers.
The key to learning in schools is the teacher-student relationship. A student in a disadvantaged school might get brilliant results because of the fantastic relationship they have with their teacher. The reverse might apply in the most exclusive private school in the country if the teacher's words fall on deaf ears.
There isn't a teacher in this country who took up teaching because it is an easy job. Ask all those who have tried it and given it away after their first prac teaching experience. Try spending 40 minutes with 20-odd kids who appear to have no interest in learning and who need to be won over. Try spending 40 minutes with a classroom full of kids giving you the ''attitude'' your own teenagers drive you to drink with.
There isn't a teacher in this country that wants their students to fail. Not one. There are plenty who despair at being treated like the children they are meant to be teaching. They try to rise above it but when their hands are tied at every turn they sometimes lose the spark they need to ignite their students' imaginations. For some reason we regard teachers with suspicion. We don't trust them.
Some sections of the media vilify them. Parents blame them for their own failings as parents. They expect teachers to do miracles with their children but they don't want to support them. And I'm not just talking about wages. Although it's a fair bet that not many teachers take up teaching for the money.
What we need to do if we want to improve our schools, both public and private, is to treat teachers like the professionals they are and to value the enormous contribution they make to our society. We need to spend some money on finding out how we can best utilise the skills of new and experienced teachers, to provide the necessary support for new teachers and to capitalise on the years of knowledge of our experienced teachers.
Ned Manning has taught for over for 40 years and is the author of Playground Duty (NewSouthBooks), a memoir about teaching in advantaged and disadvantaged schools.
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