Strike and Eisteddfod: A contrast or a reason?

When I was a young guy I had many great teachers and inspirations. Now that I am older, I am finding that I am striving to be more like those people.

Yesterday I made a decision to lose a day's pay, sit in a room with 300 other teachers and sit there and watch a telecast of the strike action in Melbourne. All the while sitting there wondering about what effectiveness is shown by sitting in a room...

fast forward to today............

I'm standing in front of 12 amazing kids who have given up a day off of school (report writing day) to compete in a competition that is really a cover for giving kids a chance to get some feedback and win some cash.

As I stood in front of them I was once again reminded why I choose to strike.

As in my qoutes on my facebook and twitter walls suggest; I strike for the sake of the present and future education of young people. I take a hit in my pocket for one day for the better educational outcomes in the future. The government have made their stand and I'm making mine... why don't I think the plans that they have laid out will work? Because history, data and performance from the past tells me so.

If you want to give me a bonus for outcomes... give me a bonus everytime I get a kid who struggles to read and write from doing nothing to writing a sentence about the words they have just learnt, give me a bonus when a kid who refuses to work picks up a pen, and give me a bonus when a students learns that there is no difference between pop and classical music, just good and bad.

If you want to let me compare what difference I make to my colleagues... how about I base your pay the same.... because I think your speech writers and suit dry cleaner make you look better so I think that they should be paid according to how good they make you look... but it comes out of your budget.

I'm ok with what I earn because I believe that I put my heart and soul into what I do... My reward trully is seeing kids like the ones I proudly stood in front of today, do their best, take a stand for their learning and reap rewards for what they share a passion for..... Nothing can be worth more than that...