Ballarat Clarendon College teachers not happy about drink bottle ban

Ballarat Clarendon College staff are “outraged” at having to enforce the school’s new policy banning water bottles, which they only found out about through the media.

Ballarat Clarendon College is trialling a ban of water bottles.

Staff at Ballarat Clarendon College have struck back at the school’s water bottle ban, with one calling it a “laughable knee jerk reaction to an issue nobody has ever complained about”.

The high-achieving regional college is trialling a ban on water bottles for years five to nine students, with early indications from the school suggesting that it was improving classroom climate and concentration due to less distractions and toilet breaks.

Students are required to leave their drink bottles outside the classroom for the duration of the lesson.

However, the Herald Sun can reveal many staff are not happy about the ban, which they only found out about through the media.

One former teacher said staff are “outraged and uncomfortable about enforcing the ban”.

“I’ve never spoken to a single staff member in my many years at College who has ever complained about this issue,” the staff member said. “It is a policy completely divorced from the realities of teaching at College. It’s a complete non-issue.”

The ex-Ballarat Clarendon College teacher said staff had expressed frequent concerns about the temperature of classrooms at the college and the impact on student and staff wellbeing.

The water bottle ban applies to years five to nine students.

“Classrooms are not airconditioned so, in summer, they can climb over 30 degrees. These conditions are unbearable for staff and students. Kids are lethargic, disengaged, and under duress during these times,” they said.

“They regularly complain of headaches and many demonstrate dehydration. It is not uncommon for students to request time outside to attend the Health Centre. Staff are worried that, If the trial is successful, classrooms will become even more intolerable in summer for their students without their drink bottles.”

This view has been supported by the Independent Education Union. Their spokesman said: “While we recognise the good intentions behind the banning of water bottles in classrooms, the immediate feedback we’ve had from members is that what needs urgent attention is airconditioning of the classrooms, which become stifling over summer and can also get too hot in winter months due to centrally-controlled heating.

“Staff are deeply concerned that preventing students from bringing water bottles to class will exacerbate existing problems of students becoming distracted, lethargic or even unwell due to high temperatures in their classrooms,” the spokesman said.

A spokeswoman for the school said it was “continually exploring ways to support students’ learning and wellbeing in the classroom.

She said “no student will go thirsty as there are ample opportunities during the day to drink water”.

“Early feedback results indicate improved classroom climate, student learning and concentration due to reduced noise and fewer rest room breaks,” she said.

“The trial will run during the colder months and, as always, we remain open-minded about its benefit and impact.”

The spokeswoman said the trial was conducted over the colder months and the school would seek feedback in order to ensure continued support of all students’ learning and wellbeing in the classroom.

Middle school teachers were informed about the trial on Tuesday as were parents of Middle School children, she said.

Ballarat Clarendon College is one of Victoria’s most successful academic schools, but in 2023 a teacher was forced to resign after her expletive-filled rant to students was recorded and shared on social media.

In recent years staff and parents have also spoken out about the school’s “toxic” culture, which requires students to use their student IDs to go in and out of classrooms and educators to be filmed while teaching.