Lazy measurement tools causing problems in our education system

The same educational issues continue to be discussed by stakeholders this year as they were previous years (“Digitised exams and essay rethink for HSC”, March 15). Specifically, we are talking about the way the HSC success is still being measured only by an exam attempt with a result at 90 per cent or above. Therefore, any result less than 90 per cent is regarded as a failure for ranking purposes. If those stakeholders would like to see the impact of the educational conversation arising from these harsh and lazy measurement tools, then spend time talking to a range of HSC students as well as their teachers. Thankfully, teachers will always still value the opportunity to embrace the quest for academic excellence for students while still working to preserve a love of learning; affirm improvement; teach life skills; manage mental health and build social awareness in their classes.

For the 2024 class of the Schools Summit, your homework is to design a more robust measure of school success. Sorry, but there are no more extensions allowed for this task. It is already overdue. Of course, my door is always open at lunchtime if you do need help and you don’t mind me gulping on my sandwich while we talk. Grant Murphy, Russell Lea

The HSC has become predictable with students memorising essays to then mould into the question asked. Time to embrace artificial intelligence within the exam context. Provide students with an answer from AI, over a set question, and get them to critically examine the response. A great way to stimulate originality. The response does not have to be length of an essay, but would require a structured and well reasoned argument. And time to stop letting universities cherry-pick the best, with early offers before the HSC exams. Force universities to get in line and wait like everyone else to see what results bring in mid-December. Michael Blissenden, Dural

Educational debate will only begin a process that should always be ongoing (“NSW education on the mend but must apply itself”, March 15). Now is the time to consider practical management and teacher time to develop curriculum content and classroom programs. Unfortunately, teachers are rarely offered either, and they remain overburdened and time constrained. Changes don’t merely happen in schools, they need to be planned and our teachers deserve assistance in implementation. Seems simplistic and commonsense, yet rarely happens. Janice Creenaune, Austinmer

Your correspondent asks why the study of English, especially literature, is compulsory in the HSC (Letters, March 15). In part, her question was answered by another letter writer who pointed to the precision of mathematics. English is imprecise, fluid and relies on interpretation. Literature grounds students in understanding that the world can be seen in different ways. A sound understanding of English is essential in understanding our not always precise world. Wayne Duncombe, Lilyfield

English to be made a non-compulsory subject? Sacrilege! Can anyone suggest a career that does not require either reading, writing, speaking, listening or viewing? These are the skills taught in English through the study of literature, drama and media. Expertise in maths and science, important as they are, teaches us nothing of morality and the human condition. Robert Hickey, Green Point

We must get back to appreciating the beauty of maths

I was heartbroken when I saw the plethora of letters describing your readers’ mathphobia (Letters, March 15). Apart from being a uniquely human endeavour and a gym workout for the mind, any physicist will tell you that maths is the language God speaks (to paraphrase Einstein). There’s definitely a case for revising the math curriculum to the point that every Australian can at least appreciate the profound beauty Euclid’s proof of the infinity of primes. Ken McNamara, Wollongong

Basic maths skills are often inadequate. Recently, I went to newsagent to buy two notebooks at $4 each. I took them to the checkout, where a teenage girl whipped out a calculator, pressed 4, then +, then entered 4 again and pressed =. “Eight dollars” she said. I paid without comment because I was speechless. I left, shaking my head, my flabbers quite gasted. John Greenway, Wentworth Falls

When I moved to a boarding school in the fifties I thought the maths teacher had gone mad. He wanted me to multiply and divide letters instead of numbers. I’d never heard of algebra. Barry Riley, Woy Woy

I gleefully used Pythagoras’ theorem recently as I cut across the grass and an older gentleman, walking on the concrete path with a right-angled bend in it, told me I was walking the longer distance. It stopped him in his tracks. Laura Beaupeurt, Callala Bay

“Even now, wrestling with maths is a brain strain”, reminds me of my third class teacher, Mr Grantham. “Master Brender, you need to know this, you will not be walking around with a calculator in your pocket when you are an adult”. Jeremy Brender, West Richmond (SA)

There are three types of mathematicians in this world - those that can count and those that can’t. Richard Statham, Kiama

Not long ago I realised I had forgotten how to do long division and struggled with multiplication of larger numbers. We found a marvellous book which we’ve been sharing around and I recommend: DK Super Simple Maths which lays out each step very clearly. It delves well beyond the ‘super-simple’ levels so that even I feel encouraged. Dennis Dorwick, Mortdale

Hapless bureaucracy makes shameful decision on Gazan refugees

Why would Australia give one year temporary visas to Palestinians fleeing Gaza and then cancel the visas as the recipients are on their way to Australia (“Government lashed over bungling of Gaza visas”, March 14)?

