Page 3348 - Week 09 - Thursday, 22 August 2019
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The effective management of the teacher workforce is far more complex than simply matching the number of available teachers and school leaders to the number of students in schools. It involves detailed understanding of the many factors affecting teacher supply and demand. For example, the skill needs of the labour market and economic development policy have upstream implications for the skill and capability needs of school leaders. Meeting these needs requires appropriately skilled teachers, including specialist teachers. Equally, our community expects that school students are supported with learning and development in important social and cultural knowledge and skills like languages and music. Again, appropriately skilled teachers, including specialist teachers, are required.
In summary, the changes to the Teacher Quality Institute Act that I have proposed will ensure that pre-service teachers participate in professional experience which prepares them for the classroom; only highly qualified teachers are teaching in our schools; and the Teacher Quality Institute can undertake expanded functions relating to workforce planning in the ACT and nationally. By recognising and building on the professional standard of teaching in the ACT, we will enhance the community’s confidence in our schools and improve outcomes for children and young people. This bill is an important step forward to achieving these objectives, and I commend the bill to the Assembly.
Question resolved in the affirmative.
Bill agreed to in principle.
Leave granted to dispense with the detail stage.
Bill agreed to.
Unfantastic plastic—government response
Debate resumed from 16 May 2019, on motion by Mr Gentleman:
That the Assembly take note of the following paper:
Commissioner for Sustainability and the Environment Act, pursuant to subsection 21(2), Unfantastic Plastic—Review of the ACT Plastic Shopping Bag Ban—Government response.
MR GENTLEMAN (Brindabella—Manager of Government Business, Minister for the Environment and Heritage, Minister for Planning and Land Management, Minister for Police and Emergency Services and Minister assisting the Chief Minister on Advanced Technology and Space Industries) (11.29): Single-use plastic shopping bags litter our environment, harm wildlife and require valuable resources to manufacture. The Northern Territory, South Australia and Tasmania have banned single-use plastic shopping bags.
Mr Wall: I thought we were removing them, not speaking to them.
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