Mark Arbib (NSW, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I rise tonight to speak on the issue of education and talk about some of the good news and the good work that is being done in some of our schools. It is very timely that I give this speech, especially with respect to Rupert Murdoch’s recent comments about the importance of education and the visit to Australia this week of New York school reformer Joe Klein. I have said it many times, and I will say it again now: the Rudd government is passionate about education. That is why we are undertaking an education revolution and are committed to making Australia the best-educated country in the world.

As Rupert Murdoch said, if we want to build an Australia where people are not left behind we need to recognise that a first-class education is no longer a luxury. He is right. Education is the key to this country’s future. It gives us a chance to modernise and transform our economy from one that relies disproportionately on mining and resources to one that leads the world in information technology, professional services and science. Mr Murdoch is also right about not leaving people behind, because without doubt education is the best way to fight inequality, providing opportunities for all our children to lead fulfilling and productive lives. It should not matter what your background is or where you live—in the city or in the country. Every child has a right to the highest quality education. As a senator for New South Wales, I am committed to ensuring all our schools have the teachers, resources and facilities they need to deliver world-leading education for their students.

You do not hear much good news about New South Wales at present, but in the last three weeks I have had the honour to attend four very small schools in country New South Wales where I witnessed firsthand the fine work that is being done by teachers, school administrators, the local community and state and federal governments to ensure that every child has the best start.

The first school I visited was Beckom Public School. This school is located in the wheat-growing community of the central Riverina. It services the small town of Beckom, which has 159 residents. Beckom Public School teaches only 14 students from kindergarten to year 6, but it is an institution with a long history of serving its local community and it is achieving outstanding results. Something that caught my eye, apart from the fine work the teacher was doing, was the sense of pride that the local community felt in its school. In talking to the teacher and to the parents there it was evident that the school was the backbone of the community. The community relies on the school and generations of families had gone through it. Grandparents have attended the school, their children have attended the school and now their grandchildren were attending the school. Coming from Sydney, it was an eye-opener for me.

I had the pleasure of meeting the 14 students and, despite their very small number, they were full of life and extremely talented. It was like being on the set of The Sound of Music. Their singing was unbelievable. I note the strange look I got from Senator Faulkner then, but, Senator Faulkner, this is a school that had a great expertise in bell ringing. I had never seen that at a school before. Their bell ringing was first class. Not only were they extremely talented in music and speech making but they were also talented academically. For a school of 14, you would think that they would be struggling in terms of their academic achievements. But this school was achieving better results than the state average. Full credit goes to the teacher and to the principal for the work they are doing. I was also happy to see the use of technology in the school. Even in a school this small they had computers, access to the internet and a smart board. It is a credit to the government, to the state government and to the local community. And it is a good news story—something that you do not hear about or see in the media, but it is happening, even in towns as small as Beckom.

With your indulgence, Mr Acting Deputy President, I promised the students that I would mention them, so I am going to put their names onto the record. I think it is a good thing for them and I know they will go to the internet to have a look. So, I thank Josh Griffin, Kate Turner, Joseph Grinter, Rhys Wheatley, Lily Day, Henry Grinter, Zach Griffin, Mehak Bhangu, Benjamin Grinter, Peter Wheatley, Emma Collis, Abbey Weise, Jim Griffin, Oscar Day and the principal, Helen Sturman, for the great generosity they showed me. I would also like to thank the P&C for turning on a wonderful lunch. They do a brilliant job out there and I urge Senator Faulkner, when he gets a chance, to visit the town of Beckom. You will not be disappointed.

On the same trip I also attended St Michael’s Primary School in Coolamon, which is another school that is doing outstanding work. It has a long and continuing history with the local community, in which there are only 1,361 residents. There are 120 children at the school and, again, the thing that stood out for me was the great sense of pride. The community and the parents were proud of what they were achieving at their local school and I was proud to be there.

The government has delivered for these schools. There has been an extension of the classrooms and, thankfully, they were getting technology into the school. To see the students using the new smart board was inspirational. The kids are advanced in technology—they were well ahead of me on the smart board and left me for dead. To the children there, I say, ‘Keep up the good work and congratulations on what you are doing.’ To the teachers I say exactly the same thing. To the principal, Paul Jenkins, thank you for letting me visit. I really do appreciate the opportunity.

More recently, I have been in far western New South Wales. There I visited two schools that are really making a difference. One is Palinyewah Public School. Palinyewah is a small town near Wentworth. People who know Wentworth will know that it is where both the Murray and the Darling rivers join. I am sure Senator Williams knows Wentworth well.

The school dates back to 1954 and has 29 students. Can I tell you that these kids are committed to their education. It was wonderful to see their use of technology. Not only did they have the computers and not only did they have the smart boards but they actually had video conferencing in place. The children were using the video conferencing to talk to other schools, to other teachers, to other educators in the city, to authors and to artists. This is the education of the future. This is how you compete with the rest of the world. Children in a town as small as Palinyewah are getting an education just the same as, if not better than, that which children in the big cities and in regional centres get. That is something we can be extremely proud of. I would like to quickly read into Hansard the names of the children: Kate Seaman, Matilda Byrnes, Jack Seaman, Kaitlyn Hinks, Ethan Catterall, Ashley Strachan, Jack Cullinan, Bradley McMahon, Jessie Worrell, Chris Radloff, Kayla Catterall, Sam Seaman, Clay Lambert, John Lambert, Alicia Robertson, Maddison Bourke, Natalie Catterall, Tori Catterall, Natalia Radloff, Rebekah Robertson, Thomas Cullinan, Jesse Martin, Ben Salathiel, Kyle Richards, Patrick McMahon, Owen Lambert, Tiffany Cullinan, Brittany Martin and Rebekah McMahon. I would also like to acknowledge their school principal, Jennifer Wall. They are doing an outstanding job. And I have to apologise that my performance in handball—they call it ‘downball’—was not up to their level. I know they were pretty disappointed that I was out first go, but on my next visit I promise to do better.

The last school I would like to talk about is Menindee Central School, which is outside of Broken Hill, as most people would know. This is a school that is delivering not just in academic standards but also in increased retention rates for Indigenous children. Anyone who knows Menindee knows that there are a large number of Indigenous people living there. Brian Debus, the local school principal, had retired from his city school and went out to Menindee to take on the task, and he is delivering. There are Indigenous children who are now— (Time Expired)