I would also like to see a non-outcomes based approach to secondary education at least in Queensland. The introduction of OBE has coincided with the rise of middle schooling. While I am in favour of middle schooling as a time between primary and secondary schooling to ease the transition between the two, OBE is leaving students ill-prepared for the rigours of secondary school. There is a push to ensure that students' self-esteem is increased to the detriment of them actually learning anything worthwhile. OBE has been designed for students to feel success at every opportunity, regardless of whether it has been earnt or not. It teaches students that failure is not a possibility so why should they try harder. In other words, OBE promotes mediocrity.

OBE is a great waste of parents teachers and students times. Not only does it NOT teach and help students it actually hinders their education. I have one child who is exceptionally bright and WILL breeze thru school, on the other end of the scale of have a child who will have to spend most of their waking moments studying just to acheive a PASS. It seems that both my children will be hindered in some way because of the way the OBE is applied to school and education. My main concern is that if one or both of my children wish to go on to University, do an apprenticeship or study at TAFE, the marks they present to the respective bodies will NOT be true representation of their abilities and skiills. If the child has a D grade and the rest of the class is a B then why should the B or any A students in the class be penilised because there is a few children in the class who are stuggling and it also flows the other way in that the kids who struggle will get "lost in the system" and not receive the assistance and encouragement they DO so require. Its not fair on families because it will create tension amoung siblings. Again this brings weight to the idea of bringing in migrant workers who are prepared to work for less, they WILL be better educated. So Australia will be "dumbing down" its future as regards to our childrens futures. Do we really want to do that? Dont our children need all the help and encouragement we can give them AS INDIVIDUALS?

I am STRONGLY against OBE and I think the whole of Australia should open its eyes, especially our ministers who sit in their ivory towers dispelling their powers over the "common people". Just because America does it, do we REALLY HAVE to follow? Would we follow to the gates of hell and walk in? We are a Country, Island, Continent, Nation, Culture and Entity of our own. LETS NOT LOSE THAT.

The OBE style Courses of Study (COS) have been delayed for a year due their flawed nature.
They are now to be intrduced in 2007.
Teachers, quite rightly, dismissed the courses as completely inferior in education value compared to the courses that are presently on offer.
I work in a science department of a school where 100% of the teachers are completely opposed to the proposed COS (and the statewide figure is similar to our schools of about 90%).
We look forward to the courses being deleted completely.