TBC:"the management of our schools here in Qld is VERY poor, at the school level,"

I'd have to agree based on my experience of the way my children's schools have been managed, although I must say that the immediate past priincipal at my son's school was a lot better than the current one, despite being on the downhill run to retirement.

As some will know, I have a small business milling timber. I supply several schools with their timber needs. At the last school function I attended, the principal at my daughter's school made a speech about how much money needed to be raised to do certain things around the school, including replacing some of the seating and benches, so I approached her afterwards and said "tell me what you need in the way of timber and I'll donate it". She was effusively thankful, but I haven't heard a thing since and the school has rcently got new benches from somewhere, no doubt paying through the nose. Next time I get told they need something I'll tell them to go jump in the lake.

I had a similar experience at my son's school when both my kids were there. The Uniform shop needed some shelving, which I offered to donate. "No thanks", I was told, "we prefer metal shelves" so a fund-raising drive was engaged in, along with lots of exhortations in the school newsletter. It took nearly 6 months to raise the funds while stock was left in piles on the floor. I never bothered to offer again.

I also agree with TBC about the chaplaincy rubbish. My children are atheist, as am I and their mother. My daughter has at her school a "guidance officer" who is also the chaplain, so if she has a personal matter to address at school she has to allow herself to be subjected to religiously-based mumbo jumbo. And no, that person didn't bother to contact me about her absenteeism either.

we are unique, I went to a private school where I boarded. In 5 years of high school I missed no more than about 2 months due to illness, including a couple of broken arms and a busted nose thanks to sport, a bout of chickenpox in grade 10, and a predisosition to URTI in grade 8 and 9, having been brought up in the tropics and not being used to the Brisbane climate.

I don't know what the policy was as far as notifying the parents of day students about absences, but for boarders the rule was very simple - school is compulsory and every excuse will be carefully examined.

It should be impressed upon every teacher that they are in loco parentis whilst the children are in their care and they should act as though the children were their own. I doubt that the teachers in my children's case would regard 30 days of absence as reasonable for their own kids.

"well from now on we don't care about those kids as long as the school doesn't care about them"

What a remarkably mature attitude: punish the kids
for the bureaucratic ineptitude experienced by teachers.

I hope that rumrum4 isn't one of my children's
teachers, particularly in English.

Antiseptic

You raise a very disturbing and very important issue when you tell us that, in typical Ed Qld style, they have imposed Mumbo onto the role of 'guidance officer'.

This is a very clear conflict of interest, and should be challenged immediately via the drongo Minister, Wilson, who is, of course, a screaming fundie.

The NT Ombudsman's report is very clear. Chaplains are employed to be chaplains, not counsellors, not sports teachers, not camp aides, not teacher aides, just 'chaplains'.

It is impossible for an EQ employee to also be a chaplain.

Do scan through this document:
http://www.ombudsman.nt.gov.au/publications-reports/public-reports/

If you decide to write to Wilson, it is worth knowing that Blight has a COB response rule of constituents getting a response in 15 business days.

Make sure you demand a COB in that time frame.

When they a) fail to supply a truthful response, b) fail to answer you at all, send a complaint letter to the Qld Ombudsman immediately.

There is every chance that the Qld Ombudsman's office is no more on-the-ball than Blight's other staff, but it is part of the system, so has to be utilised.

I'd send an email to that mob who are calling for a reintroduction of 'secular' into Qld public schools, they may well be able to use your story to advantage: http://www.australiansecularlobby.com

In the meantime, you should have filled out a chaplaincy consent form. If you have said 'no contact with the chaplain', then this has to be adhered to.

So EQ are in a real dilemma. Their guidance officer is the chaplain, but students without permission to see the chaplain are denied seeing the guidance officer.

The school principal is in real trouble here.

So, s/he will get a promotion, and the Wheel of EQ Incompetence will roll on again.

TBC, I hope I have my facts straight. I had no idea it was such a serious matter. The mother may have signed a consent form, I certainly didn't.

Before I get too far down the path of complaining about the chaplain/guidance officer issue, I'll make sure I'm right. I have no concern about the person being a paedophile or associating with paedophiles, I should add.

However, in general I don't much like the idea of chaplains in State schools anyway and I quite like the ASL idea.

You reckon school management id bad! Well what would you expect.

It is well known that if you promote your best salesman to sales manager, you not only loose a good salesman, you get lousy management to go with it.

What do we do with education. We promote people trained [often not very well] as teachers, to school management.

To start with these people are too close to the teachers they are supposed to manage, they see things through the eyes of a teacher. In management this is disastrous.

Then for gods sake, we promote from this management group, to head office, & state management.

We now really have that old one of the institution being run by the inmates.

To get good management we should draw all management from the private sector, but only for short terms.

One year observing, to find the main problems, three years managing, then get out, before they get too close to the organisation, & become part of the problem themselves.

Why anyone would think that 10 years teaching qualified someone to manage I can't imagine. Why anyone would expect someone with the ability, & inclination to manage would go off & do teacher training is a complete mystery to me.