Samantha Maiden, The Australian
REMEDIAL English lessons are being offered to university students studying teaching degrees because their literacy skills are so poor they struggle with basic grammar.
Chairman of the National Inquiry into the Teaching of Literacy Ken Rowe has revealed the problem is "so bad" some universities are forced to invest significant resources into helping prospective teachers learn basic skills.Dr Rowe, a research director for the Australian Council for Educational Research, also warned the health effects of poor literacy, which include depression and behavioural problems, were often overlooked.
"Schools are only effective to the extent they have effective teachers. We need to actually make sure we get high-quality teachers in the first place," he said.
"We need to ensure that university entry scores are much higher than what they are at the moment ... Many university faculties of education and schools of education are running remedial English classes for their trainee teachers. Their basic grammar, spelling is that poor."
Dr Rowe said the need for remedial classes had shocked some members of his inquiry, but he was not surprised.
"In some institutions it's regarded as so serious they are spending a lot of time on remedial classes."
Dr Rowe said the evidence also suggested that up to 30 per cent of students were "simply not achieving to the extent they could or should".
"They are concerned about the number of kids being referred with attention-deficit problems and self-destructive behaviours and when they drill down they find a major contributing factor is they can't bloody read."
Dr Rowe will release the findings of his report into literacy on December 1.
Education Minister Brendan Nelson yesterday released a new report into careers counselling.
"Pathways from School to Further Education or Work: Examining the Consequences of Year 12 Course Choice", showed that courses of study chosen in the senior year of school strongly influence students' options after leaving school.
"Courses in social sciences, the humanities and mathematics-physical sciences offered the best pathways to tertiary education, with more than 50 per cent of course participants continuing to university," Dr Nelson said.
"I was pleased to see that more young people are taking up further education and training options after completing Year 12, including TAFE, apprenticeships and traineeships and university.
"No young person should feel that the value of their life is determined by the educational choices they make. Their choices in apprenticeships, TAFE or university must be equally valued."
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