The gap in Australia’s education system has been revealed in new research examining global schooling trends.
Government spending in Australia on private education funding was substantially higher than other developed countries, according to the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) Education at a Glance report.
Annual spending per student in private schools was about $13,700, compared with the OECD average of $11,800.
And while Australian women are outperforming their male counterparts in education, women’s employment and pay rates still lag that of their male peers, a trend consistent across the 40 countries surveyed in the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development’s latest Education at a Glance report.
Cormann said the problem was most acute in the most disadvantaged areas and that money alone would not be enough to attract and retain teachers.
The report, released yesterday, also showed that Australia has the highest level of expenditure on private educational institutions in the OECD, at 0.7 per cent of GDP.
This is more than double the OECD average of 0.3 per cent of GDP spent on private schools.
The Australian Education Union, which represents public school teachers, said the OECD report laid bare the funding divide in Australia’s education system.
