An Abso-friggen-lutely Good Teacher

Why is Hickey Sound ?

Alf one of the safest teachers around

• At Vermont I implemented appropriate safety learning, supervision and procedures. Always ! I had to take incredible measures to protect students from the unsafe practices and poor supervision of other teachers, including a coordinator, who rarely turned up on time. She on two occasions didn't turn up at all.

This teacher, Rebecca Eames is on the school council at Vermont Secondary College. The facts can be ascertained quickly, by speaking to students that she taught in Technology in 2007. No such investigation was done according to the Principals at Vermont, despite me bringing this up. Why is that ? This was admitted at the VIT tribunal in the transcript. The principals did no true investigation into my complaints when I pointed out serious safety breaches and danger to students. they also did not acknowledge the lost work time when I had to fill in for teachers like her in my breaks. 

• Being one of the best trained teachers in the department and having taught workshop safety appropriately at many schools and university for over 10 years. I am well aware of the dangers and warn students seriously of the hazards associated with the wood and metal tool rooms. I am trained in furniture technology as well as Industrial Design. I have done risk management training too. It was bizarre, that at the VIT hearing, Rod Williamson the head principal at the time, didn't even know whether the design and tech/art teachers at his school were qualified to teach woodwork or not. His best answer was, "oh we placed wood in the art curriculum, that's why art teachers take it." They really weren't qualified in 2007 to teach it. I noticed that there was a lot of passing the responsibility and blame to other people at the school. While the principals made allegations, almost always these had been received by hearsay, without investigation, DEECD procedure or reports. Essentially a whole volley of slander is directed at myself without recourse. 

Vermont as well as many other schools use unqualified teachers to teach in dangerous areas such as Woodwork and Metal work. Parents and Government should know that extreme safety breaches are occurring as principals de-prioritise these subjects in schools, as either add-ons or not academic, despite a major shortage of workers in many trades, such that we are importing immigrants to fill these high paying jobs. Education is quite often out of touch, with the real needs of society. 

• It was clear at Vermont Secondary College, that politics took precedence over good teaching and learning. This was especially true after certain teachers left the school after term one 2007. It was also clear that it escalated conflict against teachers. During term one, all the network wiring at the school was ripped out by someone who knew exactly what they were doing. Why would they do it ? What had the school done to generate that much angst. My case reveals what this might be. 

• While at Vermont Secondary in 2007, Alf complained about the unqualified status of some of the technology teachers, after observing extremely dangerous behaviours and ignorance of certain teachers for example. The teacher was watching a student using a disk sander for example. This teacher did not identify that the student was using the disk on the wrong side.

This is a hazard, by Worksafe Law of an extreme nature as it almost guarantees injury. Both the teacher and the situation, something so obviously wrong. 

• My coordinator told me of an incident where the teacher allowed a student to mig weld without eye or hand protection. This teacher has now returned to the school.
• At the same school, I observed another technology teacher , not correcting students when they got orbital sanders and were applying these to the skin of other students. 
• Students were allowed by the coordinator to use desk mounted routers and I was instructed to do so, though this tool is restricted to teachers only.
• When I brought up the danger in this, I was told by the coordinator Wolfgang Borutta, "don't upset the karma in the department," no kidding !

• A fill in teacher Sabrina Crosswaithe, did not clean up glass from the tables in one of the rooms. As such, when I had a class after her, I had to clean up her glass after her lessons. When I complained about this, nothing was done about it. 
• Despite warning the coordinator of the danger of certain damaged tools, the coordinator did not make these tools out of bounds and further the coordinator did not fix them. I purchased my own tools to substitute for the damaged tools to ensure the safety of the students.
• I was continually re-fitting blades when teachers installed them incorrectly into machines. I had to adapt and make guards where these were not there. 
• Alf has a perfect safety record, except for his initial practicum, where, while supervised by another teacher (who we might argue is inept at supervision), a student who had his back turned, put hot glue on another student's arm, as a joke. 10 years without incident for me is a rather good safety record, and I have had extreme students.

• The allegations of tailgating and speeding at camp are probably the biggest joke of all, why one of these has been withdrawn at VCAT too. The tailgating, what has been described as "unconscionable recklessness," is best understood as a bizarre attempt at making me look unsafe. The actual events do not match up with the testimony and the evidence shaky at best. I was fortunate that the real situation shows that I was actually the vulnerable person, by the bus behind, tailgating me, as indicated by law. I am accused of unsafe driving, when the actual details show, that I was the victim. This has been plastered through the newspapers, not presenting my side of the story, which I had detailed in depth. These journalists need their head read, or be censured by a disciplinary tribunal for their clear misdemeanor in lying and misrepresenting facts to the public.

Good Theory

• My theoretical background is strong. having worked in cognition, being an expert in design and technology, in a variety of fields and having incredible resilience, demonstrated through incredible adversity since childhood.
• While other non-graduate teachers in Victoria get VIt registration by default, only having a degree. To get VIT registration I had to do two years of developing a folio of work proving my ability by a host of critical criteria. 
• Studying at several universities, I gained a wide knowledge set of teaching and a variety of contexts to practice my skills. In my first year of doing a graduate diploma, I was already teaching full time, while doing the course. This before these "insane" registration bodies came in.

Good Practice

• The only time complaints were made at Vermont, was after I complained about the on-going position I had been promised at my job interview. It was a key condition we negotiated, to take the job. Before this, I only received positive feedback from all sources. It was after a May 23 meeting where a series of strange slander was made by two principals, when I started to be assertive with the principals, who now had shown me they were absolute dodos. This was particularly true of Tony Jacobs and Harry Ruff. 
• Harry Ruff made out that a process we used in technology is lacking supervision. From this point, I had to change my projects, doing one of the steps for all the students after school, sometimes till 7 or later at night. A step previously prescribed by Wolfgang as the way to do the project.
• My good practice was evident in multiple examples of evaluation and assessment, including student self assessment rubrics.
• My good practice was evident in the outcomes of my students. 
• My assessment and the student work for assessment was varied and there was much work to assess despite the allegation that there was "insufficient assessment work." 

