A weak State in a mediocre performing country

QSA have never done any assessment worth the name in Years 1 to 10. Their predecessor the QSCC never did any assessment whatsoever (see point 6). The fact is that there is no skill base at all within QSA relevant to Years 1 to 10 assessments.

There is general acceptance that the condition of education in Queensland is now poor. That acceptance arose because hard, verifiable data became known to more people. Consequent to that realisation there is strong general pressure for future information to be clearly stated; for methods to reach conclusions (e.g. assessments) to be explicit, numerate, expressed in suitable language and understandable to all without difficulty.

In these newish circumstances the approach of QSA, QTU and education faculties, who fancy themselves as progressive, avant-garde, looks and is passé: totally irrelevant to today. But they are a monstrously powerful and dangerous impediment to progress.

Unless the QSA has a “road to Damascus” experience, any implementation, oversight and assessment must not be entrusted to them. They and QSCC caused the problem and cannot possibly be part of the solution.

Only Parliament can stop QSA ruining the National Curriculum. The Premier, the leader of the Opposition, the Minister, the shadow Minister and all members of Parliament need to co-operate now.

Parliament could set up a new organisation for the purpose of implementation, oversight/assessment, but that would be expensive unless QSA were concurrently justly dismissed for gross incompetence.

Perhaps a Regulation could be inserted into the relevant Act to (a) set up a Moderation Committee answerable to Parliament alone; (b) change the name of QSA to include the word “Assessment” (as in some other States); (c) state that all syllabi/assessments now and in the future must meet the triple criteria: defined, reliable, validated; and (d) emphasise that those syllabi and assessments must be clear, readable and understandable to students, parents and to Parliament.

This is all far above the hurly burly of partisan politics. Parliament is our students’ last hope: it should act.