HUNTER Catholic school teachers are considering leaving the diocese, sector and profession over concerns about an overhaul of the region's schools.
The Newcastle Herald reported last month that the Diocese of Maitland-Newcastle was planning to transition three of its high schools to year seven to 12: the year 11 and 12 St Francis Xavier's College in Hamilton and its two year seven to 10 feeder schools, St Pius X High School in Adamstown and San Clemente High School in Mayfield.
The transition will start in 2024 and be completed no later than 2027.
The timeline may vary between schools.
A St Francis Xavier's College (SFX) staff member who spoke to the Herald on the condition of anonymity said anger was still simmering ahead of three 'listening assemblies' next week.
"We're angry, really dirty - still," they told the Herald.
"There was no consultation or asking staff, parents, students about what their feelings were, it was just presented as a fait accompli and in 18 months we will have the first new cohort in - we still don't know if it's year seven or year 10.
"I see a whole lot of problems coming and I see the Catholic Schools Office being hellbent on ignoring all of that and just pushing through whatever agenda they have... I think the whole thing is getting hammered through to make sure we get it all in before a new bishop comes."
External advisor and transition lead consultant Dr Dan White sent families a letter last week.
"Parents and carers at each listening assembly will be invited to participate in small group discussions and, where appropriate, prioritise their discussion outcomes," it said.
"The first listening assembly will focus on identifying, from a parent perspective, the current strengths and future challenges and questions facing your school."
The staff member said the listening assemblies appeared to be a box ticking exercise.
"Everybody thinks it's a bit of a shambles, because why ask people afterwards, after a really important decision with so many consequences has been made without consulting anyone beforehand?" they asked.
"Our expectations are really low, we don't think anything will be changed or will be even answered or that we'll have any input into anything, it's just been decided from above.
"That makes teachers really, really angry because we are professionals and we're not being treated as such."
Catholic Schools Office director Gerard Mowbray said what is considered best-practice in education continued to evolve.
He said diocesan leadership had received a "large volume of positive feedback" about the transition "and we are buoyed by this enthusiasm".
"The support from our school communities reaffirms our position that this is an exciting opportunity that will lead to stronger educational outcomes, improved student wellbeing, increased opportunities for staff, enhanced learning environments and more accessible Catholic education for families," he said.
The diocese had been unable to answer some of the many questions it had received, he said.
"The reason for this is simple: we genuinely seek the input of our school communities in influencing the development of the implementation plan and therefore, the answers to their questions," he said.
"As with any change, we recognise there may be some challenges that arise during the transition process.
"Accordingly, we are inviting our school communities to be involved in the planning process and will continue to encourage our students, their families and staff to share their perspectives so that together, we can identify and mitigate potential risks."
The staff member said they and their colleagues were "gobsmacked" and "blindsided" by the diocese's plan.
"What we were really angry about was that [the presentation to staff said] it has been planned since 2014 - and nobody had been told about that."
The diocese has told families the 2014 Study into the Provision of Secondary Education recommended moving to a year 7 to 12 model where feasible.
The staff member said the diocese told staff that the current model was established because "the finances of the diocese were not very good and apparently we're in a much better financial position now".
They said staff were told that there was a "drop in attainment" between years 10 and 11.
"I think that's just a matter of junior school and stage six, because stage six is just a completely different beast - and it will be whether you're on the same campus or not," they said.
"What enrages me is that it's not been presented and justified with numbers or citations or anything, it's just statements - and we all know you can find a study for everything."
They said students came with a "completely clean slate" to SFX, where they could focus on their HSC without disruptions and learn from specialist teachers.
They said after the transition it would not be possible to separate senior and junior students and teachers would not have as much time to devote to HSC students.
"A lot of them have talked about taking retirement," they said.
"There definitely will be teachers who will look at different possibilities because I've heard teachers saying if they're travelling to this school because they're teaching year 11 and 12, they might as well take a position closer to home when it all goes seven to 12."
They said families were also considering their options.
"I know of parents who have said they're angry because they have put their kids into St Pius X or San Clemente with the goal that they will go to SFX as a specialist college.
"They are not happy with the fact they're now stuck there and they're exploring other possibilities."
