Page 2398 - Week 08 - Tuesday, 12 August 2014
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responsiveness, access and equity. This includes the ACT skills needs list, an evidence-based approach to identifying the skills needs within the ACT and ensuring the best possible match of available skills on demand. Our better linkages initiative improves linkages between registered trading organisations, employment service providers and employers and community agencies across the ACT. To support the better linkages initiative, over $1.1 million of training and reformed funding in this budget will be directed to projects demonstrating innovative approaches, tools or resources for assisting ACT job seekers to access training and employment.
When we look at ensuring that excellence is continued in our education and training area, the budget initiatives are complemented by ongoing strategies to support nation-leading performance of our schools through quality teachers, effective learning environments and positive parental engagement. Ensuring that we have quality teachers in our schools is fundamental to building a high-performing system and obtaining the best results. Above all, the community expects our teachers to have high levels of literacy and numeracy, and from next year the recruitment process for new public school teachers will include a literacy and numeracy test. My aim is for our teachers to have literacy and numeracy levels in the top 30 per cent of the country. We are working with the Australian Institute for Teaching and School Leadership on an online assessment to implement this test.
In terms of parental engagement, while teachers are indeed crucially important in ensuring high levels of students’ achievement, the role the parents play in their children’s education cannot be forgotten or brushed aside. Research shows that positive parental engagement in learning promotes improved academic achievements, wellbeing and productivity. We include families in this genuine partnership to make sure that children get the best opportunities and the best outcome from their school environment. This is why I have provided, through the directorate, funding to engage the Australian Research Alliance for Children and Youth to conduct a significant piece of work on parental engagement involving public, Catholic and independent schools. This will help to inform our work to make sure that we get the best outcomes for our children.
There were also comments by Mr Wall on early intervention. He has left again. I am still trying to understand why he tweeted, on the morning of the estimates education and training session, about the hard questions he was going to ask and then did not bother asking any. But we do know—
Mr Smyth interjecting—
MADAM DEPUTY SPEAKER: Ms Burch and Mr Smyth—
MS BURCH: Make no mistake, those on this side of the chamber know and understand the benefit of early education, and this is why we are talking with providers. I know of at least five providers, including the AEIOU, organisations that are in serious negotiations about stepping into the early intervention space at the beginning of term in 2015. There will be a provider expo on 13 September this year where parents can have a chance to meet firsthand the providers that will step into this early intervention space.
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