The Age‘s Schools Summit is today, and VCAA’s Andrew Smith has one of the keynotes. Smith’s title:
How a well-designed curriculum can contribute to developing well-rounded individuals who are prepared to contribute meaningfully to society and the workforce.
And, um, which “well-designed curriculum” might that be, Andrew? ACARA’s K-10 masterpiece? Or, are you referring to your own VCE gem?
There is no evidence, of course, that Smith has the remotest clue what a well-designed curriculum might look like and little evidence that he cares much to provide Victorians with such a curriculum. Whatever push the Bennett review gave to the desperately needed revamping of VCE, it appears to have been killed by Yehudi Blacher‘s follow-up adminotwaddle.
Still, it is a little nasty to piss on Smith’s parade, even given it is an ignorable gnat doing the pissing, and Smith is anything but alone. This year’s Summit seems dominated by knowitall bureaucrats and the like. I cannot see any revolutionary insight coming from David Howes or Geoff Masters, although with Masters there is at least the opportunity for someone with sufficient acumen to ask him about the current destruction of ACER. Yes, Ben Carroll, and Jenny Donovan and her AERO, may be more revolutionary, but that is all feeling a little Animal Farmy right now.
In the past, the Age‘s summit seemed to be more dominated by “excellent teachers”, albeit their excellence appeared to be more in sucking up and climbing than in teaching. So, it is not clear that this year’s BureauFest is worse. But it is no better. As always, it is too much of the smug ruling class; there will be too much sound and not nearly enough fury.
There is another reason to write about Smith, however. Last week, the Herald Sun had a long puff piece on Smith, one of their Big V interviews (M,P):
Big V: Inside Andrew Smith’s one-year mission to win back public trust at the VCAA
In ways, this reporting is fair enough. Whoever was to blame, VCAA was a mess and Smith is the new guy charged with unmessing it. So, why not give the guy an easy platform? Along with the human story, however, there are lines that rankle.
While he modestly refrained from detailing his accomplishments, his tenure has already seen significant progress.
Like what?
Addressing any lingering doubts about the VCAA’s capacity to deliver high-quality exams, Mr Smith reassured students that the examination body would “leave no stone unturned”.
If only he had the stones.
The reality is, there are stones that have been placed right at Smith’s feet that he hasn’t bothered to turn. Still, this is puff, and puff is as puff does.
Nonetheless, some puff is sleazier than other, and this is pretty sleazy puff. The Herald Sun‘s puff of course refers to pre-Smith times, including the exam leak mess and the 2022 and 2023 errors and screw-ups. They ignore that the errors and screw-ups go back decades, and still continue, but ok. The Herald Sun‘s victory lap on the exam leak, however, is not OK.
The scandal, first revealed by the Herald Sun, prompted the resignation of the Victorian Curriculum and Assessment Authority’s former chief and a “root-and-branch” review was ordered into the body itself.
The review’s findings later unveiled years of neglect, “atrophied” organisational practices and an absent workplace culture, leaving the embattled body in desperate need of a steady hand to guide it out of crisis.
Well, it was first “revealed” on reddit and then in a comment on this blog, but whatever. But, “steady hand”? Jesus.
VCAA had a steady hand. Kylie White, who took over from the appalling Stephen Gniel, was great. White took over at the end of 2023 and had not yet had time to reform VCAA, but she was great. And why did White go? Maybe the CEO was always going to cop it for the exam leak stuff, even if Carroll might have more properly taken the hit. But the Herald Sun, partnering up with an idiot Liberal thug, gleefully gunned for White, and the Herald Sun‘s disgusting reporting had no small part in White’s lynching.
It is impossible to stomach the Herald Sun‘s platforming a smiling Smith standing on White’s grave. And that’s why this gnat has chosen to piss on Smith’s parade. It won’t do any good, but it is a relief to piss it.
Key point – Andrew Smith appears to be a generic health regulator with NO teaching qualifications or experience.
Smith has *some* teaching experience.
Sorry – you’re right – he has been a teacher and not in health at all – I completely got my wires crossed.
If you want to be really irked by VCAA media coverage, try the Herald-Sun on Tuesday 9 June page 9.
There is an article on the banning of the use of UDF’s on CAS calculators under the headline “Maths Cheats Factor in 2026 – Ban on Sneaky Calculator” The following quote from a VCAA spokesperson appears:
“As technologies evolve, the VCAA is proactively signalling the importance of students engaging with their teachers on the core mathematical skills outlined in the Study Design ….”
Proactive my butt! This was the VCAA being dragged kicking and screaming to finally act on this issue after years of sustained and ultimately overwhelming pressure. Misrepresentations by VCAA spokespersons that the VCAA are proactive makes my blood boil.
But there is an excellent opportunity for the VCAA to be genuinely proactive: Get rid of the CAS calculator in maths exams!
Get rid of the calculator in maths exams!
Good idea. Why don’t you write something up and submit it to Vinculum?
That’s not quite fair. The exact same VCAA statement appears in the Age’s story. Clearly, VCAA prepared a statement for the media (I can’t locate a media release), and it is fair enough to quote VCAA on the matter, even if it is utter bullshit.
But, as you note, VCAA’s statement is utter bullshit, and obviously so, and the Herald Sun’s report is lazy, gossip hound garbage that does nothing to correct the bullshit. The Age worked hard to provide some decent perspective (even if Ashman was an absurd choice (who, nonetheless, said all the right things)). The Herald Sun did nothing much but trawl reddit.
So, yes, the Herald Sun report did irk me. I’m not going to forgive them for fucking over White, and now being a slovenly mouthpiece for VCAA is certainly not going to lower the temper of my anger.
The price to attend is $1095 for the day, yet more than 200 people are attending.
What do the simple folk do?
We are often advised to prepare students to become 21st century learners. I have often thought that we should be preparing students for war. This would not have been a ridiculous suggestion 100 years ago, and the current situations suggest that it is not a ridiculous suggestion now.
Duck and cover?