Latest / 360 with Katie Woolf / Katie Woolf spoke with CDU Chair of the Education Engagement Strategy Reference Group Professor Ruth Wallace

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Katie Woolf spoke with CDU Chair of the Education Engagement Strategy Reference Group Professor Ruth Wallace · 360 with Katie Woolf

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  Speaker 1: Hello, Katiewolvan three point sixty online at Mix one O
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  Speaker 1: four nine dot com.
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  Speaker 2: A couple of weeks ago, the Northern Territory government announced
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  Speaker 2: that the Department of Education is going to be developing
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  Speaker 2: an engagement strategy for all children and young people from
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  Speaker 2: birth to year twelve. It includes young people in flexible
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  Speaker 2: learning arrangements, non government schools and early childhood education services.
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  Speaker 2: Now it has the aim of engaging every child and
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  Speaker 2: young person in learning by listening to the voices of kids, will,
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  Speaker 2: students as well as parents and the community to ensure
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  Speaker 2: that education services really respond to their needs and their aspirations. Now,
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  Speaker 2: joining us on the line to tell us a little
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  Speaker 2: bit more about this strategy and how we may be
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  Speaker 2: able to have our voices heard if we are keen
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  Speaker 2: to it is the CDU Chair of the Education Engagement Strategy.
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  Speaker 1: Reference Group, Professor Ruth Wallace. Good morning to you.
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  Speaker 3: Good morning Cody. They're lovely to be with you today.
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  Speaker 1: Yeah, thank you so much for your time this morning.
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  Speaker 2: Ruth, I really appreciate you coming on to talk further
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  Speaker 2: to us about this because there'll be so many people
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  Speaker 2: listening to the show this morning.
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  Speaker 1: Who either have kids that are at school.
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  Speaker 2: You know, they've got really quite young people who are
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  Speaker 2: maybe in childcare or getting ready to start those early
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  Speaker 2: years of education. Maybe there's teachers and educational staff listening
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  Speaker 2: as well who are keen to find out a bit
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  Speaker 2: more about what this strategy is all about. I gave
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  Speaker 2: a bit of an overview of what the aim is,
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  Speaker 2: but can you talk us through it?
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  Speaker 3: Oh? Look, I think is it a beautiful overview. But
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  Speaker 3: for I think what's really important is understanding that schools
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  Speaker 3: are learning and institutions. They're changing all the time, and
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  Speaker 3: we need to keep learning as we work through those processes.
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  Speaker 3: So how do we make sure that we're changing to
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  Speaker 3: improve schools? Learn from the best things that happen, share
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  Speaker 3: great practice, but also things aren't working. What can we
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  Speaker 3: do that's best. Schools aren't just about what happens in
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  Speaker 3: the fall walls, of course, they're about, as you said,
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  Speaker 3: parents and communities and all of that engagement. So I
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  Speaker 3: think the strategy is about first a lot of listening
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  Speaker 3: and finding out what people are finding that they like
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  Speaker 3: about their schools and the like to share, but also
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  Speaker 3: they'd like to see in the future.
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  Speaker 2: And so who are you hoping to hear from as
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  Speaker 2: part of this strategy, and as part of that listening
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  Speaker 2: and learning.
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  Speaker 3: Well, schools at the center of communities in so many places,
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  Speaker 3: so we need to hear from everybody. So you'll see
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  Speaker 3: that children have been involved. Not only will they be
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  Speaker 3: involved in the workshops, they'll be involved in putting in submissions.
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  Speaker 3: They even help design the program. Students came up from
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  Speaker 3: Catherine and helped shape how the language and the design
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  Speaker 3: of the discussion paper would be developed. So kids are involved.
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  Speaker 3: There's opportunities for families and communities to be involved. There's
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  Speaker 3: a couple of ways to do that. One is the
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  Speaker 3: how You Say website, which is how you Say dot NT,
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  Speaker 3: dot gov, dot AU and there you'll find the education
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  Speaker 3: Engagement strategy and so people can put in submissions as
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  Speaker 3: an individual, as a group, as an organization, anyway that
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  Speaker 3: works for you. There'll also be public forums and workshops
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  Speaker 3: held in Darwin, Catherine, Alice Springs, Tenant Creek, and Lilan
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  Speaker 3: Boy that people can attend and they can have their say,
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  Speaker 3: and they will be an opportunity to talk as a
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  Speaker 3: large group and in smaller groups and facilitated by people
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  Speaker 3: that are well known and trusted in Moost places.
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  Speaker 2: I reckon, it's such an important thing to do for
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  Speaker 2: so many reasons. But I really like what you said
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  Speaker 2: there about young people being involved in this as well.
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  Speaker 1: And look, I know that there's so many.
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  Speaker 2: Educational experts yourself included, and our teaching staff and and
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  Speaker 2: you know, and parents as well are certainly very well
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  Speaker 2: versed on what we think young people want. But I
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  Speaker 2: reckon it's so important to also hear from young people
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  Speaker 2: about what they feel is effective and what helps them
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  Speaker 2: to really, you know, thrive. Right, we seem to have
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  Speaker 2: lost you a little bit there, Ruth. I used to
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  Speaker 2: well with us, we seem to have lost you. We
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  Speaker 2: seem to have lost Ruth there. I'm not too sure
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  Speaker 2: what's going on with that audio. Let's try again bear
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  Speaker 2: with us for a moment and we will. We'll see
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  Speaker 2: if we can get Ruth back on the line. But
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  Speaker 2: we're having some issues there with the audio, and we'll
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  Speaker 2: just see if we're able to get her back on
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  Speaker 2: the line and finish that discussion. But if you have
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  Speaker 2: just joined us, it was the Professor Ruth Wallace, who
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  Speaker 2: is the Charles Dawen University Chair of Education Engagement Strategy,
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  Speaker 2: and that reference group now we know that this is
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  Speaker 2: all part of a strategy that the Northern Territory Department
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  Speaker 2: of Education is developing. It's an education strategy for all
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  Speaker 2: children and young people from birth right up to year twelve,
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  Speaker 2: and it's about some of those flexible learning arrangements as
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  Speaker 2: well as non government schools and the early childhood education services. Now,
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  Speaker 2: I do think that we have got Ruth again, sorry Ruth,
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  Speaker 2: we're having some technical issues there.
