in the classroom
Minister for Education and Youth Alan Tudge . Photo : NCA / Gary Ramage
The education of young people and future teachers is not all about you , it ’ s all about them .
‘ Out of touch ’?
History draft curriculum hotly contested at minister ’ s last meeting for 2021 .
By Wade Zaglas
The draft Australian Curriculums ( history ) was front and centre at the education minister ’ s final meeting for 2021 , following a speech to the Centre for Independent Studies ( CIS ), titled ‘ Reforming Australia ’ s Schools ’.
In the speech , education minister Alan Tudge said Australia ’ s school performance had declined in the last 20 years — despite a 60 per cent real per capita increase in school funding . He added that the average 15-year-old student in Australia today is a whole year behind a 15-year-old Australian student in 2000 .
“ It goes to what kids are taught , i . e . the national curriculum . How kids are taught , that is the teaching practises which teachers use and who is attracted into the teaching profession . And thirdly , the environments in which they are taught , i . e . orderly disciplined classrooms ,” Tudge said .
Tudge criticised aspects of the draft mathematics curriculum , “ arguing that the proposed changes actually reduced standards ”, while another subject not to escape a walloping was history . According to the Sydney Morning Herald , Tudge ’ s view of the draft history curriculum has “ ministers in Victoria and Western Australia accusing him of trying to reignite culture wars over the nation ’ s past ”.
The Media Centre for Education Research ( MCERA ) recently held a webinar giving education experts the opportunity to air their views and concerns .
Monash University ’ s Dr Karen Lambert came out strongly against Tudge , saying “ the education of young people and future teachers is not all about the minister ”.
“ The federal minister for education and youth has today shown just how out of touch government is with what matters to teachers and young people in Australian schools ,” she said .
“ The Hon . Alan Tudge has suggested the necessity to re-clutter the Australian curriculum despite a clear remit to do the reverse … with more Captain Cook , Christianity and a rather Eurocentric view of democracy .
“ We are left wondering why we even have a transparent process at all , and how it is that the advice of 1000s of stakeholders could be quite so quickly and easily ignored . Tudge the education of young people and future teachers is not all about you , it ’ s all about them .”
For Dr Kim Johnson of Macquarie University , what is imperative is that the draft curriculum for history develops students ’ skills to engage in critical analysis of sources , particularly if they are contradictory or unclear .
Johnson , who is an expert in secondary history education and also the deputy director of professional learning and engagement , is passionate about “ teaching critical thinking skills , teacher professional development and the teaching and learning of history ”.
“ Minister Tudge accused the Draft Australian Curriculum ( History ), especially in regards to the Years 7-10 History and Civics curriculum , as providing students with a ‘ miserable , negative view ’ of Australian history since 1788 ,’’ she said .
“ It is a confounding view of a curriculum from which students learn about : The Roaring Twenties ; Commemoration of WWI and WWII ; the significance of the Anzac legend ; and , continuing efforts to achieve lasting peace and security in the world post WWII , including Australia ’ s involvement in UN peacekeeping .”
Johnson adds that Tudge has characterised Australia as being one of the wealthiest , most egalitarian , democratic and tolerant societies to ever exist . And yet , the Macquarie history expert believes the education minister “ is particularly concerned that students respect and defend our democracy and reject totalitarian regimes ”.
“ To reject the uniformity of thinking required by totalitarian regimes , students must be able to engage in critical analysis of sources of information . Fortunately , the Draft Australian Curriculum ( History , 7-10 in particular ) requires students to learn about ‘ different historical interpretations and contested debates ’. It seems that the Draft History Australian Curriculum is well on the way to developing critical thinking students with the capacity to enter into active citizenship ,” she added .
The University of Newcastle ’ s Associate Professor Heather Sharp said the minister “ needs to make clear what he thinks the purpose of history is ”.
“ Minister Tudge … does not provide any insight into which aspects are ‘ miserable ’ and whether he is using this term as a poor replacement for what has been called in the past a ‘ black armband ’ view of history ,” she said .
“ Both terms are unhelpful in providing students with a grounding in historical thinking and in substantive knowledge and unnecessarily politicise history .
“ We need to ensure that students are learning about history from a historical perspective which extends beyond a nation ’ s border . It is difficult to understand why we have to defend the discipline of history 10 years after the Australian curriculum was first implemented .” ■
16 | educationreview . com . au