The Mitchell Institute dives into the policy battleground of schools ahead of the upcoming federal election. What are the issues, and what are the major parties offering?
As Australia heads into the 2025 federal election, it's fair to say that childcare and tertiary education are a greater focus for the major parties than schooling. However, since the last election, debates over school funding and facilities, curriculum content, teacher shortages and student wellbeing have stepped up, shaping a national conversation on how best to support the primary and secondary education sectors.
Government schools continue to grapple with funding shortfalls, despite federal government commitments to close the gap, while funding and accountability for independent schools remains contentious.
Meanwhile, policy shifts such as nationwide mobile phone bans and curriculum updates reflect community concerns about student engagement, digital literacy, and civic awareness.
What are the major issues for schooling in this election?
Public vs. private funding
One of the most significant and enduring issues in Australian schools policy is how to ensure equitable funding for government and non-government schools. The debate centres on whether funding should prioritise public schools to close the resource gap or be distributed more evenly across all sectors.
Labor's funding agreements focus on government schools, aiming to close resource gaps The Albanese Government has committed to fully funding public schools based on the Schooling Resource Standard (SRS), with agreements like the $4.8 billion deal for New South Wales setting a precedent.
The Coalition, while supportive of government school funding, continues to support funding for non-government schools and maintaining school choice for families.
Curriculum & educational priorities
The election will also highlight differences in how the major parties approach curriculum content. Labor supports a curriculum that emphasises Indigenous perspectives, climate change education, and diversity, aligning with progressive educational goals. The Coalition has traditionally favoured a more "back to basics" approach, with a strong focus on literacy, numeracy, and Australian history. These differing philosophies reflect broader ideological debates about the role of education in shaping national identity and social values.
Teacher shortages & workforce retention
A critical concern is the national teacher shortage, which has been exacerbated by declining enrolments in teaching courses and high attrition rates. Labor has introduced the National Teacher Workforce Action Plan, investing $337 million to improve teacher supply, training, and retention. The Coalition has called for urgent action, particularly in regional areas, where shortages are most severe. Both parties recognise the need to reduce teacher workloads and improve working conditions, but the effectiveness of their proposed strategies will be a key point of contention.
Student behaviour, mental health & digital distractions
The impact of COVID-19 on student engagement and wellbeing remains a priority. Increased anxiety, absenteeism, and disruptive behaviour in classrooms have led to calls for greater investment in school-based mental health programs for students as well as protections for principals and teaching staff experiencing abuse, violence and threating behaviour in the workplace. Labor has expanded funding for school counsellors and psychologists, while the Coalition has focused on classroom discipline and behaviour management policies. How parties balance mental health support with stricter school behaviour policies will be a key issue.
With the rise of digital learning tools and artificial intelligence, both parties are grappling with how to regulate and integrate technology in schools. Labor has emphasised digital literacy programs and responsible AI use in education, while the Coalition has supported stricter mobile phone bans and policies to reduce screen distractions in classrooms.
School facilities & overcrowding
School facilities and overcrowding have become pressing issues in Australia's education landscape. The surge in student enrolments, especially in urban areas, has strained existing infrastructure, leading to overcrowded classrooms and inadequate facilities.
In Melbourne, more than 40 state schools are reported to be at or beyond capacity, with over a quarter situated in regions slated for significant development in the coming years. A notable example is University High School, which, due to overcrowding, plans to relocate 400 Year 9 students to a rented office building in Lonsdale Street starting from the first term of 2025. Similarly, Perth's inner-city schools, such as Highgate Primary School, are experiencing severe enrolment pressures, leading to concerns among parents and educators.
In response to these challenges, both federal and state governments have initiated funding programs aimed at upgrading and expanding school facilities. The Australian Government's Schools Upgrade Fund (SUF) is a $284.3 million initiative designed to enhance school infrastructure nationwide.
