Page 903 - Week 03 - Tuesday, 16 March 2010
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Another thing, of course, as Mr Barr mentioned, that has happened in more recent years is that government funds provide a large part of the funding for Catholic schools. Eighty per cent is government funded and 20 per cent is parent funded.
The Catholic schools place a great emphasis on quality teaching and base their teaching on the agreed vision of all Australian governments, as agreed at the Ministerial Council on Employment, Education, Training and Youth Affairs, for high quality schooling. It is pleasing to note that the Chief Executive Officer of the Catholic Education Office identified the New South Wales quality teaching framework as an approach to pedagogy that will underpin the implementation of the curriculum frameworks. This is aimed at assisting teachers to develop contemporary pedagogical knowledge and skills to teach—
Mr Barr: That was right. Pedagogy, yes.
MS LE COUTEUR: Yes. I think I got it right that time. I am not sure I got it right the first time. This is aimed at assisting teachers to develop contemporary pedagogical knowledge to teach students in the 21st century. In speaking to this MPI I want to stress that all schools, not just Catholic schools, have a vital role to play in ensuring that all students in the ACT, and in fact in Australia and the world, have a good education.
In the ACT and the rest of Australia we have three school groups delivering quality education. We have the government schools, we have the Catholic schools and we have the range of independent schools which includes schools of other denominations and cooperative schools. I am particularly knowledgeable of those; my granddaughter goes to, and soon I suppose my grandson will go to, a Steiner school in Germany. The bottom line and the essential requirement of all of these school groups is that no matter where the students attend school they must be given every opportunity to start life well by starting with a good education.
I would like to echo some of the minister’s remarks about the shared facilities that we now have between Catholic schools and non-Catholic schools. It certainly was not like that when I was a child. I was brought up as an Anglican and there was a really distinct division between the Catholics and the non-Catholics. It is really great to see that today Catholic and non-Catholic schools are sharing libraries, they are sharing canteens, they are sharing ovals. It makes a lot more sense than how things used to be in the not-so-far-distant past. I think it is a great thing to reduce the barriers between different groups in our societies.
I would like to just take this opportunity to outline the Greens educational policies at a fairly high level. Firstly, we believe that free, high quality and equitable education is a cornerstone of a healthy democracy. Secondly, learning is a lifelong process fostered in both formal education and informal settings, from early childhood through adult life. Thirdly, everyone should have access to an education that meets their needs and aspirations and gives them the skills and capacity to participate in society. Fourthly, it is the responsibility of governments to ensure the provision of high quality, well-resourced and safe learning environments that are open to all students. Fifthly, a responsive and relevant education system is underpinned by community involvement
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