Australian Education Report

Australian study authors Education: Zhang Xi

Enlightenment from the South Pacific - An Investigation Report on Education in Australia and New Zealand ANZ Education Mission of Ningbo People's Government I. Overview of the Ningbo New People's Government ANZ Education Study Group from November 5 to November 18, 2004 He went to Australia and New Zealand for a 12-day study tour. The educational delegation was headed by Huang Shili, deputy secretary and deputy director of the Municipal Party Committee of the Municipal Education Bureau. The members of the delegation include: Zhang Qingkun, director of the Municipal Association for Education, Culture, and Health, Hu Guoquan, director of the Municipal Government's Department of Education and Culture, and the Office of Admission to the Municipal Education Bureau. Assistant Researcher Xu Huizhen, Party Secretary of Ningbo Radio and Television University Bi Junyuan, Secretary of Ningbo Institute of Educational Science Zhang Junle, President of Ningbo University Teachers College Primary School Branch Chen Ningjun, Party Secretary of Ningbo Dahongying Vocational and Technical College Sun Huimin, Vice President of Ningbo Effect School Zhang Wei.
The main purpose of this visit is to have a perceptual understanding and understanding of the education of Australia and New Zealand through listening to introductions, watching the campus, entering the classroom and direct communication with local teachers and students, especially for Australian occupations. The education system conducts specific investigations and exchanges to draw on its successful experience and propose new ideas for promoting the reform and development of education in the city.
During the Australia and New Zealand period, the delegation heard the introduction of education from Australia and the two continents by the NSW Department of Education and Training and the Queensland Department of Education and Arts. The site was visited by the University of Auckland, the Sydney Institute of Technology, Mount Gravatt. Schools such as High School feel the campus atmosphere of Sydney University. The members of the team unanimously felt that the time of the visit was short and there were not many schools to visit, but the harvest was quite fruitful and it was very inspiring for our future education reform and development. Due to the time of the study, this report focuses on the feelings of Australian education.
Second, the main characteristics of Australian education Australia is a country that attaches great importance to education. In recent years, Australia’s education standards have continued to rise and rank among the most high-end in the countries of the World Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development.
According to Australian law, state and territory governments are responsible for education, and the federal government is a partner to provide funding and participate in policy development. There are also individuals, families and civil organizations that invest in education. Due to historical reasons, Australia's education system is largely inherited from the British system and is divided into 6 years of national minimum, 6 years of secondary school, 2-3 years of specialties and 3-6 years of university.
Although there are only 37 public universities and 2 private universities across Australia. However, due to the strict control and management of the quality of education by the federal government and the investment of large amounts of funds to ensure the needs of education and research, all schools maintain high quality. In the latest list released by the Times Higher Education Supplement, which has been published for 20 consecutive years as the world's university seat, six universities in Australia have entered the top 50.
If Australia’s university education is at a stage of rising strides and is widely recognized by all countries in the world, then its large-scale, systematic and rapidly developing vocational and technical education has become a powerful weapon for economic development. It plays an important role in the economic development of the country. Compared with comprehensive universities, the Australian Higher Technical College and the Polytechnic's curriculum are characterized by a greater focus on employment-oriented needs and a greater contribution to economic development.
The delegation visited the education administration officials and had a deep impression on Australian education through face-to-face exchanges with Chinese students in Australia and visits to the school, as well as direct experience of the Australian economy and society during the visit.
1. Great emphasis on education and economic and social mutual promotion and coordinated development Australia's comprehensive national strength is among the developed countries and is increasing. In this regard, many Australians said with emotion: "Our ancestors are mostly prisoners. Our country can have today's achievements. The most important thing is to rely on education." This shows that the development of education has an important bearing on economic development. The main lessons for learning are:
(1) The degree of education popularization has adapted to the needs of society for education. Australian law requires that children between the ages of 6 and 15 must receive compulsory schooling. During this time, education is free. After the child has completed ten years of compulsory education, there are many ways to develop: First, continue to finish high school; second, direct employment; third, employment after vocational and technical training. Most of the students did not go to school after 10 years, and now there are fewer and fewer students who choose to work directly, and three-quarters of them will continue to complete high school. At present, Australia has basically popularized 12 years of education. The number of people who went to college for further studies has increased by 70% in the past 15 years. There are more people attending vocational schools, and they often go to work with pay. The extension of the national education years reflects the social and economic development that has driven people's demand for education, and the development of education has further promoted economic growth and social progress.
