Page 378 - Week 02 - Wednesday, 13 May 1992
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Finally, there is the high schools development discussion paper. This was put out last year - - -
Mr Wood: July.
MR CORNWELL: Thank you, Mr Wood. The high schools development discussion paper was issued by you in July 1991, with an undertaking, I understood, that the responses were to be synthesised in October of 1991 and that a high school education plan would then be developed in conjunction with the reference group in time for the commencement of the 1992 school year. That was a statement that you made, Minister. We have not seen the plan yet, but you may care to comment when you respond to Ms Szuty's remarks. I certainly would be very interested to see that plan. I imagine that that is part and parcel of the undertaking given by this Government to develop long-term plans for the funding and development of high schools, as the Chief Minister indicated in her earlier address. I must say that some of the 28 recommendations in "Drawing Together" - the Belconnen Region High Schools Task Force report - are quite contentious. I hope, therefore, that any development program is most carefully put together.
I also hope that any development program addresses the problem of the decrease in numbers at high schools. I notice from figures recently provided by Mr Wood that only seven of our 17 high schools have shown a decrease in the number of surplus spaces. Clearly, this is a matter that should be incorporated in any development program.
Ms Szuty mentioned refurbishment. That may be necessary in some of the high schools, but I certainly hope that it is not necessary in all of them. Those in the Tuggeranong Valley, of course, are relatively new, and one would hope that places such as Caroline Chisholm did not need refurbishment at this point.
Another matter referred to is truancy. In raising it, Ms Szuty touched, probably peripherally, upon one of the major problems with high schools. She referred to it again a few minutes ago. That is the question of adolescence and the problems and the turmoil that that particular period creates for so many young people. I do not, frankly, know, Ms Szuty, how this can be addressed in a development plan for high schools; but I think you would agree with me that it is absolutely essential that some attempt be made to do just that. I am not at all convinced that providing more money will overcome the problems of adolescence. Perhaps the Government could take some advice from experts in this area and, hopefully, we could see some improvement. I do not hold out a great deal of faith about this; but certainly the proposal that you put forward for a high school development program meets with the Liberal Party's support, and we commend the motion.
MR MOORE (11.09): I am delighted to stand and speak just prior to the Minister. It seems to me that the high school sector in the ACT is really the cinderella of the ACT school system. At the moment, we are waiting for the fairy godmother to come along. It is obvious that the colleges have been a huge success, but the price appears to have been borne by the high schools. When I speak on this, Madam Speaker, I speak with 17 years' teaching experience, some 13 or 14 years of it in high schools in several States and in Canada.
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