Good Attitudes

• I am student centred and am always dedicated to informing students of possible pathways and how students can fulfill their preferred future pathways.
• At Vermont, I customised projects to the student's specific interests, not generalising activities, which might otherwise turn students into regurgitators or robots, against their preferred learning styles and . This is evident in the work. Not just in the individualised projects, but in the variety and volume of work that was created and assessed.

Regulatory Bodies Unfair & Discriminatory

• In Australia I have passed several practicums, university courses, VIT Registration and several performanace reviews to become a teacher over the last 10 years. Even then when i came to Victoria, I was demoted to graduate status, because I did not have a degree earlier, despite having completed 80 percent of my teacher's education course. The only reason I could not complete it, was that no university would allow me to enrol, in just one or two subjects. 
• This is just purely unfair, when most teachers in Victoria were given default VIT registration on the basis that thy were in a school teaching. What this shows is that VIT serves to reinforce not standards but just empower permanent workers, irrespective of the quality of their teaching. This is clear in the low proportion of females that are brought up for VIT disciplinary action. 
• Are males really the only teachers badly behaved in schools. VIT serves to create poor stereotypes of men and does nothing to ensure the regulation of gender equity in education at all. It seems that women are favourable as teachers. Its just discriminatory.

Why This is a Dangerous Case

• It sets precedents that suppress good teaching. For example, I showed evidence of good teaching, the application of good theory yet this is denied by the tribunal at VIT, supposedly experts in the area.
• Principals can use a system to implement their bullying practices and get away with it without accountability. There is very little in their allegations relevant with good teaching. 

Principals Doctors or Destroyers ?

I believe VIT and DEECD in my case, have been used as personal instruments for a teacher and a principal to bully another. VIT, in a sense has become an instrument of workplace bullying.

You will be bullied and exterminated as a contract teacher if you just "do your job" and outshine permanent/ongoing teachers. This is the normal culture of schools. Principals will support the permanent teachers, because this is their power base. As such schools perpetuate "group think," blocking true evolution or continual improvement.

The kids are the ones that suffer ! Schools are often a disease destroying the potential of Australian citizens. No one can claim that I don't put in for the kids and care for their individual pathways. The case of DEECD and VIT against me magnifies the disease of schools as well. What are the principals and other leaders doing ?

Some Experiences of School Principals

• At Brunswick South West Primary, a teacher in grade one locked me in a room overnight. I miraculously climbed out of a 3.5m high window with a windy opener, in the middle of the night and walked home by myself. The teacher was not censured by the principal or Department of Education, to my knowledge.
• At Holy Eucharist School in St Albans, I was caned for having water fights in the hot summer, (remember about 20 students were doing the same and were not pulled up). At the same time, I was bashed at least once a week, for being a "black Indian," I was named "Coco Pops," yet I was actually more "Australian" than many of these "FOB" Europeans, Croats, Maltese, Yugoslavians and Serbs. These kids weren't disciplined for this warped racial abuse.
• Dad has a long history in Melbourne, Ballarat and Australia, related to Arthur Phillip, to being the leader of the paper boys in Melbourne as a kid, to a duce at Uni High. Being an orphan, he embodies the classic Aussie battler wins, underdog story. It is sad, he has to put up with this "hoon behavior" from the teachers, media and DEECD, against his son, by these corrupt principals in his old age.
• Mum has been a teacher for 30 years and can tell you about the corruption of many principals and the many problem issues of teachers in Victoria, yet she wont speak because teachers fear for their jobs. She went to uni with Simon and Justin Madden at Mercy College- yes we're all Essendon supporters. Mum can account for my hard work and knowing my stuff. She says that what the principals did, is madness and definitely bullying.
• One wise principal said, that when Jeff Kennett made education predominantly contract work, he destroyed Victorian education. I often think, he created much of the depression in the state, that his big baby Beyond Blue is not fixing. I was basketball club secretary, when Ed Kennett was at RMIT, he had a habit of breaking perspex backboards at Carlton Baths, when he dunked, they were good days though.
• It was funny, we asked people to fish for sponsorship back then, and he comes back securing sponsorship for Rmit Basketball club from Crown Casino. When the media picked up on this, it made national news and was cool, because one of my first logo designs was on national TV. But instead of honoring the initiative, we were sort of censured by the university at this time, because of public pressure.
• After reporting a racist bullying issue of a teacher against a refugee kid at St Albans Secondary in 2006, nothing was done about this. What I have discovered generally is that if a teacher has a permanent position, they can get away with just about anything. If they are in the union, they can get away with a few things.
• Otherwise you will be bullied and exterminated if you outshine these permanent teachers. This is why Australian Education dies not work. The principals are primarily responsible for this pattern with their politicking within schools and their general cover ups for compliance.

The latest strategy of organisations like schools, is to hide their incompetence and negligence using quality management terms like continuous improvement. What they do is they set a new standard when things are bad, goals and aims, at a point when they are failing to do their job, expressing this as the start base level with a view to improving, when what they should be asking is WHY ARE THEY SO RUBBISH NOW ?

While this is important and valid, and seems humble and realistic or measurable, it should not be used as an excuse for the unreasonably poor performance of principals, as a way to divert blame or responsibility. If a principal has not done their job, they have not done their job. Case in point is the poor performance and development culture (despite their accreditation) at vermont Secondary College. There was no true performance management in place there regarding me. My work was neither monitored or recorded. Yet because I saved a very little documentation from the school, but what is there is actually quite powerful in showing my claims, I believe.

