Kim Carr (Victoria, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Minister Assisting the Leader for Science) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question without notice is to the Minister representing the Minister for Education. Does the government still maintain the view, as expressed by the Minister for Education only last week, that 'I do not believe there is an equity problem in Australia'?

Marise Payne (NSW, Liberal Party, Minister for Human Services) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I thank Senator Carr for his question. If the senator's question is directed to the results of the PISA that were announced overnight, the Program for International Student Assessment, I think there are a number of aspects in that to which we might turn our attention. Unfortunately, the results of PISA 2012 show us most particularly that Labor's performance in education was a dismal failure. The 2012 PISA results are the worst ever in all fields and our international rankings are the lowest ever. In maths we have dropped from 15th to 19th, in reading from ninth to 14th and in science from 10th to 16th.

Honourable Senators:

Honourable senators interjecting—

John Hogg (President) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I remind senators on both sides that debating across the chamber at this stage is completely disorderly. If you wish to debate it, do so after three o'clock.

Marise Payne (NSW, Liberal Party, Minister for Human Services) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

What is even more concerning is that when you analyse real Commonwealth funding per student between 2009 and 2011 it actually rose by 10 per cent. So the Labor government spent a record amount whilst also getting the worst results ever and student performance significantly behind results from 2000-06.

Claire Moore (Queensland, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Minister for Women) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Mr President, I raise a point of order on relevance. The specific question was about equity and a minister's previous statement. We would like to hear an answer.

John Hogg (President) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I believe the minister is addressing the question. The minister has 41 seconds remaining. There is no point of order. The minister.

Honourable senators interjecting—

Order! When I call a senator to rise to their feet to answer a question the minister is entitled to be heard in silence.

Marise Payne (NSW, Liberal Party, Minister for Human Services) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I was about to say that we are also surrounded by countries in the Asian region which are significantly outperforming us. Our schoolchildren are on average two to three years of schooling behind students in Shanghai, for example. What the report did find in relation to Australia is that we are a high equity education country, that in fact they found that socioeconomic background is less important in determining student performance in Australia compared to the OECD average, explaining in the report that only 12 per cent of the overall variation in student performance in Australia is relevant to that— (Time expired)

Kim Carr (Victoria, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Minister Assisting the Leader for Science) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Minister, does that report also indicate that Australian students from a wealthy background have a difference of 2½ years of schooling compared to a student from the lowest socioeconomic group? In light of that evidence, will the government guarantee it will implement Labor's school funding model, which addresses equity outcomes through loadings and student resource standards?

Marise Payne (NSW, Liberal Party, Minister for Human Services) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

As I was about to say in finishing my earlier answer, which was relevant to the equity question that the senator asked before, Australia's 12 per cent of the overall variation in student performance compared to the OECD average of 15 per cent.

In relation to the model that will be implemented by the government, the minister, the Prime Minister and I in my capacity representing the minister in this chamber have indicated that we will be implementing the model as agreed by the previous government. I have said it many times in the past week. The PISA report, though, has also found, and the government has been at great pains to discuss this with the states and territories in the last 11 weeks via the ministers' discussions, that teacher quality is critically important in Australia in determining education performance. For Australian students it matters more which class they are allocated to than which school they attend. (Time expired)

Kim Carr (Victoria, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Minister Assisting the Leader for Science) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Mr President, I ask a further supplementary question. Is it not the case that the minister has actually said that he will not implement Labor's funding model and as a consequence of that there will not be a proper funding model in place that actually assists Australia's most disadvantaged students? In doing that, are you not perpetuating inequality in this country?

Marise Payne (NSW, Liberal Party, Minister for Human Services) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Senator Carr is right: we are not going to implement Labor's model, because Labor's model did not include Queensland, Western Australia and the Northern Territory. He is exactly right. We are not going to implement a model that is not truly national. We are not going to implement a model that demands central control, federal inspectors in school, that has no respect for parental and principal control and involvement. We are not going to implement that model at all. We are going to implement a model that adds $1.2 billion to education funding in this country and allocates it to every single school student no matter which state or territory they live in.