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Supply and demand
Teachers spend $ 1,000 a year on classroom supplies
By Erin Morley
An Australian Education Union ( AEU ) 2023 poll found that public school teachers fork out a combined $ 159.5m a year to buy classroom supplies vital to education due to the underfunding of public schools by governments .
The September results said 85 per cent of teachers in the public school sector spend over $ 885 of their own money a year , and NSW , WA and NT teachers spend over $ 1000 a year on average to fund stationery , classroom equipment , library resources and textbooks .
National polling found 44 per cent of teachers believe buying their own supplies is the only way to deliver a lesson , and 40 per cent said students would miss out if the supplies weren ’ t purchased .
The Department of Education has a schooling resource standard ( SRS ) that estimates how much funding schools need to meet student educational needs , based on recommendations made in the decade-old ‘ Review of Funding for Schooling ’.
The Commonwealth funds 20 per cent of each government and 80 per cent of each non-government school ’ s SRS , increasing funds each year to the Australian Bureau of Statistics ’ wage price index and consumer price index calculations .
Schools with higher numbers of students with disabilities , low-English proficiency , Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander backgrounds or socio-educational disadvantages receive extra funds calculated by the department .
The 2023 SRS base amount is $ 13,048 per primary student and $ 16,397 for secondary students , with additional funding for disadvantaged schools and reduced funding for most non-government schools .
However , the AEU federal president Correna Haythorpe said only 1.3 per cent of public schools are resourced to the school resource standard , and the Commonwealth should instead fund 100 per cent of every public school ’ s SRS in their ‘ For Every Child ’ school funding campaign .
“ Underfunding of public schools is leading to unsustainable workloads for teachers and principals along with the
If politicians had to buy their own office equipment , we would never hear the end of it .
need to use their own money to pay for the basics so that students don ’ t miss out ,” Ms Haythorpe said .
“ Unfortunately , it also reflects the failure of the Commonwealth and state and territory governments to fund public schools to their own funding standard . “ If politicians had to buy their own office equipment , we would never hear the end of it . So why is it okay for them to indefinitely underfund the schools that educate the future of this nation ?”
The poll also found that 80 per cent of public school principals say fundraising is an important part of their school ’ s budget , and 72 per cent have held fundraisers this year ; with their top expense being classroom equipment .
“ The fact that teachers and principals are running sausage sizzles to pay for the basics is a sad reflection on the current priorities of governments in this country ,” Ms Haythorpe said .
“ Fully funding public schools is an investment in our future . It would allow schools to cut class sizes and provide more individual attention to students while also giving teachers more time to plan high-quality lessons and collaborate with their colleagues .”
The Commonwealth has provided an estimated $ 20.1 billion in base funding for Australian schools in 2023 , with this year ’ s SRS indexation factor at 4.2 per cent . ■
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