Teachers take part in Statewide strike
More than 100 Broome education workers went on strike last Thursday to take part in a Statewide public rally over job cuts.
The group joined thousands of other protestors around WA made up of teachers, principals, education assistants and support staff opposing the Government's plan to axe 500 jobs.
The Broome gathering, which included staff from Broome's three primary schools and Broome Senior High School, parents and a few students congregated on Male Oval on Thursday morning waving banners and placards during the rally.
Despite a number of public schools closing during the rally, Department of Education media spokesman David Mitchell said all Kimberley schools had remained open but most ran modified programs due to the absence of some staff.
Mr Mitchell reported 267 staff were officially absent in the Kimberley for the purpose of industrial action and more than 3000 students were absent from school in the morning, which included students absent through illness and other reasons.
WA State School Teachers' Union Broome representative and BSHS teacher Simon Lee said the "damage" of the State Government's decision to education would be "irreparable".
Broome Primary School special education assistant and parent Catherine McGoldrick said she felt "let down" by the Government and said if jobs cuts went ahead, children would no longer receive the personalised, one-on- one attention they required.
Ms McGoldrick said education assistants provided vital support in the classroom and undertook challenging roles.
Broome Primary School Yawuru language teacher Hiroko Shioji described the funding cuts as "senseless" and believed it would have a "negative effect" on education across the board.
"Special programs which also include our language program, not having the indigenous language for school I think is detrimental for a lot of Aboriginal students and our culture," she said.
"We don't know how many (Aboriginal languages) have been lost and it's very important that we keep it going.
"If we don't have it taught in schools, the young ones won't learn it, it will eventually die out."
However, Education Minister Peter Collier has denied there would be cuts to education funding and said the Government had introduced changes to put teachers where they were needed most.
"The changes that we've introduced also mean that all schools will have to tighten their belts with a reduction in some funding and a minor increase in teacher to student ratios," he said.
