Page 2567 - Week 08 - Wednesday, 23 August 2006
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The Towards 2020 proposal is in fact many steps ahead of exactly what the opposition purports to be calling for in this motion. The fundamental principle that underpins the government’s Towards 2020 proposal is to provide children and young people in the ACT with a vibrant, responsive and world-class public education system that is second to none—something which we currently have and which we are not prepared to risk. The changes are certainly comprehensive. No-one pretended that this approach would be easy or universally popular. But this government, unlike the previous government, had the courage to put forward a proposal that people can actually comment upon and one that we believe is the best course of action for the Canberra community. We did not and do not intend to simply engage in a popularity contest or talkfest.
The terms of reference for Mr Stefaniak’s proposed inquiry call for an examination of the “education, economic, social and environmental impacts of any changes in schooling”. The Education Act 2004—legislation passed by this Assembly—provides:
Before closing or amalgamating a government school, the Minister must … have regard to the educational, financial and social impact on students at the school, the students’ families and the general school community.
That is exactly and precisely what the government are doing in our comprehensive and ongoing consultation process over the specifics of the Towards 2020 proposal; it is consistent with that determination. The minister and his officials have now attended over 400 meetings in relation to these proposals and this policy. We have consulted, through the minister directly and through his officials, on over 400 separate occasions in formal face-to-face meetings in our determination to consider the educational, financial and social impact on students at schools—precisely, of course, what the motion mimics.
The government gave careful consideration to a range of sound educational and financial considerations before putting forward a proposal and taking it to the community for their response. If the opposition were willing to engage in this process properly instead of being motivated constantly by politics and the lure of the constant rotating or rolling stunt it would see that a great many of the issues it raised in this motion are already addressed in our forward-thinking education system and in the policy expressed in the Towards 2020 proposal. To give an example, the proposed inquiry, we are told, would look into developments in early childhood education. The government is well aware that across the world there is increasing recognition of the importance of early childhood development in setting the foundation for learning, behaviour and health through the school years and into adult life. Investing in early intervention and high-quality education in the early years has lasting effects on the child’s social, emotional and intellectual development.
In recent years the ACT government has made a significant investment to reduce class sizes in the early years of schooling. For this reason, the Towards 2020 proposal asks the community to consider early childhood schools—providing five years of continuous learning in the one setting during the vital early years of learning and development. The proposal also ensures strong linkages between preschools and primary schools, providing a stable learning environment for young children. Additionally, there may be opportunities for early childhood schools to explore the possibility of establishing linkages with childcare services and services provided by other agencies similar to those
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