“The risk for [Australian private schools] is that their communities can come back and say: ‘You’ve been lying to us about the financial position of the school.’”
Such was Michelle Green’s, Independent Schools Victoria’s chief excutive, summation of the problem that about 300 private schools in Australia are now facing. The issue arises, as The Age reports, from the flawed data schools found on the school-ranking website, MySchool.
The website was started so that parents could compare schools’ raw scores on the National Assessment Program – Literacy and Numeracy (NAPLAN) in order to find the best schools for their child in their region. While the posting of raw scores has been problematic enough for many schools, more issues arose when Prime Minister Julia Gillard unveiled that the site would be reworked to include schools’ financial data. Although “My School 2.0” is not due to go live until December, a number of schools were permitted previews of the site’s look – and its data. One school said that its reported income changed three times over as many days; another, that its income was overstated by $11 million.
When schools voiced their distress about the inaccurate financial data, the Australian Curriculum, Assessment and Reporting Authority (ACARA) admitted that about 300 schools’ data was disputed. However, the schools are still threatening legal action if changes are not made before the site goes live. And when a school’s income is overstated by $11 million, Ms. Green and other members of Independent Schools Victoria are certain right to be worried.
Catholic boarding schools 