(2) The government attaches importance to education and ensures the need for education funding. Looking at whether a country attaches importance to education, one of the most important indicators is how much government invests in education. In recent years, Australia has grown very rapidly in this respect. In 1998, Australia’s total education budget has reached 5.46% of GDP; fiscal education funds accounted for 84.1% of all education funds, while non-financial education funds accounted for only 15.9% of education funding. In addition to the state's normal education investment, the school's funds for hardware facilities are all allocated by the federal government. In addition, except for the expenses of the compulsory education stage, all of which are invested by the government, the government will also provide certain subsidies for those who participate in various types of vocational training. In particular, students who continue to participate in vocational training after work can often take paid reading.
In addition, parents and the community will also make voluntary contributions to the construction of the school, such as helping the school to build a computer room, or building a gym on campus. Some enterprises will also provide experimental training equipment to relevant vocational training schools, such as the equipment of the automotive department of the Sydney Technical College, which are voluntary contributions from various automobile factories.
(3) Vigorously develop vocational education and establish a complete vocational education system. Australia's vocational education system is world-famous, comparable to the level of vocational education in Germany, and has its own many characteristics. Providing a large number of high-quality laborers for Australia's economic construction.
The main force of vocational education in Australia is the School of Technology and Continuing Education. There are 250 TAFE colleges in the country, and 1.3 million students are funded by the government. The National Training Authority is responsible for formulating national policies to guide the development of vocational education. According to our understanding, the Australian vocational education system currently exhibits the following salient features:
First, play the role of industry organizations in the formulation of professional competence standards. Under the coordination of the National Training Authority, Australia has 21 national industry training consulting organizations. These organizations conduct employment demand forecasting and career analysis in the industry, develop professional competency standards, and provide professional, curriculum, and teaching evidence to TAFE colleges and other educational and training institutions.
The general conclusion of the industry training consulting organization after research is that many new employment opportunities are occupational, technical and apply jobs. Developing vocational education is essential to improve Australia's international competitiveness; predictions show that the future ten The demand for employed persons with professional qualifications will continue to increase in the year. In the field of labor and employment, employers with corresponding qualification certificates and high technical standards are replacing those employed without corresponding qualification certificates and low technical standards. These facts have made industry companies highly recognized for vocational education. Graduates of vocational education have a good employment prospect, which has improved the social status of vocational education. Some college graduates even need to go to TAFE College for vocational training before they can have a wider range of employment opportunities. Some TAFE colleges have a history of more than 100 years, and the foundation of running a school is quite strong, but it has not been upgraded to a university. This has a lot to do with the higher status of vocational education, meeting the needs of industry enterprises and being recognized by industry companies.
Due to the acceleration of the trend of economic globalization and the need for enterprises to participate in international market competition, some industries are in line with the professional competence standards of relevant international industries. Therefore, since the 1990s, the Australian government has established a certificate system of equal value for both general education and vocational education. The vocational education field has accordingly developed corresponding competency standards.
Second, the establishment of a unified national certificate, diploma and degree structure, so that vocational education becomes an integral part of the national education system. Australia has established a nationally unified education and training certificate system that corresponds to the job for education and training after ten years of compulsory education. This unified certificate system and the modular structure of course content enable vocational education to communicate with general education and higher education; the connection between pre-employment education and post-employment education reflects the idea of ​​lifelong education. For example, in the normal high school education stage, students are free to choose the vocational education courses required by Certificate I and Certificate II; after entering the TAFE College in high school, the credits of the vocational education courses obtained in the high school education stage are recognized, that is, they do not have to start from scratch. After learning, you can directly learn the follow-up course modules.
Third, develop courses and organize teaching according to professional ability standards and certificate structure. The professional and curriculum of vocational education in Australia is based on the professional competence standards set by industry organizations and the national unified certification system. The specific content and arrangements are jointly formulated by enterprises, professional bodies, colleges and education departments, and are constantly changing according to the labor market. Revised. TAFE College's ability to open a major must be strictly reviewed by local education departments and industry organizations.
