So then I assume that you, Blue Cross, already knew the exact NAPLAN scores and all the other available information for every school in your area?

I find it highly offensive that you label parents as "pathetic" for not having information that they do not even have access to (at least here in Victoria).

Of course not. But I have examined the reports for the schools in my town on the website.

The results are consistent with 'parent chat'.

True, some of the Vatican schools came up poorly compared to the major state schools, which did rather please me as these are used as a refuge for those who fear state schools and seek sanctuary in the 'private' system, but cannot afford the high cost faith schools.

And one of the real Xtian madrassahs came up very poorly, but consistent with the level of thinking from many of the parents that send their kids there to learn 'values' rather than get an 'education'.

The results are in-line with information available at each state school here, to those who seek it out.

Not from 'tests', but from a range of details including what staff, students and parents think.

OP results are displayed on school websites.

I label parents as 'pathetic' for not seeking out the range of information that is there already, and for making some effort to visit and understand schools, if they are so worried.

I label them as pathetic for thinking that any test result is the answer to what a school is like.

I know, for instance, that quite a few schools here in Qld were so mortified by the results last year they started to coach students, as approved by the Minister.

What does that give you?

I also label parents as pathetic for so meekly accepting the notion of an 'education market', abandoning state schools to lurch off to some not-so-much-different so-called private ones, paying a fortune in fees, and then moaning about 'paying taxes'....instead of taking the state school principal by the (metaphorical) collar and demanding some leadership and better results... and using the discipline system for those staff who refuse to shape up (assuming the principal is any good in the first place), and getting better value for the taxes paid already.

You say it can't be done?

Read about Chris Sara in Cherborg.

Chris Bonnor,

Do it. Develop a measuring system for schools. If the education system is unhappy with the ACARA system, there is no law stopping schools from developing their own system, and then they can compare it to the ACARA system. Competition brings about eventual improvement.

Similar has been occuring in the area of university education, where universities and their course are compared and given a rating. The results are available in booklets that can be purchased at the local newsagency.

It becomes difficult to understand why there has been no complaint from universities regards this, but complaints when a measuring system is applied to high schools.

The Myschool system is very mild. I worked in a company that had over 200 target figures that were being measured and reported on. From that list there were about 15 major target figures, and these major target figures were written onto a white board that covered an entire wall of a large room. At 7.00 AM each day (Saturdays and Sundays included as we operated 24 hrs a day / 7 days a week), there was a morning meeting that anyone in the company could attend.

As a shift supervisor I had to stand and state why a target figure had not been met, and I had to state what had to be done to ensure the target figure was going to be met during the next 24 hrs. All this was written onto the whiteboard and left there for the day (to ensure we got it right).

The information on the whiteboard was also knowledge, and we began recording into notebooks, and eventually we included it into an artificial intelligence system for reporting. This reporting system highlighted what was outside of target, and it also printed out suggestions on what to do about it.

As well as developing these artificial intelligence systems for reporting, we were also working on a policy of zero injuries / zero waste.

Compare that to the current education system, and the current education system is in another era.