• At Vermont, a principal actually told me, that it is ok to transport kids in my car to McDonalds, for dinner on open night at the school. I specifically asked for permission. He then used this act on camp, when I transported a student, as an allegation against me, when I saw nothing wrong with this from his precedent. In fact at several schools teachers did this.
• I then love how, as a graduate teacher, new to Vermont, VIT says, you are expected to know the very big thick manual of school procedures. Well actually no Terry, NO. It is the principal's responsibility by the ETR ACT 2006, for the running of a school. This passed down through policy and procedures/guidelines, show that the principal is actually responsible for effective induction, communication and effective mandatory mentoring. VIT exposes its ignorance of school operations here, quite strongly, If I might say so !
• The principals from Vermont perjured themselves, about this on the stand and their objective witness statements at VIT, in his sophisticated demure- objective lying ! I asked for the policy from regional office, the situation, is not like the principals make out. Also insurance is still covered by parents, unlike Terry Haye's claim in the VIT determination. Terry Hayes assessment of him as a competent administrator is rubbish.
• This is made more serious when my timetable of 70+ hours barely gives me the chance to do anything else, because the school allocated too many students for prac classes and provided no technician, such that we did this work.
• Despite refusing to support me at VCAT, after previously saying they would back me up, Principal Kerrie Dowsley and Ian Crocker have (not on paper) said the allegations were never issues at their school. Kerrie loaned me her car, several times to do certain duties for the school as a coordinator. She had a lot of faith in me.
• One just needs to look at Principal Tony Jacob's last minute plan for semester one 2007 reporting, and the pathetic allegation, blaming me for not putting reports in, when the school knew very well, that I was on extended leave and all the grades were there at the school. I mean how obvious is it, that he stuffed up and left it too late- there's plenty of evidence for this. It was not my responsibility. I was acknowledged as being suicidal at one point, as I took time to protect my health from the bullying of the principals and the negative culture they created, in those last weeks at the school.

By the way suicidal ideation, is a NORMAL effect Causal with bullying. This is well known.

• I have been kicked out of schools as a student for: lighting a firecracker at Woodstock, where I was arguably their top athlete. (This despite being on the principal's committee, House Captain, winning the Inter-school Olympics Individual Champion, being active as a Christian leader, having lead roles in drama and musicals and hiking office leader) I believe I was kicked out because I rebuked James Le Barton, for trying to force kids to speak in tongues, there were witnesses to what he was doing. It happened conveniently, when the true principal was away from the school. Was kicked out of Carey for throwing waterballoons [where I have a life membership : ) ] and fighting at Essendon Grammar, when a senior kid was bullying me.
• As far as I am concerned, principals are often very stupid people. Especially when I get threatened with violence from students, as I did at Vermont Secondary and the principals and coordinators do nothing about it. This is actually a breach of duty of care by law. My taking leave was actually the responsible thing to do, in such an adverse environment against basic policy standards and health requirements.

It shows some insanity in education, when I am censured for trivial things, and unclear things, when clear serious things in schools, are just overlooked. Its funny how my experience as a teacher, matches that of when I was a student. As a teacher my suspicions about principals and schools were confirmed. When starting my complaint about serious safety breaches and issues at Vermont Secondary College, the principal chose to hide these, by bullying me and discrediting me using DEECD and VIT, as a tool for the principal's personal workplace bullying. I was used as a scape goat. The allegations are an attempt to discredit me when I complained.

• At the same time, the experience of so many schools has helped me form the universal picture that education is super stuffed. I think I have expertise in this, from the width of my experiences. I can outline the great flaws of some very big names.
• Even ex-premiere Steve Bracks, fails in committees (the one who quit as premiere, because his kid had an accident hooning), while he has statesman value, he's not the smartest cookie on the tray, as a high level auditor recently explained to me. Just because he's part of some yuppie Williamstown network, with people like Lynne Kosky, doesn't mean these guys are above scrutiny. A teacher at St Albans Secondary, who was actively "insubordinate" to me, when I was a coordinator, at one point threatened me, saying they knew Steve Bracks and one of his sons. Wow Naomi- wow ! When I left the school she tried a similar thing, she said, "I know people at that school too you know !"

I bet you, he regretted letting Lynne Kosky reinforce hooning, until it became a hate category, especially when he discovered his own kid was enjoying hooning. While I am not a hoon, I think hooning was every Westy's and country boy's right. What are the poor "Muzzas," (Musteks) going to do now with their time ? Maybe pull out knives and stab vulnerable Indian international students, to fund their drug habits and hairstyles ? Lynne Kosky proved that she was out of touch with Victorian culture.

• At St Albans Secondary, when the IT head, trashed all my student's incredible multimedia work off the computers, I realised there was something fishy going on. My kids were irate. She was a close friend of my incumbent, who then turned up a few weeks later at the school and basically told me, he wanted his job back. This is how schools really work, jobs for the boys and girls.
• Because some principals and other blue ribbon right wing folk, have moved up into other beaurocratic rolls in DEECD and Government, there's a tendency for these patterns of misused public funds, for corruption to follow all the way to the top. Brumby was once a school teacher too remember. Every time I have rung his office, he's done nothing to help me. This from the outset. Labor used to look out for the underdog. Now it seems Labor is just a parapet for Mr.Big to squat upon !
• At a school in the the UK, a teacher trashed all my student's art work, saying, "this is not art." I was tempted to pull out a picture of David Ryan's "artometer." The kids were angry, for some, it represented their first successful creative expression at the school (year 7).
• At Pascoe Vale Girls College a principal ordered, that all my student's work be thrown out 3/4 of the way through term. Why do they do it ? I think its because they want to suppress you, after outshining their political supporters in the school, who were on maternity leave or on long term stress leave.
• At another school in the UK, a group of students got wind, that I was being mistreated by the principal (not by me). They staged a strike, locking themselves in a classroom. I was accused of being subversive, but they did it all themselves. I thought it was rather cool, I felt validated, despite the naughtiness of the kids.
• These students were extremely talented. I was sad that I left them. While I took up a position as head of my area, in another school, after I left the school, the principal held an assembly and lied that I had been fired. What a dill !
• I was head of a department in the UK, where a principal, who advised government and came to Australia recently too, was found to be swindling school funds. She moved to France, to avoid police action, from what I am told by staff at the school.
• This same principal lowered student performance to acquire government funds, for underachieving schools, from my experience of what went on.
• At another school in the UK, a principal was guilty of drink driving. I found this sort of unfair. From what I witnessed in different regions, I'd say about 70% of teachers in the UK, drink drive from the pub after work, its almost an accepted part of the culture.
• At one school in the UK, after I left, I was accused of stealing laptops and throwing chairs. This was probably a little hard with my Scottish conservative Arbroathian, girlfriend always looking over my shoulder at the school. Fortunately she wrote a letter confirming that I returned the only laptop, that I borrowed from her school.
• The person I think behind the troble was a Welsh guy called Gethin Waters, who was known for his intense fits of rage, he was known to be a druggie, there were a group of teachers at the school- I had been invited before.
• My incumbent at the school was known for throwing tools at kids. And Gethin himself had picked up a table once in class in a fit of anger, well according to a number of student's reports. None of these teachers were ever censured, despite wide knowledge of the acts. In fact He is head of department at another school. I remember being in a curriculum meeting, from which he was absent, he barged in and started accusing me of leaving a door open, after he was smoking outside. Was bizarre, but he did this at the top of his lungs, red in the face at my head and myself.
• At the previous school, despite the school rules saying there is no smoking at the school, a South African teacher smoked, right outside my door, which was glass and let students see this, during my classes. This was frequent, the students would say, "cool." Was annoying at times. He used to boast, how if a kid mucked up in South Africa, he would belt them or cane them, till they couldn't move.