Fourth, establish a high-quality vocational education teacher team. Teachers at TAFE College generally have at least 3-5 years of experience in industry professional work. This is achieved through the teacher's recruitment criteria. All TAFE teachers are recruited from professional and technical personnel with practical experience. There is no direct recruitment of vocational education teachers from university graduates. The newly recruited teachers are required to go to the University Education Institute for a “partial-time” study for a period of two to two years, and that the college sponsors a teacher qualification certificate. After applying, teachers are also members of professional associations, participate in professional association activities, and receive new professional knowledge, skills and information. In the management of teachers, there are fewer and fewer teachers of lifelong employment, and more and more contractual and temporary teachers.
Fifth, give full play to the role of market mechanisms and make full use of educational resources. Although the government is the owner of the TAFE Academy, the annual grant to the college is based on the “buyers” of education and training, which is the “purchaser” of high-efficiency commercialization. Which college education and training adapts to economic and social needs, and the quality and cost are low, and the government will “purchase” which college's education and training, ie which college to allocate. This funding mechanism has become the baton of the development of vocational education in Australia. Corporate and private education and training institutions also actively participate in competition in this market. This management model enables the College to adapt to the needs of local economic and social development to the maximum extent possible and to make efficient use of educational resources. At present, there is a mutual merger phenomenon in TAFE College, which is one of the performances of the college to reduce management personnel, improve the scale of school-running, and make full use of educational resources. In addition, it is worth mentioning that the government encourages TAFE colleges to enter the market and receive financial support from enterprises and other sectors. In a certain sense, the TAFE Academy is not only a government education and training institution, but also a “business entity”.
2. In school education, we attach great importance to "people-oriented"
During the inspection, we deeply felt that the “people-oriented” thinking was everywhere in Australian schools. This point has formed a huge contrast with the current state of education in China.
As soon as you enter the campus, you can see students who are full of bright smiles. They are doing all kinds of sports activities without any worries. They also carry big bags, but the big bags are not filled with books as we imagined, but various toys. Foreigners who meet us in these Asian faces will say hello to us in Japanese or Chinese. In the classroom, on campus, the principal proudly introduced us: this is designed by the students; that is built by the school according to the requirements of the students; the laboratory is being transformed by the students and the teachers...
School education "people-oriented" is not only reflected in the activities, but more importantly embodied in the education system and curriculum design. As mentioned above, in the Australian education system, a ten-year compulsory education is implemented. That is to say, after ten years of study, students can choose to work or continue to study. If they continue to study, they can choose ordinary high school or vocational and technical education. Vocational education in Australia is linked to lifelong education, so even if you feel that you lack certain skills after graduating from college, you can return to the technical college to study the relevant courses. Restrictions, and the cost of learning is only one-tenth of that of an average university. These measures have provided excellent conditions for improving the scientific and cultural heritage of the people and improving the technical capabilities of workers.
In New South Wales, secondary school education programs are also subject to parental consent.
In the school education, the "student" is the foundation, and in the development of the school, the "teacher" is the foundation. Improve the teacher's access threshold, set up a teacher registration committee, and strengthen the requirements of the teacher's morality. For the teachers who have been appointed, they respect the work of teachers, respect the creative work of teachers, and care for the sustainable development of teachers.
3. Paying great attention to teaching students in accordance with their aptitude, properly handling the relationship between mass education and elite education. Australia was once a country that implemented elite education. In recent years, under the guidance of new educational concepts, they have paid more and more attention to the popularization and equalization of education.
Mr. Len Willis of the Queensland Department of Education and Art introduced the idea of ​​achieving balanced education in the state from time to time. Queensland is a vast country with a wide gap in economic development and a very uneven population distribution. In order to enable children in remote areas to enjoy the same quality education in the capital area, the State Department of Education has put forward many support policies to improve the educational standards in those areas.
Due to historical reasons, there are still a number of elite schools in Australia. For these schools, the federal government and the state governments have adopted a strategy of development, neither forcing cancellation nor opening up funds or other policies, but enjoying the same standards as ordinary schools. When the government evaluates the school, it does not evaluate the school purely by factors such as the rate of enrollment, so that all schools can achieve sound development.
