I smell a rat…

Did someone really say that recruiting agencies are ‘trafficking’ teachers to places like Qatar? And that recruiting companies are having a ‘devastating effect on NZ education’? I smell a rat.

No really – what’s Qatar got that Auckland hasn’t? Apart from the obvious good public transport, affordable housing, professional salaries, respectful taxes, adequate health care (staffed by Kiwis by the way), attractive working conditions, well-resourced schools…

Apart from all that, what’s Qatar got that Timaru hasn’t? Unruly kids, NCEA and ERO – yes, but apart from them, what’s Qatar got? Cheap petrol, cheap cars, and cheap air fares to exotic holiday places such as north-west Pakistan, India, Nepal and Jordan… No, but apart from that…

Of course Qatar hasn’t got L&P, fish & chips, Lion Red and Snifters.

I suppose, we could take all teachers’ passports off them. Or we could chain them to schools or make them wear electronic bracelets that track their movements. All teachers are criminals anyway – especially the men ones. Guilty until proven innocent.

We should block international teaching job websites too. And we shouldn’t be allowed to accept advertising from foreign schools trying to seduce our teachers with grubby salaries and small classes. And we shouldn’t have foreigners working in our schools either and, no wait, what? Good grief –whatever happened to civil liberties? Free choice?

Silly teachers anyway – fancy them trying to do some independent thinking and making big grown up choices for themselves. Fancy them looking at the state of NZ’s economy and the exchange rate and reaching a silly conclusion like ‘I might be better off in Qatar or Melbourne or Istanbul or Delhi or Shanghai…’

Perhaps ‘NZ education’ could get off its big wide load of a bum and achieve better salaries and working conditions for teachers here – so much better that the teachers choose to stay here rather than choose to go teach in sandy, sunny places.

At least the man from the Teachers’ Council got it right. He said that going overseas makes our people better, more worldly, more interesting teachers and therefore much better for our profession when they return.

Of course, they might come back with some revolutionary ideas such as paying teachers a better salary, taxing all workers at a more reasonable rate, real professional development…

They might talk about countries that have effective public transport, good roads, hospitals and schools that are inviting and spacious and well-designed. They might come back and say things like ‘this NCEA is silly’ and they might talk positively about the IB Diploma.

Crikey – no wonder our education people are concerned about teachers sneaking out for a peek at other countries’ education systems.

— Peter Giddens