So What's Going On with Alf Hickey ?

So why was this athletic, academic kiddo, who works hard, gets great results from students, thrown on the street. As I have shown, the facts are not reflected in the allegations, they are a false joke at best.

I argue that these stories are common for contract workers. Ever wondered, why there is such high teacher attrition ? People use contract teachers as scape goats, the butt of the system, to cover up the problems in schools and a patch up, so they can take extended holidays. Nevermind that guy who took sick leave to compete in sport, up for disciplinary action to VIT. This phenomena has been institutionalised and widely accepted- (what is stress leave for a whole year) ?

Like me, contract workers are often the most highly qualified, and experienced, and really care for kids. They are trained to be change agents, as I was. Unfortunately schools treat them badly. they are used and abused as fill ins, for maternity leave positions and long term stress leave positions and are often, not given permanency, especially when they achieve results. It actually seems when they don't achieve results because of low expectations, they are kept as ongoing teachers. This is just poor teaching.

I have been continually destabilized, cannot get married or have kids or financial stability. When the contract worker succeeds, their work is often suppressed or undermined, because it outshines permanent teachers. Many, who might be described as the "dead wood" in our schools.

As for the performance salary raises of Julia Gillard, the deputy PM. this money will go to the principal's political bum chums in schools and will not improve education. Principals are expert in fudging such criteria. Look ate the expert teachers on super salaries who don't know basic fact knowledge in their curriculum area like that teacher at Pascoe Vale Girls Secondary.

What these corrupt principals have done to me, sinks to new lows for Victoria.

In hindsight, if I had done engineering, and taught maths and science. I would have a safe job somewhere. This despite me having more skills than your average engineer, such that I sometimes teach them things like operations management and production optimization, which they somehow missed at university.

Its just that principals are generally not educated enough to discern a teacher's skills and value. Maybe they are more interested in their position, the politics and their income. There might be a predominance of left brain, managerial administrator's, making for a very imbalanced society. They generally, just do not have the depth, of other more holistic types of personalities.

We wonder why, we are still a dumb country that depends on its ores not its brains transforming those ores, adding value (forgive me anti-Descartesians) to survive. We all talk of being a clever country rather than just the lucky country. We even think we avoided the recession. But private vs public infrastructure works are almost dead, as an Access Economics article showed recently. I suppose its a good argument for Australia's socialist-interventionist core. Yet the current "Keynesianism" is so Capitalist at the same time. Why are we so stupid ? Instead of supporting our potential we destroy it and oppress it. We claim to be a smart country, when in essence we depend on the ground, not the mind.

I have qualifications and experience in one of the more difficult degrees at university, in Industrial Design. I have designed robots and furniture and have so many expert skills. Yet I can't find work. Why do we waste our intellectual capital ? Why is it that, people like me are oppressed and suppressed in schools ?

Many people, like me are oppressed in the education system. While we teach students to be self directed autonomous learners. When one is produced, like myself, we get kicked in the head. Education is the antithesis of its own claims and aims. This is a symptom maybe of a bigger problem, where society society itself, does not support its own claims and aims.

I was identified as a child prodigy in my philosophical thinking in year 10, by a PhD in philosophy. I was also a very capable athlete (The late Alan Barlow OAM of Box Hill Athletics Club-Olympic Coach- who sadly died this year- a real legend- the greatest encourager), said If I was nurtured, that I would one day run for my country. So why didn't I ? Mr.Bentleigh from Carey, can confirm, that I equalled the state record in the triple jump in 1989 for my category. Why haven't I fulfilled my ability, as identified by so many. SCHOOLS ARE RESPONSIBLE. Students are entrusted to schools, principals, teachers as substitute parents.

There is a word for a thing that stops a person fulfilling their potential.

Its called a disease.

When schools inhibit potential, being the default "incubators" of the potential. Schools become a disease and the cause of this, the people in charge of them. Those who are responsible, the school principals and leaders.

I blame the dodo principals ! Why is it, that when encouragers like Michael Griffiths of Essendon Grammar (architect/teacher), who encouraged my interest in Visionary Architecture, who said that I had the gift, couldn't follow through to nurture me further. It was my dislike for Maths, (maths to me is a lower form of cognition), that meant that I couldn't get into architecture at uni. Its actually probably because of a pathetic course counsellor at Strathmore Secondary College.

