Education

    Barnaby Joyce is not the only politician who is a victim of his own desires. Federal education minister Simon Birmingham this week announced a bold new initiative to add to the impressive ‘suite’ of recruitment strategies for the great nation’s teaching ranks. Tradies are now being targeted as potential new whiteboard warriors in our quest for world domination…or, at least, some improvement in our international PISA ratings. Minister Birmingham has again displayed a long held affection for securing the right stuff when talking about new teachers entering the game. Further, he seems to be intoxicated by- and obsessed with- solving all of our schools’ woes by loitering around the pointy end of teacher education and induction. If teacher education was to be personified as something of a temptress, young Simon would be first in line as a suitor. To be fair to the minister, the federal government’s powers regarding school education are relatively limited. But w...