Despite these efforts, disparities in capital investment between public and private schools persist. Analysis by the Australian Education Union indicates that five private schools collectively spent as much on new facilities in one year as 3,000 Australian public schools combined.
Additionally, enrolments in non-government schools have increased significantly in recent years, with more than 1.5 million students now attending private institutions. This trend has implications for resource allocation and exacerbates the challenges faced by government schools.
Declining student performance
Australia's declining student performance in international assessments like the Program for International Student Achievement (PISA) has put pressure on policymakers to improve academic outcomes. There is a lot of debate about whether student performance is declining or not, as well as where Australia is ranking, with different opinions about the tests used and comparisons drawn.
While both parties agree on the need for stronger literacy and numeracy standards, their approaches differ. Labor has backed targeted intervention programs and teacher training improvements, while the Coalition has pushed for greater curriculum rigor and performance accountability.
The most recent NAPLAN (National Assessment Program - Literacy and Numeracy) results illustrate a consistent result, without significant decline or improvement. However, the important detail is the one in three or approximately 30 per cent of students who are not meeting expectations and who find it progressively harder and harder to catch up.
One of the global indicators of a well performing education system is the percentage of students achieving upper secondary completion.
Compared to the other 41 OECD countries, Australians complete 20.4 years of education (compared to the OECD average of 18) and 84 per cent of Australian adults (aged 25-64) have completed upper secondary school education. This again is higher than the OECD average of 79 per cent. However, a more meaningful focus is the 16 per cent of young Australians who do not complete upper secondary education and how this impacts their quality of life. Australia's overall ranking is only 21 out of 41 countries.
Increase in non-government school enrolments
In the past five years there has been a significant increase, of almost 20 per cent, in enrolments in the independent school sector, particularly with schools that charge fees around $5,000 per year. Enrolments in government schools have been in slow decline.
Indeed, Australia has a high proportion of students attending non-government schools by international standards. Sitting at just over 40 per cent of students enrolled in non-government schools, this is around double the OCED average which sits between 15 per cent at lower secondary and 20 per cent by upper secondary.
What are the parties offering?
The question for voters on schools will be whether they support Labor's approach of increased funding for government schools, progressive curriculum updates, and mental health support, or the Coalition's focus on school choice, traditional curriculum values, and stricter discipline policies.
Meanwhile, the Greens continue to support all schools (government and non-government) receiving the full 100 per cent of their educational funding needs. They have also pledged to end public school fees and provide an $800 back-to-school payment per child to help with the cost of uniforms, school supplies and technology.
All major parties acknowledge the issue of teacher shortages, with Labor responding with incentives such as scholarships and improved conditions. Whereas the Coalition is focusing on alternative pathways into teaching, including fast-tracked teacher training programs. The Greens are advocating for higher teacher salaries and reduced workloads to combat burnout.
The Government has been vocal about reducing the negative impacts of technology on young people, supporting state-wide mobile phone bans in public schools. These bans are already in place in most states and territories, with the aim of reducing distractions, cyberbullying, and mental health issues. The Coalition is likely to continue supporting phone restrictions, but may advocate for more flexibility, such as giving teachers more discretion.
The curriculum battlelines are well-worn, with the Labor Government supporting the current Australian Curriculum: Civics and Citizenship, which includes democracy, voting, Indigenous perspectives and global engagement. The Coalition, however, is pushing for a greater emphasis on Western democratic values, national identity and Australian history, arguing that the current curriculum is too focused on 'activism' (e.g. climate change and indigenous issues). Finally, the Greens advocate for stronger focus on Indigenous history and rights, environmental justice, and political activism in civics education.
As stated at the outset, when it comes to education this election - it is tertiary education (particularly universities) and early childhood education and care that are front of mind for the Government and the Opposition, given the more direct links to issues like cost of living and workforce participation.
However, the major parties' platforms on schools continue to reflect their broader economic and social values, offering voters differing takes on funding and shaping a school system in contemporary Australia.