And while we're on Strathmore, while I designed the year 12 logo for our graduation top. The highly esteemed coordinator, Connie Clarke, married since- proves that she is "The Greek Welsher of the North," she still hasn't coughed up the prize after 18 years ! Well, at least we had fun in our VCE. We had water fights with shopping bag water bombs, before all these current water restrictions- good times. The coordinators tried to oppress the fun, they failed. I don't remember if the teachers were water bombed. I do remember that in this year, a teacher pulled out a fire extinguisher and squirted it at some misbehaving students in my class, it was the funniest thing I've ever seen. I think this "behavior management" actually worked too, the kids were laughing too hard to misbehave.

I noticed he was still working as a teacher recently.

Mud Slinging The Evil Hoon Teacher

It was wonderful to see the ignorance of "lay Australia" and the media plastered on a few blogs last week. I was quite entertained:

ROD WILLIAMSON
Rod said: Get rid of this clown. We don't need to train up more idiots. We have enough now.

Rod I'm assuming Rod Williamson, the principal who put the vague slander forward, after I had left the school.

Well Rod, accusing someone falsely of taking drugs is a serious offence, like you fabricated in the minutes and your witness statement. Even your breach of process, in not reporting such serious incidents to the police (despite being lies) shows your incompetence. Its "hoon principals" like you who should be in jail, for trying to destroy the lives of good people who serve the public well. Whose hard earned tax money would probably be better spent on a principal who actually cares and takes responsibility for their failures, rather than pinning them on a defenceless, graduate- new to your school, who you forced to do over 70 hours a week (which you didn't even, care to notice), way above the legal award. You're the man HotRod. Misrepresenting, infact not even being aware of a teacher's contributions. Then without investigation, making serious allegations, that put them out of work for 3 years, in the prime of their life. Good one HotRod. When VASSP and ROTARY kick you out, as you deserve, I'll pray for you. But until then, you're just un-Australian, not a tall poppy or blade of grass, but a desperate weed.

Shelby said: Let me see if I have this correct - tailgating a SCHOOLBUS, doing burnouts in a SCHOOL carpark, swearing at kids in his classroom, leaving the kids unsupervised AND letting the kids do dangerous things (ie standing on tables)... and he thinks he is being treated unfairly because he was suspended... What is his IQ? 60? He should be grateful he didn't receive a life ban!

Have never actually done a burnout in my life I don't think. Actually this is not true. I accidentally did a "burnout" around the fountain in front of Buckingham Palace a number of years ago. The tread on my tires wasn't that great. There were a bunch of us Christian folks in London. Didn't realise this was a restricted area (well there were no signs). We quickly discovered otherwise and in the rush to get out, Alf's car skidded- eesh, one of the soldiers there was not happy. The only incident where I have done a semi- doughnut was at another school, where my car slipped on some gravel, turning sharply. It was never out of control, if that's hooning, I suggest that principal GM, do some research. She might also need to adjust her perception of reality, or do some refresher PD in psychology, her area. Maybe I could teach her my cognitive model, that would explain her misperception of things, from a "try hard pedanditicism," compensating and distracting from ineffectual management in a confused role fixation.

There are a lot of seat warmers in the principal class on $100,000+ salaries. Sorry i don't actually swear Shelby, except in some poetry for effect and on the odd occasion in the house. From memory it wasn't yelling at kids, and it was definitely said in the context of a kids misbehavior, and what a Tafe teacher would tell him, as I have been told before, "they'll tell you to fuck off." It was worse when I was in the Army Reserves. I suggest you integrate with wider society to understand the cultural normailty of swearing in Australia, or maybe watch some American Tv so prevalent here since uncle Johnny tried to make us a suburb of the US. Until then please defend Christian boys like myself, who actually try not to swear. I'm actually renowned for my substitutes, like the very retro "fruit !" or my uncle Andy's "b;looming," or "shite" is also a pretty good substitute swear word.

As for tailgating this "witness" (to his own deceitful mind) isn't credible, he lied, simple. The conditions, even the law disagree with him. He didn't even know what tailgating was, yet he accused me of it- this is just base bullying and ignorance. Its also a reflection on the quality of Carmel White and her team in Conduct and Ethics at DEECD, the principals and VIT. I mean if you don't know something, don't make out you do. This is inappropriate for a teacher (certainly below VIT graduate level registration). Maybe this teacher needs to go back to primary school, or maybe a compromise like driving school. The police should probably take his license away, because he clearly couldn't be a safe driver, if he doesn't know what tailgating is. Shock horror, maybe he's the "hoon hypocrite," tut tut !

ANDREW BOLT
Andrew Bolt said: For those who don't know Andrew Bolt is an infamous, right wing journalist, renowned for backing the big man, economic rationalism and white collar bigotry. Well he just titled his article against me, "A Teacher Who Should Stay Sacked." I didn't even bother responding, in any depth to his plain ignorance. I just wrote a brief note back to him, which he failed to publish- poor gutless Andrew, its been hard for "righties" since Obama got in and Howard got the flick:

Mr Bolt have you ever considered doing some real journalism and getting my side of the story. Are you that pathetic, biased and imbalanced ? Have you ever considered that alf hickey might be innocent ? Or are you, like dumdum drill man, just wanting to create alarm and let these corrupt principals, who did not deal with really serious issues, like employing unqualified teachers to do woodwork, get away with it. Yeah that's right, I was blackmailed and also threatened, because I was going to expose it publicly ! Why don't you stop your reckless irresponsible hoon mouth, like some toddler imaging he's in a ferrari on his tricycle ? No principals are always right. But yeah we've forgotten that right wing bozos like you went out of fashion with President Bush ! (alf hickey)

Was reading Andrew Bolt's article, "Rorting Data is Hell, Nino. I found it curious that he emphasises the following quote (page 34, Herald Sun, Novemeber 25):

What they reveal is perhaps the greatest scientific scandal of our time - a conspiracy by warmist scientists to fudge statistics, sack sceptical scientists, block the release of data to prevent checking, illegally destroy data, deceive reporters, censor sceptical papers, and hide errors in their work.

These are all traits that "hoon mouth Bolt" has displayed in my case. I don't think his judgment or claims should be trusted at all, he's a bit of a hypocrite here. But I suppose right wingers might be analogous to "Pharisees on steroids."

