THE COMMONWEALTH AND EDUCATION
Tabled in the House of Representatives
by the Right Honourable the Prime Minister
on 6th November, 1962.
Australia, in common with most other countries of the world, has
seen, since the Second World War, an increased interest in and demand for
formal education. Technical and economic progress depends upon highly trained
personnel. The values in which democracy places its faith require opportunities
for the balanced personal and social development of each citizen. The
character and quality of our educational institutions are of concern to us all.
The most obvious aspect of the educational expansion in Australia
has been the unprecedented increase since the War in educational enrolments.
In the decade from 1951 to 1960 enrolments in all schools at primary and
secondary level increased by 65% o. During the same period, university
enrolments increased by 76% o. Technical colleges and teachers' colleges
have shown similar expansion.
Along with this phenomenal increase in numbers has been a general
diversification of educational provision. Changes are occurring in the
structure of secondary education. Technical colleges and universities are
introducing new courses. The ground to be covered in scientific studies is
continually expanding. Awareness of Australia's place in the world at large
and in relation to South-East Asia is leading to new emphases in studies in
the humanities. Provision has now to be made to educate in our schools,
technical colleges and universities large numbers of students from overseas.
Higher standards are being attained, more children are going further in
secondary education, higher proportions are being educated at university
level, more post-graduate studies are being undertaken. All of these
trends are exerting considerable pressures on our education system.
Not surprisingly, these important developments are associated
with greater and greater demands on the resources of governments, although
private organisations, the churches, industry arid the individual citizen
are all making valuable contributions. It is on the State Governments
that the main burden falls since, under the Australian Constitution, the
prime responsibility for education rests with the States.
In 1960, 1,600,000 of the 2,100,000 children attending primary
and secondary schools in the six States of Australia were attending government
schools. This was 65%/ more children than were in these government schools
ten years earlier. Part of this increase has been due to the fact that a
greater percentage of children now stay at school longer but, in the main,
the increase has been due to population growth, chiefly by natural increase,
although the arrival of immigrants has contributed a significant share.
Clearly, to provide for these extra numbers, more classrooms have
been needed and more teachers have had to be engaged and trained. The States
have responded to this challenge. Their school building programmes have been
greatly accelerated, new teachers' colleges have been established and the
teaching force greatly augmented. The costs of this expansion have been
considerable and some figures comparing expenditure on various aspects of
education in 1950-51 and in 1960-61 illustrate the rate of increase. In
total, the States between them found it necessary to spend about œ 9184 million
on education in 1960-61 compared with about œ E46 million in 1950-51, a fourfold
increase.
-2-
It is not the purpose of this document to detail the work done
in education by the States or by other bodies. The States themselves are
better able to do this. Its purpose is rather to draw attention to the
fact that the Commonwealth Government, too, is deeply interested in
education and contributes a great deal in one way or another towards its
financial support. It is recognised that education is a matter of great social
importance and that there can be no richer investment than the intellectual
and social development of our future citizens. It is also recognised that
our educational costs must continue to grow with the healthy growth in our
population and with the increasing demands for more highly trained personnel.
But the fact that a matter is important to the nation does not mean that it
should become primarily the responsibility of the Federal Government. Under
the Australian Constitution, some matters are the responsibility of the
Federal Government and some are the responsibility of the State Governments.
Education is a matter that falls in the States' sphere of responsibility,
not because of any lack of importance but because it is believed that State
Governments are in a better position to assess local needs and provide for
them. The proper role of the Commonwealth in this matter is to co-operate
with the States, but not to take over their functions. Where the Commonwealth's
responsibilities in other directions have involved it in some
educational or training programme, it has tended wherever possible to make
use of existing State facilities rather than establish institutions of its
own. This is. as it should be.
So far as financial support is concerned, the Commonwealth's
approach has been to build up the States' general financial resources. In
this way, funds that are provided federally are spent on education, no less
so than they would if they were given as direct grants for this purpose.
The difference is that, as things are, the States decide the purposes.
The year 1960-61 may be taken as an example. In that year
expenditure from the Consolidated Revenue Funds of the States ( excluding
expenditure on business undertakings) totalled almost œ 537 million. Of
this amount approximately œ E279 million ( or 52%) came from Commonwealth
general revenue grants previously known as tax reimbursement grants
and special grants made by the Commonwealth on the recommendation of the
Commonwealth Grants Commission. This means that for every œ E spent by the
States about 10/ 5d. came from general revenue grants. In 1960-61 the
combined State expenditure on education ( excluding expenditure on research,
art and cultural activities) was about œ E142 million. Thus, on the basis
of 10/ Sd. in the a total of about œ 74 million was money provided through
Commonwealth channels.
