I have just started a teaching course after a long career in workplace relations (Letters, February 22). One of the first things I have learnt is the range of problems associated with trying to test and assess teachers and students. John Kempler’s suggestion to link performance to bonuses may not produce the intended outcomes and may actually hinder the retention of good teachers. My previous career makes me inclined to be very sceptical of performance-based pay arrangements. Denis Goodwin, Dee Why
Abbotsleigh Wahroonga year 12 students Kristen Li, Ayesha Grewal and Ella Booker in class in Wahroonga, in Sydney. Credit: Dion Georgopoulos
During my teaching career I would have taught thousands of students and I’d like to think that I made a positive contribution to their learning. Certainly being paid a bonus for good results would have been welcome but there are some parts of our society where reward payments aren’t appropriate; education and health are two of them. Were any of the results achieved by my students due to me or a supportive home, a positive work ethic, the teacher they had before me or a passion for the subject? Should nurses be paid more when a sick patient gets well and leaves hospital? Performance pay might work well in the finance and retail industries but it does not work in the caring professions. John Bailey, Canterbury
Good teaching is a team sport. It should never be a competition between teachers. You train on the job, you learn from more experienced teachers, you share resources and what works and what doesn’t work, you devise programs together, you set exams and performance measurements together, you collaborate in the best interests of your students. To tie bonuses and even wages to a teacher’s success in generalised tests like NAPLAN would not just motivate teachers “to teach to the test”, but threaten the enthusiastic collegiality that the most effective staff rooms foster. Lyndall Nelson, Goulburn
There are a few reasons for the reported decline in standards of students including fewer parents engaging in their children’s learning themselves, so now it’s just back to the classroom teacher. But linking pay to performance is not the answer. For example, the ATAR is for one year only and the teacher’s next cohort may not be as talented, hardly their fault. NAPLAN results could possibly be improved if they are only taught to NAPLAN criteria, leaving out a lot of other things required by the curriculum. Increase salaries by all means but has the horse already bolted? Hugely increased workloads introduced to improve standards by rigorously following the progress of each student (which in high school could be over 100, many of whom you only get to see a couple of hours a week) has meant lots of extra paper work without much to show for it. The truth is teaching is about the students whose abilities and expectations vary enormously, so one size fits all doesn’t work. Then add the discipline issues we see now more in schools than in the past, it is not surprising many new teachers leave within their first five years. So good luck with recruiting more “high-calibre” teachers.
Glenys Quirk, Forster
Negative gearing paid for by those who don’t use it
But, Elizabeth Kroon, by using negative gearing you’re not funding yourself. I, as a PAYE wage earner and owner-dweller with no investment property, fund you with PAYE income tax that is higher than it ought to be so that you can receive the benefits of your negative gearing and your eventual 50 per cent capital gains tax concession (Letters, February 22). It’s people like me who fund your wealth accumulation. Peter Butler, Wyongah
Negative gearing can be a gambleCredit: Simon Letch
When property investment was originally given some advantage under tax laws a few decades ago I was told that the intent was to encourage the building of affordable housing. However it wasn’t long before those selling investment properties and accountants realised more tax could be saved by building “executive” style accommodation, which would also produce higher rent. It would be possible to change the way it works, weighting tax savings toward the lower end of the market and reducing the benefit steeply as the value of the property increases. One does not invest in property for negative gearing anyway, since it last for only few years and eventually the owner ends up in a income positive situation. One invests for capital gain and the development of equity. Excluding foreign capital would also help, since some overseas investors are simply looking for places to park cash and retain low liquidity - which is one reason why so many units are left vacant.