BB: With teachers like that no wonder kids have no respect for others.

Well this one is just silly. What happened in the school was 2 students, probably urged this way by another teacher or coordinator, threatened me in class and tried to essentially destroy this through verbal attacks, walking out frequently (despite being pulled up), not abiding with instructions, not listening to demonstrations and most seriously a "death threat."

This kid wasn't censured by the coordinator or principal. When I said, this must be revealed publicly, I was threatened with disciplinary action. You can't let kids get away that stuff. (Especially when I was just a graduate teacher in their books). Now this child has been taught that, he can get away with anything. If he becomes a criminal, as his behavior is pointing to, he could probably safely blame ex-principal Rod Williamson. Good on ya Rod.

BB, sorry your ignorance is a symptom of not just irresponsible media but a reckless principal too. Never mind, while our kids suffer at the hands of negligent and incompetent principals, despite their undeserved accolades. At least you can feel happy trying to lynch the evil hoon teacher. Good on ya BB, just go through with the lynching for real, would ya ?

While I don't swear generally, principal Tony Jacobs does, as did my mentor, publicly, frequently, in class. It actually draws respect from students for him BB. Even in supposed minutes of a meeting he is quoted as swearing by Harry Ruff another principal. But the hypocrite, in his lying has no shame in forwarding an allegation that I said "fuck off" to a class, despite no incident report ever coming from me, which the principals by admission say is against school policy. But this was overlooked at VIT as irrelevant, maybe because this ethical body is unethical. I mean nothing new with that DEECD conduct and Ethics is renowned for its unethical behavior, seen in many cases where they just get it wrong, when the clear facts don't add up. Despite my appeals no investigations were put forward.

Bruce: Maybe we got one who says it like it is... you would have to be a nutter to teach now days anyway. You friggin keep it up son..screw the toffs.

This one's cool. I agree there is a sense of pretence and "that side of the Yarra" in this one. This also suggests that the Herald Sun might have gone white collar, never ! Its funny when the mineral folk, like many of those in the Pilbarra, those who probably keep the country afloat, our core for now, make statements like this. Maybe he's right, I tell it how it is. My poetry is a bit like that. What if these registration bodies and the department of education, are a pack of Toffs, or tossers, out of touch with reality. I mean the determination shows this. The principals are just taken for what they say, despite so many problems with their testimony. It could very well be a reflection of the "dead wood" in schools, rising into our education authorities. I mean the barrister is called "Mr White," the head of Conduct and Ethics is "carmel White." Is that a reflection of the Menzies White Australia policy or something. I wonder if they live on that side of the Yarra. Only thing is all the yuppie students I ever hang out with swear endlessly. I was often excluded, for being the linguistically conservative Christian boy. I mean this did change in the army reserve. But I still hold that swearing is not the Jesus way, despite some vulgarity in the bible from God, eg. Isaiah, going nude for three years.

Check Out:

James Campbell: I swear this man is a Victim of fashion

Stephen Drill: Banned teacher Alf hickey, Battles to Get His Job Back

Andrew Bolt: A Teacher who should Stay Sacked

Alf Hickey - Evil HoonTeacher

The Gist:

Vermont Secondary College

• Took a position that was "ongoing" (permanent)
• Realised the school has a pathetic staff and student culture
• Frequently asked for feedback- was always positive from principals
• I checked weekly, as the "ongoing position" wasn't made official- they lied to me. I had made financial commitments based on this agreement.
• I wanted to make sure that I met the 3 month standard probation requirements and fix any issues- there were no issues from the feedback- this was coordinators, heads, principals and teachers- all good !!!
  

May 23 "The Fireside Chat"

• Then on May 23, after I asked for a meeting to discuss the permanent position
• A series of issues were brought up, they weren't true and were bizarre. I wasn't sure what they were talking about.

The work of allegedly out of control classes, with no evaluation & behavior management.

Details, design and finish show a level of care and thoughtfulness inconsistent with the claims of principals about myself.

• I challenged these claims, one of these was the claim that I told a class to fuck off.
• This was just an outright lie by a student. He even made claims like I did not let him have a tape measure, when these were accessed freely, by students from the cupboard.
• Not one good thing was said about my teaching, student performance, behavior management- ZILCH- this from a school given performance development accreditation- which from my observations and experience, like this, is a joke at best- have a look at some samples of my year 10 woodwork students, also see above.
• I complained to Rodney Williamson and asked him to look at my true performance.
• Remember I was only at the school for a few months and had started to teach these projects and adapt them as a graduate teacher in the school, I had never taught these specific projects before this:

Coroflot 2007 Vermont Secondary Term 1

Coroflot 2007 Vermont Secondary Term 2

• Issues the principals brought up were all vague technicalities, clearly clutching at straws to show poor performance- if you see my student's work, you will agree it very unlikely that classes were ever out of hand, the precision, thoughtfulness, would be nigh impossible.
• Letting a student stand on a table is not unsafe, even by worksafe laws, which stipulate a 2m height danger.
• The safety, is determined by a teacher's individual risk assessement, which as an Industrial Designer and Furniture Technologist I always do. For example, I hate sharp edges, which are common in furniture, because I know what these can do to a person's skull. Its safer to have a kid a kid on a table than, being pushed into a machine that's operating, injuring myself and himself. I can also tell you quite confidently that cars and roads are naturally dangerous, in that a car is cognitively unsafe to drive.
• The amount of information requiring attention to keep the law, outweighs human cognitive abilities, so people are all natural hoons. The claims about me "hooning" are far from the truth.
  
• The most dangerous thing in driving is the stress inflicted on a teacher on purpose. What is called bullying. Speaking to a teacher recently, she had a serious car accident, after stress had an affect on her driving. This is why causality is so important in schools. What causes a person's stress. If a person's stress is caused by another, then that person should be liable, for any adverse effects of that stress. This is a problem of interpretation though. It is in the reasonableness of expectation, that the judgments must be made.
• I was given no defence, and this meeting was NOT disciplinary, as claimed by the principals, DEECD and VIT, this is an outright lie, the principals committed perjury on a number of counts. But who is going to police this hey, while teachers have all these hoops to prove our competence (as I have and do)- principals still don't even have expected standards in Australia.
  

