HSC: A Fair Competition?
Three letters can drive fear into the heart of any high school graduate from New South Wales.
H, S and C.
The ‘Higher School Certificate’ is the credential awarded to secondary school students who complete senior high school level studies — a familiar concept to anyone within Sydney.
The HSC has been deemed one of the most stressful events that a young person can undertake — even those who graduated potentially 30+ years ago can remember the stress they endured during their final year of school.
The HSC State Honour Roll, denoting the state’s high achievers, is released on the same day as the Australian Tertiary Admission Rank (ATAR), with the top-ranking schools released around two months later.
However, from year to year, there is not much movement among these results.
Well.
There IS movement, but it’s among one specific demographic.
Each and every one of these schools shown above is located in the Eastern suburbs of Sydney.
But, I hear you saying, it’s only the top 20 schools, right? That’s not a big deal.
As outlined by Matrix Education in the ‘2022 High Schools Ranking’ list, compiling the top 150 performing schools, there is one school that is not located in the Eastern suburbs that made the list.
One.
Makes you wonder why this is the case, huh?
Are these schools actually performing better academically? Or are they just given the spotlight over schools out in the West?
Based on further statistics from Matrix Education, it does deem that these top schools are achieving more impressive academic results in the HSC. James Ruse Agricultural High School, for example, is located in Carlingford and has placed first in the state HSC rankings for twenty-five consecutive years.
However, the main reason why you will see such a variance in HSC results from the two areas can be traced back to the funding provided to both public and private schools. The general perception of school funding and its relation to academic performance fails to acknowledge that the largest budget increases have been awarded to private schools and that they are provided with far more resources than public schools. Additionally, the funding for both Catholic and Independent schools was measured at three times that of public schools.
As Western Sydney does suffer from poor quality of education due to lack of funding, overcrowded classrooms, and inadequate resources to effectively complete coursework, it is no surprise that schools in the West are perceived negatively and can have students reinforce these stereotypes.
A significant contributor to this issue is the perception of the public education system compared to the private. The general consensus among parents who choose to privately educate their child pertains to the idea that ‘private school will make my child smarter’, an idea reflected in the top HSC lists. This then goes in hand with the perception of schools out in the West — that public schools harbour dropouts, teach troubled children, and don’t reach the same academic achievements as private schools.
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Despite this, public schools across the state are still managing to do just as well as private schools, whilst having far fewer human and material resources and being the biggest educator of disadvantaged students. Under current funding arrangements, however, they will remain underfunded until at least 2029.
An additional contributing factor is socio-economic status. According to an article posted by the Sydney Morning Herald in late 2022, the median family income in the Eastern suburbs sat at $177,000, over $80,000 more than the West’s average income of $96,000. This difference in income, therefore, provides families in the Eastern suburbs more of an opportunity to privately educate their children, enabling them access to necessary resources.
Additionally, the number of available schools in each area is vastly different. The population of central Sydney sits at approximately 287,004 individuals. Despite this, they have 831 available schools. Alternatively, the population of Western Sydney is around 3,060,429. However, there are only 553 schools in the area. This emphasises the fact that schools out West are more likely to be overcrowded, meaning funds are stretched thin, and students are provided with fewer resources and less teacher support.
I was schooled for my entire life in Greater Western Sydney. Teachers and adults in my life were always extremely supportive and continuously encouraged all of us to do the best that we could in regard to completing our HSC. But when I looked around the classroom and saw damaged equipment and inadequate resources for all the students around me, I knew I was running a race and that I was already starting at a disadvantage.
Early in my year 12 studies, I was made aware that I was to complete mandatory work placement for the Vocational Education and Training course, ‘Entertainment’. So, five or six of us applied for ‘Pulse Alive’, a government-run performing arts event for students across the state. When my teacher received the email that we had, in fact, been accepted to do work placement in Sydney Olympic Park for the event, she couldn’t believe it. Not because we were unskilled, but because of where we were located. This was only reinforced by the fact that every other student there was from the Sutherland Shire.
Every single one.
The stares and comments made towards us only heightened that feeling of estrangement. Without even speaking to me, these people had decided who I was and what my future would look like. I could have achieved the highest ATAR in that room, but the minute ‘John Edmondson High School’ left my mouth instead of an inner city school, my intelligence had already been decided in their minds.
SO, WHAT CAN CHANGE?
In order to combat this issue, I propose that students from schools in the West collaborate in a mass social movement by campaigning to the state government. This could be done in the traditional form such as letters, however, I believe it would be more effective to start a social media campaign; this issue is affecting school-aged children, whose primary method of communication is the Internet.
The most effective app for this campaign would be Twitter, which is known for being a vessel for sharing opinions. Students would be able to share their experiences with their school, and ideas for improvement in the future. This could then be aided by a hashtag such as #WesternSchooling.
By doing this, it will allow the government to hear straight from the affected individuals, and understand what schooling looks like day-to-day in underfunded schools.
Students could additionally hold action within their school to encourage the school admin themselves to start the discussion and fight for better quality education.
In conclusion,
Utilising the connectedness that social media provides, students can encourage social change by putting pressure on the government to make funding equal across the state. This is extremely beneficial for students in the area. As students, we must work together to make academic achievements fair across the state, particularly as the HSC is the gateway to a good university and a good future.
Banding together and breaking down stereotypes is the first step towards achieving change.
REFERENCES -
Carroll, L., Gladstone, N., & Harris, C. (2022, December 15). James Ruse tops HSC for 27th year as Private Schools Rise. The Sydney Morning Herald. https://www.smh.com.au/national/nsw/james-ruse-tops-hsc-for-27th-year-as-private-schools-rise-20221215-p5c6ig.html
2022 high school rankings. Matrix Education. (2022, December 20). https://www.matrix.edu.au/high-school-rankings/2022-high-school-rankings/
Cobbold, T. (2023, January 29). Government funding failures have stoked shocking inequity in NSW School Outcomes. SOS Australia. https://saveourschools.com.au/funding/government-funding-failures-have-stoked-shocking-inequity-in-nsw-school-outcomes/
Wade, M. (2022, July 2). Census and the city: Inner Sydney’s wealth is wildly outside the Australian norm. The Sydney Morning Herald. https://www.smh.com.au/national/nsw/census-and-the-city-inner-sydney-s-wealth-is-wildly-outside-the-australian-norm-20220630-p5ay40.html
A guide to all schools in Sydney, New South Wales — Australian Schools Directory. (n.d.). https://www.australianschoolsdirectory.com.au/greater-sydney-nsw-schools