The other main component of the States' expenditure on education
is in respect of buildings. This expenditure is derived from the Loan
Funds available to the States for works and other purposes. In 1960-61
the States' gross expenditure from Loan Funds was about œ E215 million and
of this about œ E42 million ( or 20% o) was spent on buildings for education.
Again it needs to be remembered that the Commonwealth has directly assisted
the loan market to assure the States of a total works programme which might
be regarded as reasonable. The Commonwealth assistance to this programme in
1960-61 ( excluding amounts provided for expenditure under the Commonwealth
State Housing Agreement) amounted to about œ E57 million ( or 26% o of the total).
On this basis it might be said that the States' Loan Fund expenditure,
including that on education, was assisted by the Commonwealth to the extent
of 5/ 2d. in the This meant that the Commonwealth supported the States'
Loan Fund expenditure on education to the extent of some œ 11l million.
-3-
What has been said above applies to State expenditure on
universities, just as to any other educational expenditure. But in the
case of universities it does not end there. The Commonwealth, in addition,
makes grants to the States specifically for university purposes. In 1950-
51 the Commonwealth began its present scheme of grants to the States for their
universities. In that year the total of these grants was œ E. 5 million; in
1960-61 the total was over œ. 11 million. Over the same ten-year period
State expenditure on universities has also greatly increased: from
million in 1950-51 to œ E17 million in 1960-61. If the Commonwealth had not
given special support, the maintenance of the present scale of operation of
universities would have involved the States in much greater expenditure on
universities, possibly at the expense of other fields of education.
Apart from assistance provided for State universities, the
Commonwealth maintains the Australian National University in Canberra.
Expenditure for running costs and for capital works for this institution
amounted in 1960-61 to over million. There are other ways in which
the Commonwealth assists universities. For example, the Commonwealth maintains
the School of Public Health and Tropical Medicine at the University
of Sydney and, in a number of other ways, supports university research and
teaching in particular fields.
Commonwealth commitments in the university field seem likely to
increase. The extent of Commonwealth assistance was greatly increased in
1958, arising out of the financial recommendations of the Committee on
Australian Universities ( the Murray Committee). For the years 1961 to 1963
the grants are in accordance with the financial recommendations of the
Australian Universities Commission, the body set up by the Commonwealth as
a result of the recommendations of the Murray Committee. A special committee
was established, in connection with the Australian Universities Commission,
to look into the needs of teaching hospitals, which are a fundamental part
of the training programme of medical students. As a result of the
recommendations of this committee, the Commonwealth has agreed to support,
on a œ E for 1 basis, certain capital expenditure at teaching hospitals
incurred because of their responsibility for training medical students.
The question of support for recurrent expenditure is still under consideration.
The Commonwealth has also set up a committee, again in association with the
Universities Commission, to inquire into the needs of tertiary education in
Australia. Its report is expected during 1963.
Support for universities is only part of the assistance given by
the Commonwealth to the training in Australia of able students at the tertiary
level. The other main segment of this assistance is the provision of
scholarships to enable these students to undertake their courses. In 1961
nearly 13,000 such students were receiving benefits as Commonwealth Scholarship
holders. Under the Commonwealth Scholarship Scheme, which is controlled
by the Commonwealth Scholarships Board, 4,000 new awards are given each year
entitling the holder to the payment of compulsory fees and, subject to a
means test, to a living allowance. That upwards of 17,000 young people have
completed higher training with the help of this Scheme is of great importance
for a community which has so many calls for highly trained men and women.
The need does not stop at first degree level and this fact is recognised by
giving strong encouragement to outstanding students to prepare themselves
for more specialised work. This is done by means of a scheme of postgraduate
awards which now enables more than 250 distinguished graduates to
undertake higher studies in our universities. The Commonwealth Scholarship
Scheme began in 1950-51 at a cost to the Budget of œ 9.4 million, whereas
-4
expenditure in 1960-61 on Commonwealth Scholarships, including post-graduate
awards, exceeded œ E2.6 million. Other schemes are provided by the Commonwealth
to assist former members of the defence services, and the children of deceased
and permanently and totally incapacitated ex-members of the defence services.
There are Commonwealth grants to various professional organisations
which carry out training programmes in their own fields, such as the Colleges
of Nursing and Associations of Occupational Therapy. Some of these grants
are on a matching basis with those of the States.
All this, of course, is apart from the many institutions and
training programmes at the tertiary level which the Commonwealth maintains
for its own employees, such as the defence services educational establishments
and those of the Public Service.
The Commonwealth has a direct responsibility in the fields of
primary and secondary education insofar as its own territories are concerned.
