AUSTRALIAN COUNCIL FOR THE DEFENCE OF GOVERNMENT
SCHOOLS
PRESS RELEASE 412
CHAPLAINS IN STATE SCHOOLS ISSUE:
RECENT EVENTS
7 January 2011
The writs against the
Commonwealth were issued concerning the funding of Chaplains in State Schools
on Wednesday 22 December. Below are excerpts from an article from David Marr
entitled ‘Chaplains in schools are
inadequately supervised’ from the Sydney
Morning Herald of New Year’s Day 2011.
THE schools
chaplaincy program is being investigated by the Commonwealth Ombudsman after a
highly critical report of its operation in the Northern Territory. At the same
time, a High Court challenge has been launched by critics of the scheme to
which successive federal governments have committed $437 million.
Paying for
chaplains in schools began under the prime ministership of John Howard but
during the last election campaign Julia Gillard promised to double the money
available for the program. This windfall will allow chaplains to work in 3700
schools in Australia by the end of this year.
The Prime
Minister said in August:
''Chaplains
and pastoral care workers provide general personal advice, comfort and support
to all students and staff. Chaplains can help build the sense of community in
the school, support the school ethos and provide additional support for
vulnerable children.''
But critics
have argued since the program began that chaplains are not professionally
qualified to counsel children; that schools cannot effectively supervise their
work; that they are evangelising in the playground; and that public funding
undermines the separation of church and state.
In a report published in November, the NT
Ombudsman, Carolyn Richards, found problems with the national design and the local
administration of the program.
After
investigating complaints about the chaplains made by a number of parents in
rural schools she concluded: ''In many
areas, policies and procedures associated with the chaplaincy service were
found to be inadequate or non-existent.''
She condemned
the federal guidelines for providing no practical and ''nationally consistent''
criteria for a person to be called a chaplain.
She criticised
the access they had to classrooms and to sensitive information about children.
Ms Richards questioned the capacity of schools to supervise the chaplains. But
her chief recommendation was to ban one-on-one pastoral care sessions after she
found chaplains were going further than providing ''a listening ear'' to children experiencing domestic violence and
abuse.
''In one instance a psychologist who later
treated a student was of the opinion that the chaplain had provided
psychological services without the required qualifications,'' she wrote. ''The most salient point is that nobody knew
what services were provided during one-on-one sessions, nor the appropriateness
or quality of those services.''
On her
recommendation, the Commonwealth Ombudsman has agreed to examine the national
supervision of the program by the Department of Education, Employment and
Workplace Relations.
This
investigation will focus on the department's procedures for keeping track of
funds, monitoring compliance with guidelines, verifying information and
handling complaints.
The program is
under question on a number of other fronts. The Queensland activist Ron
Williams has begun a long-anticipated action in the High Court to test the
legality of the scheme. The case is backed by the Australian Secular Lobby,
advised by the leading Sydney silk Bret Walker and funded by public
subscription.
Williams
versus the Commonwealth of Australia will be the first big test of
constitutional guarantees of separation of church and state since the DOGS case
30 years ago allowed federal funding of church schools.
One proposed
line of attack is that no legislation has been passed to authorise the program.
Chaplains are paid for out of the Education Department's kitty.
Meanwhile, a
departmental ''consultation process''
announced in August 2009 to ''develop
options for government consideration of the future of the program''
continues to limp along. A discussion paper promised in October-November has
yet to appear.
A spokeswoman
for the Schools Minister, Peter Garrett, said the paper was ready but was being
held until the New Year when ''everyone concerned
can participate in the discussion''.
DOGS believe that, like the public
funding of religious schools, the chaplaincy program contravenes Section
116 of the Constitution.
Religious
men and women have always had the right to go into State schools and provide
denominational education to the children of their adherents. But this was a
voluntary activity and received no payment from the State. It was for the
benefit of children of the faithful and was an offence to none.
But
now, with the contravention of the principle of separation of church and state,
Christian chaplains are confronted with the spectacle of Hindu, Buddhist and
Muslim chaplains demanding some of the religious ‘jobs for the boys’ funding
cake.
The
program only ever succeeded with religious men and women dedicated to their
belief.
But
throughout Australian history, religious men have wanted power and money as
well as the right to teach their peculiar doctrines to the children of their
followers. Hence the establishment of ‘religious’ schools and the demand for
taxpayer funding. Now, in 2011,
surprise, surprise, Australia is confronted with thousands of sectarian schools
dividing our children. This division on the surface is along tribal and religious
lines. However, we are now discovering through international testing like the
PISA tests that Australia is systematically, at enormous expense, educating a
race of the ‘haves’ and ‘have-nots’. For sectarian education offers not only
the first class ticket to ‘heaven’. Tribal networks also offer that first class
ticket to the good job. For the satisfied, justified by their belief in middle
class welfare and respectability, the devil can take the rest
!
To
add insult to injury, rather than engage in shepherding the children of their
dwindling flocks on the pews of half-empty churches on a voluntary basis, religious men now demand the right to enter
the secular State system and be on the State payroll at the same time.
Oh
ye of little faith!
Listen to the DOGS program
3CR, 855 on
the A.M. dial
12 Noon
Saturdays