I grew up in a Housing Commission development in the ’60s. These allowed renters to eventually buy the house. Why are such schemes not being used now? One reason might be that many property developments have covenants locking in buyers to building houses of at least 20 squares, rather than allowing smaller houses that are more within reach. It’s time to re-size houses down to meet the ability of people’s ability to finance a purchase. Perhaps extending the “shared equity” scheme the government has for welfare recipients to all those of limited means might be of use as well. David Ashton, Katoomba
I believe that any business should be able to write off its losses against its profits from a tax point of view, which is exactly what negative gearing is. The unfair burden on the taxpayer is the “double- dipping” of franking credits. However, following the usual campaign of misinformation by those enjoying the benefits, this was roundly defeated at the ballot box: so what can we do about the housing crisis?
My solution is a stiff “land banking” tax; a percentage tax based on a yearly valuation of the property for the time the property remains vacant. Robert Hosking, Paddington
Negative gearing has many considerations: it can be a lifeline for over-stretched first home buyers struggling with loan repayments, who can move back in with the oldies and rent the property out. It is also a catalyst to pass wealth from one generation to the next. Ross Gittins is too focused on perceived income inequality instead of solving the problem of intergenerational wealth inequality. Superannuation funds receive tax-free rent and capital gains by investing in residential property. Solve that problem before considering the pros and cons of negative gearing. Graeme Troy, Wagstaffe
Check out your own culpability
The federal opposition complains about the government being responsible for “increased cost of living costs” and about “price gouging” by the major supermarkets, yet as usual ignore their own role in creating these problems (“Woolies chief’s retirement not expedited: chair”, February 22). They have proudly trumpeted their neo-liberal policies over the last decade, removing red tape and government oversight, and allowing “the market” to decide business outcomes. This is exactly what has happened, as the larger companies have swallowed up smaller businesses or driven them out of business entirely and established control over producers. With majority market share, Woolworths and Coles can please themselves regarding setting prices and tightening the screws against farmers and suppliers. Unsurprisingly, David Littleproud is now calling for these companies to be broken up, something that would have been labelled as “socialist” if proposed by any other political party.
Alan Marel, North Curl Curl
Out they go!Credit: Cathy Wilcox
On the beaten track
There is little community support for the retention of the greyhound racing facility at Wentworth Park (“Dog track hesitancy puts Labor on collision course”, February 22). One potential use is a secondary school to serve students from Pyrmont, Ultimo, Haymarket and Glebe, all currently denied access to the new Inner Sydney High School which is easily accessible by public transport, unlike the junior high schools at Balmain and Leichhardt. The Rozelle Interchange debacle has made bus access to Balmain even more difficult, and our pleas for a Bays West ferry service have so far fallen on deaf ears. Whatever the outcome, the first-class oval in the middle of the dog track must be retained for use by nearby primary schools, the Sydney Secondary College Blackwattle Bay Campus and the International Grammar School in Ultimo. So far, the education minister denies the need for a new, accessible high school to serve the Pyrmont peninsula which is about to be turned into an extension of the CBD, with new residential and commercial accommodation planned for 8000 new residents and 23,000 new workers. Both the Balmain and Blackwattle Bay campuses are full now. It makes sense to utilise government-owned land at Wentworth Park for a new school. Elizabeth Elenius, Pyrmont
If the state government decides not to continue with the plans to knock down the Wentworth Park dog track it will be a missed opportunity to create more public space for a crowded area and for what purpose? Maintaining an exclusive area used by a “sport” with negligible public support and which seems to exist largely as a product for betting agencies. The track should be bulldozed and the industry should pay for a new home elsewhere. Duncan Anderson, Gladesville
Fanning flames of fear
