Queensland Education Minister Grace said she was appalled at Minister Robert's comments.
"He's been acting in the job for five minutes and thinks he knows it all.
"The account of the Minister's comments at the conference reeks of a boys club, slapping each other on the back telling themselves how good they are, and sneering at the state system that educates around 580,000 students in Robert's home state of Queensland.
"Our state system has some of the best teachers in the world, who go above and beyond every single day for the benefit of their students.
"Over the past couple of years in particular, the support they have provided students throughout COVID has been outstanding.
"And the latest NAPLAN results suggest state schools and teachers are doing something right.
"For Minister Robert to say our state schoolteachers are 'dragging the chain' is outrageous, inaccurate, and an insult to hard working teachers across Queensland and Australia."