4. Paying great attention to the effective allocation of teaching resources Australia's school education funds are very adequate. In addition to the government's allocated funds, parents and the community will donate money to schools.
However, judging from the situation of several schools we visited, the construction of the school is mostly based on the principle of “efficient, practical and sufficient”. All facilities and equipment are not pursuing luxury and style. At Mount Gravatt High School, the school's sports facilities are very popular. In addition to a simple indoor stadium, there is a large "awning" supported by several large iron pillars, which constitutes a wind and rain stadium. The students are doing various sports in it. We watched it and couldn't help but scream. Because this playground can fully meet the needs of students' general sports activities, but the construction funds are much less than the cost of creating a standard gymnasium, and the construction period is greatly shortened. Such a simple event venue, its sports activities will not be much less than the standard gymnasium.
The Sydney Institute of Technology is a TAFE school that is also internationally renowned and does not see many luxury facilities or particularly expensive equipment. The person in charge of the library said that there are not many books in the school library, but all the books are useful for students to learn. Outdated, outdated books are all disposed of. He said that the school does not have to be a library building. If you want to find some historical materials, you can go to the city library. We found that the number of computers used by the library for teachers and students to search no more than 100, it is said that the configuration is not the most advanced. Students use computers to make appointments, and the school arranges time. From this case, they further embodies their "enough" principle.
5. It pays great attention to the relationship between people and the environment, strengthens the awareness of environmental protection and the function of environmental education. As soon as they set foot on the land of Australia and New Zealand, the first impression is that the sky is particularly blue and the air is very fresh. In New Zealand, during the transfer from Auckland to Wellington, the windows and sides are full of blue sky and white clouds, green grass, oil and sheep in the idyllic scenery, just like the image of WINDOWS XP desktop. .
There is also a similar view in Australia. Every city has a fascinating place: Canberra has four seasons of trees and green grass, and the 704-hectare Griffin Lake is surrounded by picturesque scenery, the “garden capital” is well-deserved; the Sydney-style opera house, Standing on the Bay of Benilang Cape, the 1149-meter-long single-arched bridge was born, and it is a touch of old-fashioned buildings and modern high-rise buildings in the old part of the pier. The Botanical Garden covers 1/4 of the city area. Lush, colorful flowers, birds and flowers. Talking to Australians, the beauty of the environment is where they are most proud.
Similarly, the Australian and new university campuses generally have no walls and no gates. There is a school in the city, there is a street in the school, the building and greening of the campus are completely integrated with the whole city, without any deliberate and artificial.
The reason why there are such a beautiful environment, apart from the sparse population of these two countries, and more importantly, the quality of people is very high, everyone has a strong sense of responsibility to protect the environment. This sense of responsibility is due to the long-term environmental education of the children.
According to Ms. Jenni Shipp of the NSW Department of Education and Training, there is a department dedicated to environmental education in a small number of institutions in the Ministry of Education, which is responsible for environmental education throughout the state. Every year from the National Primary School, there are courses in environmental education. These courses are not all about talking in the classroom. It is more about letting students experience and understand the importance of protecting the environment in the contact with nature, and generate environmental responsibility from the heart, thus becoming a volunteer for environmental protection. .
Therefore, the education of environmental awareness among all people is carried out, so that everyone is aware that protecting the environment is closely related to their own interests, and making the government's decision-making become a policy of conscious implementation by everyone. This is the key to success.
Third, through the investigation of our enlightenment
1. Pay more attention to the coordinated development of education and economy and society. In the 21st century, the task of education is not only to teach and educate people, but to preach. Schools of all types and at all levels must provide more and stronger talent support for social development and economic construction. Colleges and universities make full use of the school's talent and scientific research advantages to transform scientific research results into productivity.
As a government, we should fully recognize the strategic position of education in economic development. From the height of sustainable development, we should do a good job in the planning and layout of the harmonious development of education and society, and further increase the investment in education. Under the conditions of existing funds, it is necessary to effectively ensure the effective use of funds, eliminate waste and blindly compare and use limited funds to the knife.
