Australian Education Union, Victorian Branch

Member
BENEFITS
Winter travel offer
STATE Schools’ Relief, the charity formed by teachers to support
disadvantaged students, has teamed with Peregrine Adventures to
offer private tours of China and Vietnam during the September school
holidays.
AEU members can take advantage of a 10% “winter warmer”
discount. Part of the cost of the tour goes to State Schools’ Relief to
support its work providing new school wear for students in need.
The China tour takes in historical and cultural sites in Beijing and
Xi’an — home of the terracotta warriors — before travelling on to
Yangshuo and Hong Kong. The cost is now $1,603 plus flights from
Melbourne.
The Vietnam tour will explore its history as French Indochine and as
a centre for traders and travellers, with stops in Saigon, Hanoi, Hoi An
and Halong Bay. The cost is now $1,266 plus flights from Melbourne.
For more details go to www.ssr.net.au or call Peregrine Adventures
on 1300 854 439. ◆
Winter wellbeing
POSITIVE psychology and emotional intelligence will be the tools for
giving AEU women a winter wellbeing boost in two events run by
popular consultant Deb Ferguson in August.
Deb will lead an all-day seminar and an after-school forum at the AEU
office in Abbotsford, offering practical strategies to build resilience and
improve wellbeing and health.
The after-school forum on August 15 will present positive, practical
ways to build resilience through emotional intelligence, while the all-day
seminar on August 29 will develop skills in positive psychology.
In both sessions, participants will learn strategies to feel more in
control and better manage stress and stress triggers. The focus on
mental, emotional and physical wellbeing will benefit participants and
their colleagues, students and family.
Costs to members are $30 for the forum and $50 for the seminar
(including lunch). Both events meet VIT professional development
standards.
Book online at www.aeuvic.asn.au/calendar. ◆
Women’s FOCUS
Barb Jennings women’s officer
Letting the side down
A talk on the topic of mean girls was
a stimulating centrepiece to this year’s
conference.
HOW prevalent are cases of women bullying or mistreating other women?
The issue, highlighted in a presentation by Meredith Fuller, author
of Mean Girls, proved a controversial one at this year’s booked-out AEU
Women’s Conference. It is a subject that has been increasingly raised at our
women’s program PDs in the past few years.
Feminism has female solidarity and compassion at its core and many of
us are very sad to see that some of the worst examples of discrimination
against women are perpetrated by other women. We need to begin a conversation
about the complexity of this issue.
It was starkly illustrated once again in the recent experiences of a young
woman AEU member who works at a secondary school in Melbourne.
Her (female) principal refused her requests for leave to cover family
responsibilities. The woman, with a four-month-old child, had no choice but
to return to full-time work — where she was offered no support to maintain
breastfeeding.
Ironically, the woman’s partner received much support and assistance
from his (male) principal.
We consider this issue to be so serious that we will publicise full details
as a case study once the young mum has settled into her new role. The very
pregnant young member attended the conference 10 hours before giving
birth. Mother, father and baby boy are all doing well.
Nina Funnell, a social commentator and expert on preventing violence
against women, explored young people’s use of technology and social media.
She said we need to talk to young people to help them make decisions in this
fraught area.
Nina has worked closely with young Australians and seen the
ineffectiveness of the “Just Say No” approach. Her view is that respectful
relationships and programs developed with young men and women will help
them negotiate issues of consent.
She advocates an ethical framework involving care of self, care of others,
and reflection. This is the approach she uses in her work with elite athletes
and in her advisory role on the NSW Premier’s Council on Preventing Violence
Against Women.
The feedback was exciting and we are trying to arrange a full-day
professional development event with Nina later in the year.
Conflict resolution
Conflict resolution is a high priority for members and almost all the 150
attendees at the Women’s Conference chose one of the conflict resolution
workshops.
Popular consultant Christina McMahon will run two more one-day
workshops at the AEU in July. Check our website for details at www.aeuvic.
asn.au/womenPD. We advise you to book quickly as her two workshops in
March booked out very quickly. Maximum number of participants is 50
for each. ◆
inside the AEU
www.aeuvic.asn.au 23