While teachers have all these hoops to prove our competence...principals still don't have prescribed expected standards in Australia.

• After this I went to a camp, lost my way, but it seems I still got their on time from the evidence. I had been warned the day before that they were out to get me for "lateness."
  
• A whole series of crazy allegations were made at the camp, most either technicalities or not in context.
  
• I think a few staff turned against me, when I stood up for a Christian teacher who was bullied by a few staff. She had taken initiative, to propose a school chaplain, which had been approved by the school council. A planned attack from atheist teachers in the school at a staff meeting turned this down, in one of the most aggressive, planned attack from atheists that I have ever seen.
• I took a quick survey of students in my classes and about 85% were cool with having a school chaplain.
• I was troubled, when a student wore a t-shirt which said, "God loves you everyone else thinks you're a wanker." Some Christian kids were offended by this shirt. This student wore it, at virtually all plain clothes events, I hope he washed it. I was the only teacher to correct him for it, in a school which supposedly values, "tolerance, respect, responsibility." I tried to diffuse the situation saying, "well, statistically speaking most adolescents are wankers, so there is no novelty in that motto mate." Everyone thought this was funny, I think the strategy worked.

May 29 The Blackmail

• After complaining, in the same discussion, Rod Williamson, says that he can help me find another position, or if I complained about what I had witnessed at the school, he would take disciplinary action against me. I said, my teaching is good, my student outcomes are good.
• It is here that the second falsified minutes appear.
• This sort of situation is why schools in Victoria will not improve the way they are. Show business and fear hide the possibility of any improvement.
• Principals often getting paid over $100,000 do jack all for the kids, with no true accountability by educational standards. As shown in the VIT hearing, they do not have basic knowledge of serious issues.
• The issues at the school were things like: students being at risk because unqualified teachers were teaching woodwork, damaged tools being used by staff, a coordinator being late almost every lesson, to the point that I had to cover their classes whenever I had a spare that coincided with hers, staff bullying of several staff members, including myself.
• The principals were part of that pattern too. Really useless role models.
• I was in a class when a ball hit a window outside and showered glass over a student using a dangerous tool and myself. One of the principals was supposed to be supervising. But why aren't they disciplined for their serious negligence ? I wonder why ?

The Camp

• Tailgating. On a dusty road I was jammed in between two buses, at time 20 meters apart with my 4 meter car, inbetween. The law says that vehicles 7.5 meters or over must be 60m apart. But like all the policies and procedures and accreditations that Vermont Secondary and its principals break consistently, they have interest in the law or Deecd policy. Their only interest is their DEECD brown nosing, psychopathic control of a graduate teacher who's performing very well.
  
• Its no coincidence that the person who claimed I was tailgating was the arch atheist in teh school, next to another woman, who had tried to turn me against a Christian lady at the school in the first few weeks. One whom I defended then, because she was bullied in the background.
  
• I was trying to get off the road, because I felt unsafe. Infact I wouldn't be surprised if the coordinator in question was egging the driver on to tailgate me and jam me in closer. It was also hard to see, because of the dust. I was scared !
• Overtaking on the dirt road. This doesn't even appear in the transcript. Why was it in the determination ? Its also no coincidence that Terry Hayes was on the disciplinary comittee, that let the matter through. He then appears as the panel chair. He was clearly trying to create a sense of "fear hickey the hoon," against the facts. Its also no coincidence that Carmel White the head oif Conduct and Ethics was at VIT too, a massive breach of natural justice and surely a conflict of interest. And why wasn't I allowed to call her as a witness in the case ? I will reveal more of these strange patterns at VIT and in DEECD.
  
• One interesting pattern was copy and pasted items on the witness statements. Also there is a sense of sections, where witnessed seem to ahve been prompted to create statements around a theme, eg "Care or safety, lateness or supervision." This is almost scary institutionally recognised bullying.
  
• I think I was accurate in calling it torture, it matches the description, of what the school falsely did to me after May 23 and before, despite exemplary performance. What does this say about Victorian schools ? Principals need to be regiulated heavily. Increased scrutiny of principals must be instituted because of the actions of people like Rod Williamson who is a skidmark on education leadership in Victoria.
  
• One interesting point from the camp though, is that errors that I told to DEECD, were fed back into the witness statements at the school. So waht we have is breaking privacy law and a number of procedures here too.

But we don't care about law or what is right or truth - we just kill the supposed evil hoon teacher in our witch hunt with pitch forks (I like Shrek). Honestly I wish someone would kill me, do me a favor. I can't work, move, get married, I was on the street for a while. I even remember sending a letter to DEECD, with the address strarting, Alf Hickey, c/o Milo the Dog (my little Chewawa mixed Fox Terrier). Its funny too, I haven't had a car since 2007, Alf the ghost driver- I like it.

I have generally been suicidal, not from depression, but not being able to work and thrive or sometimes survive. Yeah, and I really care for kids and am troubled by the poor quality teaching of design/technology and art in schools generally. Its not taken seriously- unqualified teachers often take these subjects, as they did at Vermont, in very dangerous ways as observed. These areas are often more academic, than more prescriptive left brain subject areas, like math, science or english. One comment, from a professor at uni, was that "The Art Curriculum in Sydney was more 'scientific' that the science curriculum."