2. Pay more attention to the people-oriented education concept. It should be said that at present, China's education sector has a relatively strong consensus on "people-oriented", but it lacks the action that truly reflects this scientific and advanced concept in the practice of education and teaching. In many localities, the administrative departments of education and schools are also shouting "people-oriented" on the one hand, and on the other hand, they do not consider the reality of schools and students at all, and do not respect the opinions and requirements of students and teachers. Therefore, our "people-oriented" is still only on the slogan, and it is still far from the true "student-based" requirements. This requires us to do it. We believe that we should focus on the following things. First, we must establish a correct teaching concept. The most important thing in teaching activities is to let students learn the knowledge and skills that they really want to understand and master in the practical experience, and not to be too rigidly attached to the teaching materials and outlines, and not to meet the requirements of various examinations as the first need of teaching. . In the new educational situation, the relationship between the school and the students is no longer a passive relationship of “I teach you to learn”. Students should be actively involved in the construction of knowledge in the process of learning, so as to better grasp knowledge and improve their abilities. Second, we must effectively change the concept of students. In the traditional teaching, the students are regarded as the "container" and "sponge" of the costumes. Under the guidance of such thoughts, the teaching method of "cramming" will inevitably appear in the teaching. We believe that in the context of the socialist market economy, with the embodiment of the education industrialization policy, the relationship between students and schools should be a relationship between enterprises and customers. Schools should provide the best quality education, training and other services to the community, while students are the service customers. Only in this way can we truly reflect people-oriented. Third, in the specific teaching activities, we must gradually implement the teaching according to the new curriculum concept. The most fundamental point of the new curriculum standards is to change the tendency of the curriculum to focus too much on knowledge transfer, and to emphasize the formation of a proactive learning attitude, so that the process of acquiring basic knowledge and basic skills becomes a process of learning to learn and form correct values. Therefore, teachers should respect the personality of students, pay attention to individual differences, meet the learning needs of different students, create an educational environment that can guide students to participate actively, stimulate students' enthusiasm for learning, and cultivate students' attitudes and abilities to master and apply knowledge, so that each All students can be fully developed. Fourth, and most crucial, to truly change the evaluation system for schools and students. In recent years, there has been no fundamental change in the phenomenon of “promoting and stimulating education and solidly engaging in exam-oriented education”. The main reason is that a scientific evaluation system for schools and students has not yet been established. The results of the entrance examination are still regarded as the only criterion for measuring the quality of a school. Therefore, the traditional method of exam-oriented education can still be popular, and the concept of people-oriented cannot be truly implemented.
3. We must pay more attention to running vocational and technical education. (1) Governments at all levels should pay more attention to higher education and general education, and further understand the close relationship between vocational education and economic and social development, and increase investment in vocational education. It is necessary to strictly control the professional settings and teacher qualifications of vocational schools at all levels according to the needs of the society. Change the phenomenon of single function and closed management of school entities, so that limited educational resources can be fully utilized. Really set up a vocational school according to the rules and characteristics of vocational education, and should not turn a vocational school into another joint examination "a wooden bridge." It is necessary to further implement the employment requirements of “holding a certificate” and promote the training market before employment to become more prosperous to meet the needs of national employment or employment.
(2) Society needs to change its understanding of vocational education. It is necessary to further increase the publicity of the importance of vocational education through various public opinion tools. All sectors of society can see the significant contribution of vocational education to economic development and social progress in the past two decades. It is necessary to effectively reverse the current misconceptions of heavy academic qualifications and light skills in the society, and let more people realize that strengthening vocational training plays a major role in improving the cultural quality of the whole nation and improving the competitiveness of Chinese products in the international arena.
(3) Vocational schools must establish their own confidence and quality and characteristics. As a vocational school and various vocational training institutions, on the one hand, we must establish sufficient confidence and at the same time we must also see our own shortcomings. Strive to develop the characteristics and advantages of vocational schools and improve their competitiveness.
It is necessary to change the current situation of professional teachers in vocational schools as soon as possible. Teachers who are in professional courses should arrange one day a week, arrange a few days a month, arrange a period of time each year to leave the school to practice in professional positions in the industry or enterprises, and maintain close contact with the industry. Enable professional teachers to learn new information, learn new technologies, master new skills, and be aware of new processes, new technologies, and new products. This will improve their ability to design and develop teaching materials and the ability to teach flexibly, thus improving the quality of training.

2004-12-7