Despite the comments that Dutton is more like Hanson than Howard, he is still following Howard’s lead in appealing to our worse natures (“Labor, Coalition clash over security checks for 2000 Palestinian visas”, February 22). Creating division and fanning the fears obviously worked in the referendum, and he is clearly hoping that the same holds true for the general election. Never mind that only 334 people from Palestine have arrived since October, 460 applications for visitor visas from Palestinians have been rejected, there is a humanitarian crisis and most people can’t get out of Gaza anyway. Another case of electoral victory being more important than humanitarian concern for others. David Rush, Lawson
The opposition is once against demonstrating how low it can go. A mere 334 people have arrived from Palestine since October 2023 – despite 29,000 bombs being dropped on that narrow densely populated strip over that same time. With the International Court of Justice holding that genocide is “plausible” in the territory – the real question we should be asking is how can we help more people, especially children, to get out of the living hell that is Gaza today? Renee Chartres, Cremorne
Self-funded myths
Elizabeth Kroon repeats the myth of “self-funded” retirees (Letters, September 22). In fact, they are likely to be funded by the government through tax concessions. Let us say a couple each with the maximum concessional superannuation balance draw 10 per cent of their balance in the current year. They will have a tax-free income of $380,000 and the government will forego income tax of $112,334. By comparison the age pension for a poorer retired couple, including the maximum supplement, would total $42,998. In this case, the “self-funded” couple cost the budget more than twice as much as the full pension-eligible couple. William Kennedy, Jordan Springs
Waste disposal headaches
Matt Peacock notes there are “no co-ordinated incentives to dispose of asbestos safely” and suggests “free asbestos disposal sites and incentives” (“Asbestos mulch calamity inevitable”, September 22). Yes, please. Blue Mountains City Council charges $432 per tonne for waste disposal. Disposing of an old fibro shed cost several hundred dollars because the fibro did not easily separate from the wooden frame to which it was attached and the whole lot needed disposal. We’re now looking at removing old fibro cladding from the house to insulate the walls and update the look of the house. We will be charged many hundreds for the disposal. No wonder operators are disposing of the stuff through mulch. Steven Lee, Faulconbridge
For those about to rock
I agree with your correspondent that it is difficult to name the greatest rock movie and he is to be applauded for spruiking Summer of Soul: The Revolution Will Not Be Televised (Letters, February 22). The winner of numerous awards including best documentary at the 2022 Oscars, it not only covers the wonderful music of that 1969 Harlem festival, but the subtitle refers to the lack of civil rights activism by the media. As for other possible contenders, I propose Gimme Shelter (The Rolling Stones at Altamont), Celebration Day (Led Zeppelin’s Ahmet Ertegun’s tribute concert) and of course Woodstock. In terms of charting rock stars’ impact on their fans, Springsteen and I perfectly captures the love and adoration The Boss inspires in his fans, including me. Anne Elliott, Balmain
Rock legend Bruce SpringsteenCredit: Invision
Yes Con Vaitsas, I’m with you. The greatest rock movie ever has to be Summer of Soul. Filmed in Harlem, a free festival happening at the same time as Woodstock, discovered in a loft 50 years later, a brilliant documentary full of soul, passion and incredible musicians volunteering their beautiful famous selves for their community. A must-see. Patsy Chingwile, Leichhardt
Recipe for success
The best merch I ever bought was a tea towel at a Paul Kelly gig with the recipe of “How To Make Gravy” on it (“Thousands splurge on Swift gear”, February 22). Comes out of the cupboard at Christmastime. Lisa Clarke, Watsons Bay
Same but different
Stating that Assange and Navalny have been treated similarly is a bit tenuous (Letters, February 22). Assange’s endless litigation has been carried out in the open, on the world stage, and open to criticism. The same can’t be said for the other chap. Ross MacPherson, Seaforth
Glove match
I am fairly certain that the policeman directing traffic on the corner of Bridge and Macquarie streets was my uncle Noel Smith (Letters, February 22). On retirement he moved to Lightning Ridge to take up opal mining. Neville Smith, Wentworth Falls
There are other places where controllers wear white gloves. When we stayed at a hotel in Tokyo, one of the staff on traffic duty, supervising all the taxis coming and going, wore very long white gloves with his uniform. And he waved a red wand about, just for good measure. It led to us feeling very safe! Mia David, Wollongong
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