The SES model was not “student-focused and based on need”. It ignored school fees. It ignored school income. It ignored school resources. It funded schools on the basis of how well off the students’ neighbours were. It used census collector districts to determine how well off the neighbours were. This immediately penalised low-fee schools in well-off areas. No longer could they be accessible to poorer families.

The Gonski plan keeps the Howard government’s socio-economic status model in place. This is its worst feature. It is akin to varying Medicare rebates according to the wealth of the patients’ neighbours. SES funding penalises low-fee schools that take students form middle class areas and thus socially stratifies our education system. The proposal to calculate the SES level of the neighbours of government school students illustrates the danger in the SES model; viz, that it will lead to means-tested fees in government schools.

The fix required to the Gonski model is to base public funding on the resources the school has, not the wealth of the students’ neighbours.

Conceptually, the school funding issue doesn't seem that difficult. Step one, stop focussing on who owns which schools. Step two fund students, not schools. Each student gets an entitlement to a level of funding equivalent to the contemporary cost of educating a student in a government school. Students who meet specified criteria (eg poverty, disability) receive additional funding but the onus is on the students parents to prove the students meet the criteria.

Parents then choose the school they wish their children to attend. If they choose to spend the extra $20k or more for one of the few so-called 'elite' private schools, that's up to them.

Let's celebrate the diversity of schools in Australia rather than complaining about it and build on what really should be a great source of strength.

>>Step two fund students, not schools>>

Agreed with one proviso. The funding given to students below age 18 gets added to the parents' taxable income. That way you can afford to make the funding more generous with the children of poorer parents getting most of the added benefit.

We have more than enough students, we need apprentices. Let's fund some of them for a change. At least they'll be of benefit to our society unlike the students.