This must be one of cruellest acts an Australian government has done to people fleeing a war zone. Most Australians would accept that those leaving Gaza may want to stay longer than one year and surely this was obvious when the visas were handed out. Has the Australian government treated Ukrainians in the same way and cancelled their visas as they are escaping from a war zone? If not, why are Palestinians treated differently? Jo Hobson, Petersham

You really do have to wonder if anyone’s at the wheel of this country when a second plane load of Gaza refugees are effectively deported mid-air after having freshly minted visas issued by one bureaucracy torn up by another. I guess the only consolation is that the fleeing victims of war in fear of their lives and with nothing but struggle to greet their return don’t have to pay for a hapless and shameful bureaucracy. We do. Peter Comensoli, Mangrove Mountain

Don’t you just love Peter Dutton? On the one hand, playing his usual confected oppositionist role where he is critical of Labor for cancelling visas of Palestinians fleeing war torn Gaza in mid-flight to Australia. On the other, given his remark about lack of “certainty around identity, affiliations, sympathies”, you can bet the idea of offering protection to anyone from that region would be furthest from his mind if it was his decision to make. Frederick Jansohn, Rose Bay

Women and children already traumatised by war, then left stranded in a foreign country. Where is our compassion? Allow them to continue their journey here ASAP and then let due process occur. And if “temporary” is causing semantic difficulties for immigration officials, surely the problem lies with the visa description? Or don’t we want to assist in even some small way? Margaret Johnston, Paddington

Nothing super about inequity

Renae Vercoe’s suggestion that spouses top up their wife’s super is spot-on (“Topping up a pregnant partner’s super is the best gift”, March 15). After having our three children my wife had $20K in super. I began contributing my after tax super to her account to try to even things up. She retired with more super than me. I also got some tax concessions. Given she was caring for our kids, managing the household and only later returning to professional life, she had a right to financial independence. Brian Barrett, Padstow

It is disappointing to still hear the worn out phrase “I have worked hard all my life” whenever the government shows an interest in the nest eggs of retirees (Letters, March 15). How insulting to all the people who earn a subsistence wage and no matter how hard they work, have little super and no savings when they retire.

I agree though, that it is unfair to single out wealthy retirees, when many have achieved this status through being frugal and living carefully within their means. As a retired accountant, I know there is truth to the statement,“it is not what you earn but how you spend it which determines your wealth in the long run”. The 1 per cent levy on all taxpayers is a much fairer way to go. Superannuation income should also be levied, perhaps at a higher rate such as 3 per cent. Account-based pensions can have a balance of $1.7million and pay no tax. Ridiculous. Kathy Gall, Toronto

No-one is asking for a free pass when it comes to aged care, and I’m not sure why it is assumed that older people, those with super or not, don’t or won’t make a “reasonable contribution” when it comes to their current or future care needs. They mostly already do, and have done so most of their working lives. I have never met a single person who flat-out refuses to use their super or savings to take care of themselves with the sole intention of hoarding it all to pass on to their heirs. I don’t know what the source of this urban myth is, or why people so readily assume that it has any basis in fact. Elderly people are not a burden, and, in my experience, pretty much always go to great pains to tell younger people they don’t want to be. Shaun Davies, St Peters

Many of your letter writers clearly have little experience of the aged care system as it currently stands. A two-tiered system exists now and will always exist, no matter what method of funding the government uses. Currently, anyone wealthy enough can choose the most superior care possible where high additional fees apply. It’s expensive now and always will be. Money will always allow for greater choice, if you are willing to pay. Nothing will ever change this. Elizabeth Darton, Lane Cove West

Snowy’s strength

I have now read a number of articles highly critical of Snowy 2.0 (“It’s Snowy 2.0’s seventh birthday, few will be celebrating”, March 15). But I have never read any mention of its strength, which is its duration. Grid scale batteries run flat in a matter of hours. Snowy 2.0 can replace a full-size coal-fired generator for six days. Even if the costs blow out to $25 billion it will still be one-tenth of the cost of a grid scale battery per MWH of storage. I don’t claim to be an energy expert, but I know two things. Storage is essential to supporting renewable energy and Snowy 2.0 provides heaps of it. Secondly, it will be built. No government will cancel it now. It’s time we shut up and got behind it. Scott Lambert, Longueville

