The National Public Education Campaign.

A re-elected Howard Government with a Senate majority is detrimental to the future of Australia and its people.

An unfettered Coalition government places the struggle to maintain quality public education in Australia in a new context. It guarantees a continued and strengthened attack on public education in respect of its unfair funding policies, the increased privatisation of education and political interference in teaching and learning in the guise of educational “reform”.

The AEU will campaign to ensure that these issues remain as public concerns between now and the next federal election.

Funding.

The federal government's SES funding model is in place for another four years. The AEU will continue to oppose this unfair and discriminatory policy and campaign for a funding model which redresses inequities rather than exacerbates them, as is currently the case.

To this end, the AEU will continue to campaign for the achievement of policy which ensures a priority commitment to the funding of public education. All state and territory governments are also called upon to similarly commit towards such policy and to continue work on the development of a resource benchmark funding guarantee.

The AEU will continue to campaign for the provision of adequate resources for public TAFE systems to ensure that all Australians have access to vocational and second chance education and training.

The Federal Government still fails to provide resources which would help to ensure universal access to preschool education. The AEU will continue to campaign for high quality free public school education.

Privatisation.

The AEU opposes the government's ongoing and latest attempts to privatise Australia's quality public education systems. The introduction of literacy vouchers represents a first step towards the introduction of voucher system of funding and will ensure that much needed government funding is directed away from those public schools with the greatest need into private pockets without any accountability requirements whatsoever.

In vocational education and training the extension of user choice and the expansion of competitive tendering are eroding the public system.

Further, the proposed Australian Technical Colleges are a direct attempt to privatise what has always been the province of state and territory governments – curriculum delivery in government schools.

The AEU will work with state and territory governments to ensure that the delivery of public education remains in public control.

Teaching and Learning.

Notwithstanding concerns about the performance of our most disadvantaged students, the recently released results from the Program for International Student Assessment (PISA) and the Trends in Mathematics and Science Project (TIMSS) confirm that Australian education produces world class outcomes. This is a tribute to Australian teachers and other education workers. The results expose the fact that the National Inquiry into Reading Literacy which is currently underway, is political posturing aimed at undermining public confidence in our public schools thereby further encouraging parents to seek out private education facilities for their children.

In conjunction with our ongoing campaign to increase funding for public education, Conference directs Federal Executive to develop a strategic plan aimed at ensuring the retention and improvement of our quality public education system.

The AEU must continue to ensure that public education, as a cornerstone of a stable, cohesive and democratic society, remains a priority for all Australian governments – national, state and territory.

To this end, Conference endorses the continuation of the campaign levy of $2.00 per member per year for the period 2005 – 2007, and the development by the Federal Executive of guidelines for its expenditure.

Industrial Relations.

The AEU opposes federal government attempts to further undermine the rights of Australian working people through its proposals to deny unfair dismissal rights to thousands of workers; to promote the widespread use of Australian Workplace Agreements; to restrict union right of entry to workplaces; to limit the right to strike and to reduce the capacity of the Australian Industrial Relations Commission.

The AEU will resist these attacks on the broader trade union movement as well as any attempts to erode members' conditions currently regulated in federal awards and certified agreements, or any attempts to bypass the AEU in the establishment of Australian Technical Colleges.

Indian Ocean Tsunami

Federal Conference expresses its shock and sorrow at the devastation and loss of life following the Indian Ocean tsunami. The devastation that it will wreak on hundreds of thousands of people is beyond comprehension. The loss of lives and long term effect on the development of these affected nations will impact particularly on children and their education.

AEU Federal Conference calls on staff in preschools, schools and TAFE Colleges to donate a half-day's pay to help rebuild education infrastructure in tsunami-ravaged countries.

That teachers and students participate in a half day of activities in a nominated Tsunami Education Action Week in February 2005 aimed at raising the awareness of the impact on education of the Tsunami, and to raise funds to assist in the rebuilding of education.