OPPOSITION leader Tony Abbott has been forced to defend his approach to school reforms after a Q&A with Tasmanian voters turned into a virtual classroom.
Around a third of the questions asked at the Launceston session came from teachers keen to know the fate of what were previously known as the Gonski reforms.
Mr Abbott repeated his mantra that no school would be worse off under a coalition government but expressed serious concerns about funding the renamed Better Schools Plan.
Tasmanians, teachers or not, are keen to know the fate of the extra $380 million the state recently signed up to.
"We think that there is a rather more sophisticated way forward than simply more money," Mr Abbott told the audience of around 100 in the marginal seat of Bass.
"More money is important but a lot of money has been thrown at schools over the last few years and if you look at the academic results, the international comparisons, our performance if anything has gone backwards."
Mr Abbott said $6.5 billion was needed annually to "do Gonski properly".
"I just don't know where that money is going to come from," he said.
NSW is the only Liberal state to have signed onto the reforms, which were the baby of former prime minister Julia Gillard.
Speculation has Victoria close to becoming the second coalition state to sign on but Mr Abbott is not committing to the scheme if that occurs.
"Let's wait and see what Gonski turns out to be," he said.
"At the moment there are four or five Gonskis."
A measured performance from Mr Abbott over an hour of questioning didn't stop him pointing out that more than one teacher had not not done their homework.
One accused him of remaining a climate sceptic, which he dismissed, while another said she had read about his plans for spending cuts.
"I think you've been reading the wrong material," Mr Abbott said.
Little was revealed personally, although Mr Abbott lamented the number of his daughters' parent/teacher nights and sport he had missed by being a politician.
The session did include a spirited defence of politicians - even Greens - who Mr Abbott said in the main acted in good faith and were "patriots" despite the parties' "enormous disagreements".
The forum completed northern Tasmania's day of heavyweight political battle after Prime Minister Kevin Rudd earlier visited Launceston and Devonport.
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