• What is really odd about the camp allegations, is that they actually reveal the indiscretions of the teachers at the camp, even lies: Alison Bate says, "he didn't report to me when he came," but then she reveals that she had taken a student to the hospital. While she makes a big song and dance about a duty car, requiring approval, what contingency is in place if a student is injured, when she is away with her beloved duty car.
• She forgot to order a lunch for me on the last day, this is just poor contingency planning.
• When I arrived at the camp, a group of students were not supervised.
• Lying about a roster for breakfast, when all the students have left breakfast, she says I came late for breakfast. Actually, while they were all gossipping in their mother's club, about how to get me in trouble, no doubt, with the allegation of being late to breakfast. I was actually the only teacher supervising the kids outside, having a kick of the footy too, while they sat on their "fat lazy- permanent position, breakfast chomping behinds."
• The coordinator Andrew Doyle, let a student go back unsupervised then tries to pin this on me.
• says I was speeding and tailgating a bus. That's right (speeding despite being behind the bus). I wonder what university he went to, to have such incredible intelligence.
• As for tailgating, the buses were tailgating me, by law, by the described situation and by the virtual impossibility of him making the claims he did.
• This came as no surprise to me. Andrew Doyle was the chief atheist in the school with another teacher Rebecca Eames. When he swore on the bible at the VIT hearing I laughed. Rebecca called a christian teacher, "you Christian nut," a few weeks into my time there. She was recruiting people against the school getting a chaplain.

Invented Rules and Allegations

• A number of allegations are just invented.
• I was told to use the machine room as a part of the routine in aproject by my mentor
• On May 23, this is suddenly described as "lack of supervision."
• While the other teachers still do this, I stopped the normal practice after May 23, yet this is not acknowledged and it is still used as an allegation. Some of these events, were normal school practice, they are not actually by any common standard "lacking supervision."
  
• What this reveals is that a principal can define good teaching practice as misconduct. So all the good things that we learn at university and in practicum, mean nothing by a principal's vague perception.
  
• In my case principals invent nilly willy accusations, against good teaching practice.
• While teachers like myself have to go through incredible hoops, just to have a job, these jokers, have default registration and rubbish knowledge. This is an absurd state of affairs !
• Probably the most humorous allegation, was one where I had diarrhea and sought supervision from 3 or 4 people in the immediate environment. This is called a lack of supervision. I called it in the VCAT witness statement, "Supervision like a curry powered Superman"

Other Lies & Issues

• The "minutes" are clearly falsified, Rod Williamson and Kim Fallon
• The principals break department procedure
• The principals accuse me in these of saying, "I take speed to stay awake."
• They claim that I am psychiatric because I was a part of a study into youth mental health , but this is just not true. Its the last time I volunteer for this stuff. When crazy people like Rod Williamson distort your contributions like this.
• They claimed I had a successful business, when this is just not true, the work I do is gratis and best defined as a hobby.
• For example in the last year I have done work for the Kinglake Bushfire area gratis, like the Anzac Memorial sign and the booklet cover for this service at Kinglake.
• All the claims of lateness are false and lacking supervision are false.
• I said in response to this, that "I might as well seek asylum in third world country, at least I'll probably get better justice there."
• When I tried to get information from the school for my case, I discovered Rod Williamson and then Tony Jacobs had told teachers not to reveal anything or speak to me. So I was unable to get reliable witnesses or make a proper case. Off course with the poor staff culture at Vermont, the teachers fear for their social position and their jobs both from the principals and the school itself.
• When I asked Pam Brutervic to tell the truth about the permanent position, she sent a note to Conduct and Ethics caling me a terrorist.
• Tony Jacobs, when I asked him for a piece of information the other day, told me he would take out a restraining order if I rang the school again. Nothing new here hey, the whole thing was blackmail.

Why Teachers, Unions and Government Must Act against these Principals

• They set a precedent where students can get away with serious behavior without correction, to hide the poor state of their school and its systems, this is against DEECD policy.
• They set a precedent, where false allegations can be made without investigation or recourse, to delay and slur the character of a teacher making complaints about dangerous actions of principals.
• Now your automotive issues can be used against a teacher, to determine their fitness of teaching. I was told by someone in VIT, that I was being used as a guinea pig to create some new precedents for principals to have more power in schools.
• They set a precedent, where a parent can stop a teacher from disciplining a student with serious and dangerous behavioral problems.
• A principal can make slanderous allegations without recourse or proof.
• The normal processes of a school can be assumed to be correct, even when they breach DEECD policy and Victorian LAW
• A teacher can make claims about speeding or tailgating, despite not being able to describe what tailgating is from the stand. Police do not have these powers, why they require speed cameras and other technology to accurately measure such, because of the issues with human perception.
• These principals and Carmel White have falsified documents and breached procedure. They must be brought to justice, given the need for integrity in higher positions of responsibility.
• Student whimsical "curriculum theorising" (without good cause) was used as a basis for allegations. Yet the evidence shows that the transparency of the evaluation as is evident in high outcomes, reveals highly advanced and developed evaluation/assessment scenarios. Students should not have this power over a teacher.

Other Issues

• There is some evidence that VASSP (Network of Victorian State Principals) was used as a forum to bully myself.
• There are bits of information like "wheelies in the car park" (that are the words of Kerrie Dowsley of St Albans Secondary College, which also appeared in Stephen Drill's article in The Sunday Herald Sun), also appeared in Kim Fallon's words in the transcript, where he calls me a hoon and uses the carpark. This might be evidence of cross institutional bullying and victimisation by several principals. At this school, there is a true hoon, who is not disciplined, because he is a permanent teacher. There is a principal too, who I keep hearing reports about as an incompetent administrator of facilities, like advising that air conditioners are installed in the wrong way and allocating funds inappropriately. She is active at VASSP. I had to fix some of her mistakes, when I was at the school.
• I believe VASSP is a snake actually aimed at networking principals for their self interest and slandering teachers.
• Like VIT, it has a face of service, but its aim is to suppress education for their personal benefit by making teachers fear them. Fortunately principals can be taken to VIT disciplinary procedures.
• Lateness ? The daily organiser recorded events where I was doing legitimate school duties in my spare lessons in the morning. Also because I wasn't in the technology office, my mentor sometimes thought I was late.

Does anyone see anything wrong with schools and principals yet ? Do they really work ? Next we'll explain why "Alf Hickey Hoon Teacher" is an Abso-Friggen-Lutely Good Teacher.