In some of these the service is provided by State Departments of Education
on the basis of the Commonwealth paying the costs. There are school services,
parallel to those in Australian States, in operation in the Australian Capital
Territory and the Northern Territory; in the latter case there are, in
addition, Commonwealth schools for aboriginal children who have not yet
reached the standard for admission to the normal schools. In the Territory
of Papua and New Guinea, and in the Northern Territory too, where education
has the fundamental task of bridging the gap between a primitive and a
modern culture, the education programme depends partly on the help of the
Christian missions, who are given financial assistance towards the work they
undertake. In some of the external territories, especially Papua and New
Guinea, part of the educational cost is borne by the local revenues. In
all, however, primary, secondary and technical education in the various
Commonwealth Territories, internal and external, is costing the Commonwealth
almost œ E5 million a year.
An important contribution to primary and secondary education is
made by the Australian Broadcasting Commission which provides radio and
television programmes for schools. This is an example of the way in which
a Commonwealth authority is working in close relationship with State Education
Departments, and with advice of their officers, to supplement in an important
way what is being done in schools. These programmes, together with University
of the Air, are handled by a special department within the Commission.
Expenditure on these activities amounted to over œ E280,000 in 1960/ 61. Not
only the University of the Air but the general broadcasting activities of
the Commission undoubtedly contribute a great deal to the education of adults
in the community. Another way in which the Commonwealth has helped adult
education is by its continued financial support of " Current Affairs Bulletin"
by way of an annual grant for this purpose made to the University of Sydney.
Children who come to this country as migrants receive, as they
are entitled to do, appropriate education in the schools of the State in
which they live. However, an important aspect of the assimilation of
adult migrants in Australia an adequate grasp of the English language and
introduction to Australian ways of life is provided with the co-operation
of the States on the basis of the Commonwealth bearing the costs. These
migrants are encouraged to study on the voyage to Australia, and, after
arrival, in evening classes which are set up wherever there is a need for
them. Correspondence lessons and radio programmes are also provided.
Australia ' is vitally concerned with the Colombo Plan Technical
Co-operation Scheme. Since this Scheme began, some 4,000 overseas students
have come to Australia for training and, in addition, Australia is furnishing
experts and equipment to other countries. At the 30th June, 1961, over 900
Colombo Plan students were studying here. In addition, over 1,800 students
were studying in their own countries under a correspondence scholarship
scheme. Several other schemes supplementary to the Colombo Plan are in
operation, including the Australian International Awards, the Asian Visits
Fund, the Korean Training Scheme, SEATO Aid, and, since 1961-62, the Special
Commonwealth African Assistance Plan.
A major recent development is the British Commonwealth Scheme for
Educational Co-operation, part of which is a Commonwealth Scholarship and
Fellowship Plan under which Australia offers 100 awards, mainly for postgraduate
study. There are also other awards offered to educationists from
the newer countries of the Commonwealth. As with the Colombo Plan, there
is provision -of experts in the educational field. This is not a one-way
traffic. Australia, herself, benefits substantially under this Scheme since
already no fewer than 82 Australians have been able to accept awards for
study in universities in other Commonwealth countries.
In connection with the United Nations Expanded Programme of
Technical Assistance, Australia provides training programmes for some students
holding United Nations awards. In 1961, over 80 students studied in Australia
under this programme. An interesting recent development in connection with Australia's
international educational interests is the broadcasting by Radio Australia
of English lessons for Indonesians, using material prepared by the Commonwealth
Office of Education. By the end of 1961 more than 120,000 requests
for regular lesson booklets were being met.
Australia's membership of Unesco involves it not only in an annual
contribution to the organisation but also in associated activities in Australia
of educational and cultural importance. Many regional and national seminars
have been held, and valuable studies and publications have been sponsored.
These have been developed by the co-operation of a wide cross section of
interests in the Australian community and have stimulated developments in
important educational and related fields.
It is not easy to draw a hard and fast line between purely
educational activities and those such as the National Library of Australia
which, while having an educational role, have, at the same time, a more
broadly cultural significance. Grants are made to such organisations as
the Commonwealth Literary Fund and the Australian Elizabethan Theatre Trust.
This kind of assistance extends to learned societies, such as the various
historical societies and the Australian Academy of Science. Research
activities are also assisted, as, for example, those of the Social Science
Research Council. Cultural and community activities in Commonwealth
territories are extensively assisted. However, the costs associated with
this wide variety of activities have not here been included as educational
costs. It should not be forgotten that the Commonwealth encourages
education by granting certain taxation concessions. An example of this
is the deduction allowed for income tax purposes for expenses incurred
( to a maximum of œ 100O) in connection with the full-time education of children
under 21 years of age, estimated to cost the revenues of the Commonwealth
about œ E14 million a year. A further concession is the deduction allowed
for each dependent child between the ages of 16 and 21 years who is receiving
full-time education at a school, college or university. This is estimated
to cost revenue about œ 9750,000 a year.
