Andrew Laming (Bowman, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Now is a great opportunity to recognise high-gain schools in Queensland. The nomenclature for performance is moving from just counting top scores to identifying the student path and the student gain over time. I want to recognise those schools.

If you are at a state school, you want to be in Townsville. I want to recognise Thuringowa State High School, who were the first and highest-gain school in Queensland in 2016, very closely followed by two schools that are always in the top echelon: Townsville and Kirwan state high schools. But Townsville is blessed to have three incredible state schools in their city.

The Sunshine Coast has the strongest independent schools in Queensland, and to have a cluster of such quality that they come in the top 36, all of them, out of the total of 174 independent schools state-wide—Matthew Flinders Anglican College, St Andrew's Anglican College, Glasshouse Christian College, Good Shepherd Lutheran College, Coolum Beach Christian College, all in the top 40—is extraordinary. Of state schools in that area, Burnside, Kawana Waters, Maroochydore and Caloundra state high schools were all in the top half.

Toowoomba is also blessed with probably the strongest independent Catholic and state schools: Toowoomba Grammar School came second out of all GPS schools, and St Mary's College, always on top in Toowoomba, came 12th on this occasion. I also note that Stanthorpe State High School is doing extraordinarily well.

On the Gold Coast, Assisi Catholic College, Kooralbyn International School, Tamborine Mountain College, and Nerang, Elanora and Tamborine Mountain state high schools— (Time expired)