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According to the Nationally Consistent Collection of Data (NCCD) for 2016, more than 470,000 (12.4%) school students received some form of support due to a disability that required extra funding.
That is more than double the number currently receiving Federal and State funding, according to Productivity Commission figures.
However, this funding gap is roughly the same as in 2015, meaning that 269,000 students with a disability are still not receiving any additional funding.
And this is a major national issue that transcends the tit-for-tat school funding debate, says David Roy, a lecturer at the University of Newcastle’s School of Education.
Roy, who is a staunch advocate of greater support for children with a disability, said one of the biggest issues is that the Department has no way of communicating how much of the RAMS loading money that has been allocated for disability funding is being used.
“Department executives from different areas have said this process is simply based on trust alone. In other words, they speak to the principals to make sure this money is being used properly,” he told The Educator.
“And yet, testimony coming from parents and teachers shows that funding is not being used for children with a disability. So why isn’t it being used for its purpose?”
Roy said that even though the Department is getting an additional $35m to deal with special needs students, there is no evidence it is being used this way.
Roy said that when the needs of children with a disability are not being met, parents often have no choice but to home school their child. However, in the absence of funding to support this education, students are left without support.
“What happens to all the funding for those children? The home schooling parents certainly don’t get it. More than $15,000 of standard funding that goes to kids disappears, as does all of the RAMS loading,” he said.
“That’s the problem with Gonski 2.0. While 20% of the Gonski funding would go to the state to fund public schools, 80% comes from state governments, and the problem is that we don’t know what’s happening to that money.”
‘Royal Commission needed’
Roy said that one way to resolve this issue is through a Royal Commission, which he said has been requested from two Senate inquiries and various auditor-general reports.
“There is a fundamental issue that’s going on in Australia around the treatment of the disabled, and a Royal Commission is required,” he said.
“To allow this process to begin, members of the Coalition need to realise that these are Australia’s children, and they need to put children first – and I think there are people within the Coalition who care enough to do that.”
Stephanie Gotlib, CEO of Children and Young people with a Disability Australia (CYDA) told The Educator that while the Federal Government has been clear in its commitment to disability reform, “critical and parallel” changes are also needed in relation to education.
“It is unclear how highly funding with students with disability will be prioritised. This government has been clear in its commitment to significant disability reform in the renewed attention to the National Disability Strategy and its ongoing commitment to the NDIS,” Gotlib said.
“I would hope that the critical and parallel reform in relation to education and students with disability also occurs. CYDA believes education reform is crucial, otherwise the success of these other significant reforms will be greatly diminished.”