Page 3761 - Week 12 - Wednesday, 29 October 2014

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MS BURCH: I was getting to the point, Madam Speaker, that some of the other commentary is whether it is that the curriculum is crowded or whether it is an element of change of implementing a national curriculum. I was then going on to say that the decisions about the implementation of the curriculum—how a teacher goes about assessing the elements of the curriculum content, what happens in the classroom—is a decision for the teacher of that classroom.

MADAM SPEAKER: A supplementary question, Ms Lawder.

MS LAWDER: Minister, will you be guided by the advice and recommendations of the ACT Australian curriculum task force?

MS BURCH: Indeed, the ACT Australian curriculum task force is a cross-sectoral group that has on it, by its nature and by what I have just said, public educators, those from the independent schools and those from the Catholic system. They are very sympathetic to the national curriculum and, indeed, have a timetable about how those different curriculums are implemented across different years. They are fully supportive, and have been, of our working as a whole in implementing the national curriculum, as they have been, as a whole, in implementing the associated A-E reporting which has been well received by Canberra families.

MADAM SPEAKER: A supplementary question, Ms Lawder.

MS LAWDER: Minister, are you able to share with the Assembly the recommendations you had from the ACT Australian curriculum task force?

MS BURCH: What I can provide to the Assembly is the implementation schedule for phases 1, 2 and 3. That was endorsed by the implementation committee at the beginning of this year.

Skywhale—flights

MR SMYTH: My question is to the Chief Minister, on her other favourite subject. Chief Minister, from documents recently received through FOI, on 13 September 2013 an officer of your directorate advised the following to the Canberra Glassworks in relation to an appearance by the Skywhale:

As I mentioned, flights over this period are being charged by Global Ballooning at $ … but this is below normal commercial rates and I would ask you please to keep that confidential, lest it create an expectation for the future about what a hot air balloon flight can be done for.

Equally, Global Ballooning wrote the following email on 31 August 2013 in relation to a prospective appearance by the Skywhale at the University of Canberra:

It is important that this rate remains confidential as other events that may wish to have the Skywhale around Australia will question this if they hear of it.

Chief Minister, why did the government and Global Ballooning strike special appearance deals with these organisations for Skywhale?


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