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Legislative Assembly for the ACT: 2004 Week 04 Hansard (Tuesday, 30 March 2004) . . Page.. 1321 ..

reasonably acceptable way in the community and who have values instilled in them to do the right thing by others and not go around belting people or whatever. Being civilised members of society is part and parcel of character. Contributing to the character development of all students is very important.

Character is largely formed in the home, but we do have, and always have had, dysfunctional families. I have known many young people, through the various jobs I have had—as a solicitor, coaching various underage teams, sadly through the courts and the law, and a number of other jobs—who have benefited, quite clearly, from a good teacher or a good series of teachers. A good teacher can make a huge difference to a young person who does not necessarily get the values of a normal civilised society at home because of the dysfunctional nature of the home. These young people have been helped so much by having good teachers and have gone on to lead pretty good productive lives.

Similarly, even kids who might have a fair bit of character development at home will still stop a teacher in the street—I know this has happened because I have spoken to a lot of teachers who have told me that this is so—and say, “Mr X or Mrs X, you really helped me when I was 14. What you said at school made a big impression on me.” That is all about character development. One of the most satisfying things of being a teacher is seeing some young person, who might have otherwise gone off the rails and gone down the wrong path, being pulled back because of some input you had. That distinguishes teaching from a lot of other professions where you simply cannot have a huge input. Mr Pratt is absolutely on the right track. I think any reasonable teacher would be happy and proud to contribute to the character development of all students. Yes, values do change from time to time, but I think there are some fundamental values of just basic human decency that flow through everything. I think that that is an excellent addition to have in. I do not think any reasonable teacher would dispute that.

I will speak briefly to the obligations on principals and teachers—proposed new clause 21A. What is wrong with expecting principals and teachers to be professional? It is a profession, a very valuable profession. It is one of the most esteemed professions in our society. We are in a profession here and we are right down there with used car salesmen. But teaching is a very esteemed profession. Being a responsible role model for students is something that any reasonable teacher would certainly hope they were doing and would certainly aspire to.

Again, I reiterate what I said on character development about values, respect and tolerance of others. Reasonable values stand the test of time in any civilised society. The completion of annual personal and professional development programs might be a little time-consuming. Having been an education minister for quite a long time, I know that you worry a little about anything that might be a bit bureaucratic. This amendment is aimed at development—personal development of teachers and personal development programs, something which teachers do commit themselves to and which are part and parcel of EBAs. I do not think that is going to change, so I do not necessarily see that as being particularly onerous.

Another obligation is “assistance in the pastoral care of students”. Again, on pastoral care I reiterate what I said about character and about good teachers assisting kids—especially kids from bad dysfunctional backgrounds but generally any kids who might

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