3.0 Reduce workload
A monumental increase in workload over 10 years has impacted upon teacher health and wellbeing (Rothman et al. 2018). The increase in administrative compliance tasks and paperwork, the significant and ongoing changes to curriculum, and the expectations around classroom observations and capability processes have reached an overwhelming level (Heffernan et al. 2022). In addition, the increasing complexity of student/class profiles, the need to “verify” teacher decision making via overly detailed planning and preparation, and the intensification of the moderation, assessment and reporting cycle has led to teacher burnout. The recently agreed staffing allocative methodology review must be the catalyst for the Queensland Government to allocate adequate funds to reduce these workload demands. This will allow teachers to teach and ensure students are taught by well-resourced and well-supported teaching professionals. Key workload reductions goals are as follows.
3.1 Reduce crushing administrative demands and compliance paperwork tasks
Under the certified agreement ‘Principles of Good Workload Management’ clause, DoE is required to take all reasonable steps to support teachers, heads of program and school leaders to work in safe work environments, with realistic expectations in relation to their duties, tasks and responsibilities. As such, DoE must:
- Review administrative tasks undertaken by schools and determine those that could be reallocated to regional offices, and provide additional staffing at regional level to undertake these tasks.
- Limit the number of surveys that education leaders are required to undertake, and if basic data is required, require central/regional office to retrieve easily accessible OneSchool data without school involvement.
- Streamline the School Budget Solutions system.
- Ensure that any new systemic/regional initiatives and trials are only introduced to schools after negotiation with the QTU on workload implications.
- Negotiate with the QTU to simplify and reduce performance development and capability processes.
- Provide additional resourcing and regional support for graduated return to work (GRW) processes and simplify paperwork requirements related to rehab and workplace health and safety (WHS) matters.
- Provide a regional liaison to manage engagement with families about chronic poor student attendance issues for schools.
- Reconsider and improve school review processes and provide genuine resources and support for review recommendations.
- Improve the subpoena process to allow regional/central office and legal branch to retrieve information they require without schools needing to download endless reports per student.
3.2 Prioritise NCT
Ensure that teachers’ autonomous use of non-contact time (NCT) is respected and commit sufficient support and resources in the education budget to allow schools to schedule meetings, professional development (PD) and “systems tasks” outside of NCT.
3.3 Encourage professional release time
Encourage the use of resourcing that provides additional professional release time to allow time for:
a. collaboration with colleagues
b. joint planning
c. moderation processes
d. feedback conversations.
3.4 Reduce professional demands
Reduce professional demands to realistic levels by negotiating new statewide, time-saving and straightforward systems for:
a. moderation
b. planning and preparation data collection
c. capability development
d. classroom observations.
These processes should be adopted for a period of five years and must not require constant reconsideration or review at the school level.
3.5 Commit meaningfully to reduce class sizes
The dynamic transformation and increasing complexity of class profiles and student learning needs requires smaller class sizes, which will lead to improvements in the learning environment.
The effect includes:
a. positive impacts upon teacher job-satisfaction levels and morale
b. reduction in teacher workload
c. academic gains, particularly for younger and/or disadvantaged students
d. decreased time spent on discipline matters and improvements in students’ attitudes and efforts (Laitsch et al. 2021)
e. management of workplace health and safety issues (particularly in vocational education classes).
3.6 Review playground duty supervision and bus duties
Review the current practices related to playground duty supervision and bus duties to provide teachers with more day-time release to attend to professional tasks during their working hours.
3.7 Developing a healthy work culture
Develop a system culture that encourages teachers and education leaders to “disconnect” outside of work hours, and provide resources and staffing that allow work to be delegated during work hours, rather than expecting teachers and education leaders to work unsustainable hours.
RECOMMENDATIONS
15. Reduce administration demands and paperwork “compliance” tasks.
16. Provide sufficient release time via non-contact time (NCT) and professional release time to allow for professional collaboration.
17. Negotiate new agreements between the QTU and DoE that reduce professional demands in moderation, planning and preparation.
18. Commit to reducing class sizes to manage the workload impacts of complex and changing class profiles.
19. Release teachers from current playground and bus duty supervision to free up time for professional tasks.
20. Undertake to develop a genuine “right to disconnect” culture within state schools.
QTU State Budget Submission 2023-24