Page 367 - Week 01 - Thursday, 16 February 2012
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In the last budget there was over $150 million in new capital funding for new schools and upgrades of existing schools, including the previously mentioned Bonner primary school, which has a cost tag of some $6 million, and another $42 million for the early childhood school and childcare centre in Franklin. We also know that in the last budget there was an allocation of some $10 million for expansion and refurbishment at Majura and Macgregor primary schools and artificial grass playgrounds at a number of other schools.
As I said earlier, I have had the pleasure of visiting a majority of the schools in the last three years, and there is no doubt that there are some outstanding physical examples of successful, impressive modern architecture.
The new Gungahlin college would be the envy of any jurisdiction probably anywhere in the world. It is unique. Its co-location of the college, the Canberra Institute of TAFE and the Gungahlin library on the one site is intended to create a learning hub. It has it all—gyms, sports grounds and, no doubt eventually, proximity and easy access to the Gungahlin leisure centre. And I am told it has had to turn away dozens of interstate visitors keen to tour its state-of-the-art facilities because they simply cannot cope with the number of people wanting a tour. The principal has had inquiries from educators all around Australia. The principal, Gai Beecher, was quoted in May last year as saying that they had over 200 people coming through the school in one week, that 10 schools were booked in for a tour in the first half of the third term and that architects were also keen to see it. I personally have to thank principal Gai Beecher for providing a very interesting tour for me some months back, in the middle of last year. As I say, I was very impressed and I thank her very much for the in-depth introduction I had to the college.
Just as impressive is Harrison school, and well might it be when it has a $79 million price tag. Anyone who has driven past the school would not fail to see its unique architecture and colour scheme. They would not fail to be impressed by its environmental credentials, with ventilation systems that circulate hot and cold air, its rainwater tanks that provide water for toilets and gardens, its energy efficient lighting and its maximum use of natural light. Interestingly, we learnt earlier this month that it is also now a textbook-free school, with every student given access to an iPad through a rent or buy scheme. This is certainly technology at the absolute cutting edge. But given the propensity for young people to lose things, it will be interesting to see how that particular strategy rolls out.
Before we get too carried away, as perhaps Mr Hargreaves did in his little preamble, which I guess was very meandering and touched upon all sorts of things educational, and about how things happened in his day, somehow I felt that he should have known a little bit more about the education system. I thought that Minister Bourke may have given Mr Hargreaves a bit of an education about the topic that he was going to talk about. Alas, we got a lot of rambling and a lot of the usual John Hargreaves philosophy, but very little in order to better see what are the good points that I have just spoken about. It would have been good to see Mr Hargreaves elucidate some of those points as well.
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