6
It could justly be claimed that the scope of Commonwealth
educational assistance is even wider. The expansion of knowledge is
one of the two main activities of the universities, and is carried on
co-extensively with teaching. However, there are some Commonwealth
instrumentalities which are sharing, with the universities, this
exploration of the fields of human knowledge, often in close association
with the universities. Amongst these are the Commonwealth Scientific
and Industrial Research Organisation, the Atomic Energy Commission, the
Bureau of Mineral Resources, and the research establishments connected
with the defence services. Expenditure on these organisations by the
Commonwealth is almost œ 30 million a year.
The Table at the end of this statement sets out, for the
financial year 1960-61 and, where available at the present time, for the
financial year 1961-62, the expenditure of the Commonwealth Government
which is clearly educational. It does not include science and scientific
research, mentioned above, nor does it include cultural activities, general
broadcasting and television services, the provision of milk for school
children, or training activities carried out by the Commonwealth for its
own purposes. These activities between them would, if included, account
for more than an additional œ 46 million. Again, the cost to Commonwealth
revenue of taxation concessions in relation to education has not been
included. Leaving these aside, however, it will be seen that, in 1960-61,
apart from the œ B5 million which the Commonwealth may be said to have contributed
to the States' expenditure on education, the Commonwealth itself
in that year spent over œ 26 million directly on education. The amount
which the Commonwealth may be said to have contributed to the States'
expenditure on education in 1961-62 is not at present available, but, as
the attached Table shows, direct Commonwealth expenditure on education in
that year increased to approximately œ 33 million.
It will be seen, from what has been written above and from
the tabulation which follows, that, despite the fact that education is
primarily a State responsibility, the Commonwealth is making a very
substantial contribution to educational expenditure in this country.
7
EXPENDITURE ON EDUCATION
Summary
A. Estimated Commonwealth Component of
States' Expenditure
Education proportion of General Revenue Grants
Education proportion of Commonwealth Assistance
to Loan Funds TOTAL
B. Commonwealth Expenditure
Direct Educational Expenditure
Grants Scholarships 1960/ 6:
œ. 000
9,453
11,274 3,648
International Educption TOTAL 26,634 1960161 œ 2000
74 ,000
85,000
1 1961/ 62.
11, 889 x
14,212 4, 058 x
32,772 x
Details of above Commonwealth Expenditure
1. Direct Educational Expenditure
Australian Capital Territory:
Current expendi ture
Capital expenditure
Northern Territory
Current expenditure
Capital expenditure
External Territories ( Commonwealth
proportion only)
Commonwealth Office of Education
Australian Universities Commission
Australian National University
Current expenditure
Capital expenditure
School of Public Health and Tropical
Medicine etc.
Australian Forestry School
Australian School of Pacific Administration
( Teacher training)
Australian Broadcasting Commission-
Education Department
Migrant Education
Lady Gowrie Child Centres
Total Direct Educational Expenditure 1960/ 61
œ. 000
914
1,501 KN
403 226
1,682 203 28
2,529 1,044 115 40
281
425 42
9,453
X Estimated
xN Includes capital expenditure on Canberra University College,
subsequently shown under Australian National University. 1961/ 62
œ 000O
1 ,069
1,103 550 K
363 x
2,280 217 29
3,200 2,020 121 x
40 xc
33 x
310 x
504
11,889 X
-8-
2. Grants Grants to the States for University Purposes
Direct Grants to State Universities
Professional Training Organisations
( Nursing, Physiotherapy, etc.)
Australian Council for Education Research
Total Grants
3. Scholarships Austr~ 1ian Capital Territory Scholarships
Northern: Territory Scholarships
Commonwealth Scholarship Scheme
Ex-Service Training Schemes
Soldiers' Children Education Scheme etc.
Scholarships in Forestry, Agriculture, etc.
Assistance to other Scholarship Schemes
Total Scholarships
4. International Education
Colombo Plan Technical Assistance
United Nations Expanded Programme of
Technical Assistance
SEATO Aid
Australian International Awards
Commonwealth Educational Co-operation Scheme
Asian Visits Fund
Korean Training Scheme
UNESCO Teaching Material for Short Wave Radio Lessons
in English
Special Commonwealth African Assistance Plan
Total International Education
X Estimated 1960/ 61
fœ 000 1961/ 62
2000
11,227 30 10 7
11,274 14,161 31 13 7
14,212
16
29
2,619 212 731 38 3
3,648 14
31x
2,996 154 824 37 2
4,058
1,572 287 165 29 50 21 8
115 12
2,259 1 ,767 371 100 X
134 23
133
2,613 x