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  Speaker 3: Oh look, we've got to learn from kids that every
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  Speaker 3: time to technology to work.
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  Speaker 1: They're the best with the technology.
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  Speaker 3: So what I was just saying was that one of
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  Speaker 3: the first things we did was get out and hear
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  Speaker 3: from kids who were in programs at Parliament Parmas to
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  Speaker 3: middle school, and also got school leaders at that school.
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  Speaker 3: The student leaders, they were very articate, they're very clear
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  Speaker 3: about what matters to them and that must be where
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  Speaker 3: we're going to start this program. But then we need
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  Speaker 3: other people to speak as well from a number of
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  Speaker 3: different perspectives.
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  Speaker 2: Rose, what are some of the biggest challenges we've got
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  Speaker 2: when it comes to education in the territory.
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  Speaker 3: Oh, look, I think it's scale that we've got many
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  Speaker 3: schools that have got a broad range of students. The
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  Speaker 3: students who might be mobile, might be moving around, might
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  Speaker 3: spake many different languages, might have had different experiences of
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  Speaker 3: education over their lives, and all of those students need
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  Speaker 3: to succeed. We need to have schools that engage with
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  Speaker 3: the local community, local cultures, local languages, local experiences, but
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  Speaker 3: also sure that those students are meeting the English and
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  Speaker 3: literacy standards so that they've got the best opportunities in
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  Speaker 3: the future. So it's not just about being in the classroom.
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  Speaker 3: It's also about getting opportunities to get into work, integrated learning,
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  Speaker 3: to be involved with different opportunities that you might not
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  Speaker 3: have thought a part of the future with its university
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  Speaker 3: or vest or work or you know, the world is
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  Speaker 3: your oyster in the territory. You can be anything. There
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  Speaker 3: is so many opportunities. How do we make that possible
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  Speaker 3: for students so they find their touch point to reach
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  Speaker 3: for the future.
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  Speaker 1: Yeah, you spot on.
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  Speaker 2: You know, my kids are really young, but I've had
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  Speaker 2: that conversation with them that you can be anything you
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  Speaker 2: want to be, but you do need to make sure
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  Speaker 2: you put in the work and education is such a
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  Speaker 2: huge part of that and providing opportunities for you throughout
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  Speaker 2: your life.
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  Speaker 3: Really look God totally agree. And I'm a person who
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  Speaker 3: never thought I would do much more than work in
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  Speaker 3: the local shop or the local factory, and I've ended
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  Speaker 3: up working in a university and being able to have
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  Speaker 3: the opportunity to make schools better for others as well.
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  Speaker 3: And that's because the territory gave me that opportunity, and
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  Speaker 3: I think we need to do that for all our kids.
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  Speaker 1: Oh good on your Ruth. That's so lovely to hear.
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  Speaker 2: Now, if people are after some more info, where can
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  Speaker 2: they head to, So have.
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  Speaker 3: A look at the have your Say website Have your
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  Speaker 3: Say dot nt dot gov dot AU Education Engagement Strategy.
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  Speaker 3: We'll also be having public forums in Kashrom will be
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  Speaker 3: the seventh of June, and Darwin on the eighth of June,
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  Speaker 3: Alice Springs on the twenty seventh of June, and Tenet
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  Speaker 3: Creek on the twenty first of June. And you'll be
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  Speaker 3: able to get all the details off the website about
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  Speaker 3: exactly where all of those events will be. But they'll
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  Speaker 3: be in a local center that's very easy for people
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  Speaker 3: to get to, and I think you'll find that there's
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  Speaker 3: a lot of information on the education dot NT, dot
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  Speaker 3: balve dot au backslash Engagement Strategy website. You'll find be
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  Speaker 3: able to track what's going on and hear about the
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  Speaker 3: outcomes at the other end of the process.
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  Speaker 2: Well, Professor Ruth Wallace's lovely talking to you this morning.
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  Speaker 2: I really appreciate your time.
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  Speaker 1: Thanks very much, Cody, thank you.
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  Speaker 2: And yes, that is CDU, chair of the Education Engagement
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  Speaker 2: Strategy Reference Group, Professor Ruth Wallace there and that info
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  Speaker 2: again if you are keen to jump online and have
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  Speaker 2: your say, it is have your say dot NT, dot gov,
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  Speaker 2: dot AU forward slash education slash Engagement slash Strategy.
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  Speaker 1: And I do think.
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  Speaker 2: It's incredibly important that we do all make sure that
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  Speaker 2: we have our voices heard in this space when we
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  Speaker 2: talk about, you know, the way in which our children
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  Speaker 2: are being educated, and yeah, the ways in which we
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  Speaker 2: can sort of try to help them and be flexible
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  Speaker 2: and adaptable so we can get the most out of
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  Speaker 2: our young people and make it a positive experience for them,
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  Speaker 2: if you know, in the in the most positive way possible.