Social suppression

Google, Meta, X and YouTube are currently banned in China. So why is China making a fuss regarding the proposed ban on TikTok in the US (“Adversaries join forces to ban TikTok”, March 15)? Peng Ee, Castle Cove

The prime minister on US policy regarding the banning of TikTok: “We’re independent. We don’t follow other countries”. If this wasn’t so pathetically disingenuous in regard to our relationship with the US, it would be laughable. Who is he kidding? Alynn Pratt, Grenfell

Union disunion

Your correspondent’s idealistic paean in regard to the AWU and the shearing industry is sadly very far from reality (Letters, March 15). The failure of the AWU to properly represent shearers in the disastrous wide comb dispute of 1983 caused many to cancel their union membership. As a result, the body which fought for better pay and conditions in the past has little representation in the industry. Ask a shearer today what he/she thinks of the union. There may not be many such individuals around Sydney, but there are plenty around the bush who will give you a straight answer. Derrick Mason, Boorowa

Talking big

It is something of a wonder how for decades tradies could fit all their equipment into an Australian-built utility (Letters, March 15). Now they need something two or three times the size to do the same job. Proposed fuel efficiency standards might force the price up of these oversized wagons, but it is unlikely it will affect sales. Most are ego-driven. Lindsay Foyle, Stanmore

Age-old problem

I am at the pointy end of life but still waiting for an apology from all those who called my parents “wogs”, “dagoes” and “bloody Balts” and told them to go back to where they came from (Letters, March 15). I am still waiting for someone to call out those racists. Except I know it will never happen. No acknowledgment was ever made of racism post World War II in Australia. The kindest phrase was “New Australians”. They had to learn to adjust, to live here, and they did. Peter Skrzynecki, Eastwood

I don’t hold a hose: The roast of Scott Morrison

Perhaps the organisers of Scott Morrison’s farewell dinner can reframe it as a “roast”. I would pay good money to attend that (“Morrison’s farewell dinner canned amid lack of RSVPs”, March 15). Chris Hardie, Gymea Bay

It seems that the key to being preselected for a safe Liberal seat is to be male and live outside the electorate. Whatever happened to the Liberal women? Janice McLeod, Gymea

If our former PM’s 12 per cent margin in the seat of Cook is such a safe seat, why are the Liberals spending so much on social media and ye olde poster advertising leading into the byelection? Given that Labor won’t waste the money challenging the Cook electorate status quo, what teal/independent candidate is causing the excessive Liberal spending? Barry Ffrench, Cronulla

Floor challenge

Great idea to lie down on the floor for relaxation and other benefits as many are newly discovering (“Just lie back and press restart”, March 15). Once down there, however, the real challenge for octogenarians such as myself is having to get up again which completely counteracts the relaxation benefits gained. One could always stay down there, I guess. Seems to be cooler in these humid days. Judy Finch, Taree

Postscript

Correspondents were not impressed by the opposition leader’s nuclear power play. “Peter Dutton’s grand plan for nuclear as part of Australia’s power generation is fantasy land stuff,” wrote Bruce Spence of Balmain. “Economically, practically and politically, nuclear just does not stack up for Australia with its clear blue skies and plentiful winds.” Many letter writers agreed.

It was transport editor Matt O’Sullivan’s story about key recommendations of a review into the city’s toll roads, particularly the suggestion to introduce two-way tolling on the Sydney Harbour Bridge and Tunnel, which piqued correspondents’ interest. Many reminded readers a toll was placed on travel in both directions across the bridge until 1970, to recoup the cost of its construction. The bridge was paid off in 1988. Correspondents agreed it “should now be toll-free, or a toll charged based on maintenance costs only” – specifically to cover the increased cost of a four-litre tin of Killrust, according to Terry Charleston of Cootamundra.

Kate Baker of Bensville explained that “when the bridge toll was made one way, it was doubled so that motorists paid for both trips in one toll. This was to speed up traffic. It was assumed you would make a return journey via the bridge. The toll should be halved if it goes back to being charged on both journeys; otherwise, this is a complete cash grab. Try doubling any other toll and see how motorists respond.”

A good point, but John Christie of Oatley didn’t agree: “If I use a facility twice, I pay twice. Why should the bridge be a ‘two for the price of one’ deal?” Pat Stringa, letters editor

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