Tracey Roberts (Pearce, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

As someone who has worked in the education sector for many years, I rise to support the Higher Education Support Amendment (Response to the Australian Universities Accord Interim Report) Bill 2023. In November 2022, the Minister for Education announced the Australian Universities Accord panel and terms of reference, and the discussion paper was released in February 2023. Following this, the expert panel released an interim report in July 2023, with a final report due to government in December of this year. The interim report proposed five priority actions to be considered immediately, and the bill implements priority actions 2 and 3, which require legislation, with Minister Clare stating the government would implement all the recommendations. The purpose of the bill before us is to amend the Higher Education Support Act 2023, HESA, to do the following: remove the cap on the number of Indigenous students who can enrol in a Commonwealth supported place by extending eligibility to all Indigenous students no matter where they live, remove the requirement that students successfully complete at least 50 per cent of their first eight units of study of a bachelor degree to be able to continue as a Commonwealth supported student and be eligible for FEE-HELP assistance and encourage universities to provide appropriate levels of support for students identified as at risk of falling behind and to support them to complete their units of study. In the minister's second-reading speech he stated:

… the only way to so significantly boost the percentage of the workforce with a university qualification is to significantly increase the number of students who are currently underrepresented in our universities: students from our outer suburbs—

like my electorate of Pearce—

and the regions, students from poor backgrounds, students with a disability and Indigenous students.

Further, the minister pointed out:

In the outer suburbs of our major cities it's only 23 per cent of young adults who have a university degree.

…   …   …

Only 15 per cent of young adults from poor families have a degree—

and only seven per cent of young Indigenous Australians have one. According to the 2021 census, in the Pearce electorate 7.4 per cent of students were attending TAFE or training by a private provider, 12.4 per cent were attending university and 18 per cent had achieved bachelor's degree level and above. Pearce, like other outer metropolitan areas, is indicative of why we need to increase the number of students from the outer suburbs, as they are underrepresented in our universities. We have a growing industrial base within my electorate, and if we do not address this issue we will find we lack the skills and workforce required for the future.

The government has confirmed it will implement all five recommendations from the interim report, and this legislation is necessary to implement two of these. The five recommendations are: (1) that more universities study hubs are created in the regions and outer suburbs, (2) that the 50 per cent pass rule be scrapped and better reporting required on how students are progressing, (3) that the demand-driven funding currently provided to Indigenous students from regional and remote areas be extended to cover all Indigenous students, (4) that funding certainty be provided during the accord process by extending the Higher Education Continuity Guarantee into 2024 and 2025 with funding arrangements that prioritise support for equity students and (5) that we work with state and territory governments through national cabinet to improve university governance.

In relation to the university study hubs we advise there are currently 34 in regional Australia, and the government plans to establish 20 more in the regions and 14 in the outer suburbs of our major cities, where the percentage of people with a university qualification is low. I would certainly welcome a university study hub, definitely, within the electorate of Pearce. The minister has announced the government will extend the Higher Education Continuity Guarantee into 2024-25, as mentioned in recommendation 4, noting that universities will be required to use any funding remaining from their grant each year on areas such as enabling courses and extra academic and learning support for students from poor backgrounds, from the regions and from other underrepresented groups.

The government has also committed to the fifth recommendation to work with states and territories on improving university governance. Importantly, one of the three areas to focus on is making sure our universities are safe for students and staff. It was deeply disturbing to learn that in 2021 the National Student Safety Survey found that one in 20 students had been sexually assaulted since starting university and that one in six had been sexually harassed. This is unacceptable, and a proper and transparent process must be in place to deal with complaints in a respectful and timely manner. However, we must also ask ourselves how we got to this point in the first place. A substantial number of students come to university straight from high school, at a young and vulnerable age, keen to learn and looking forward to university. Both those students and their parents would have every expectation that the university would have a duty of care to ensure their safety whilst on campus.

As stated previously, the bill implements recommendations 2 and 3. Recommendation 2 amends the Higher Education Support Act to remove the requirement that students must pass 50 per cent of the units they study to remain eligible for a Commonwealth-supported place and FEE-HELP assistance. Currently, students who cannot maintain this pass rate lose eligibility and must either pay for their course upfront, transfer to another course or withdraw from their studies. The pass-rate measures were originally introduced with the intention of dissuading students from continuing in courses that they were not academically suited for, to avoid accruing large Higher Education Loan Program, or HELP, debts without successfully gaining a qualification. However, we now know that the practical effect of these measures has been overly punitive for students and has not necessarily motivated higher education providers to provide better support to students experiencing academic difficulties. The impact of these measures has also fallen disproportionately on students from First Nations, low socioeconomic status and other underrepresented or educationally-disadvantaged cohorts. The minister advised that more than 13,000 students at the 27 universities had been hit by this in the past two years—mostly, those from disadvantaged backgrounds. I agree with the minister wholeheartedly: we should be helping our students to succeed, not forcing them to quit.

I note here the accord panel's priority action 3, which is to ensure that all First Nations students are eligible for a funded place at university by extending demand-driven funding to metropolitan First Nations students. This is consistent with the principle behind the introduction of guaranteed funding for First Nations students from regional and remote areas in 2021. This funding arrangement should apply to all First Nations people undertaking higher education, including in metropolitan areas.

Our country prides itself on the notion of giving everyone a fair go. All disadvantaged students, no matter where they live, deserve that chance. The amendments in part 2 insert a new requirement that higher education providers must have, and comply with, a policy that addresses support for students—a policy that will proactively identify students who are at risk of falling behind and set out what they will do to help them succeed. The accord panel has been clear about increased accountability and reporting processes to support student progress, as this will focus on improving success rates of at-risk students.

We have five universities in Western Australia: University of WA, Curtin, Murdoch, Notre Dame and Edith Cowan, the latter of which is located close to the Pearce electorate and therefore attracts a large number of students from the northern suburbs. Many of these universities have in place or have commenced programs to support students, so the requirement of the bill should come as no surprise and help bolster their existing endeavours. Whether it be providing peer-to-peer support or additional online academic support, there is much more to be done.

A friend of mine attended a session for staff and interested stakeholders at one of our universities a few years ago where the speaker addressed the group using a Domino's pizza analogy about offering tertiary education in a modern world and the need for change. It went something like this: you can make a call or order a pizza online and decide what size, what type, what individual toppings you would like, and when and where you want it delivered. He then asked: 'What do we give our students for their $100,000 degree?' He asked a valid question to challenge them to think outside offering more of the same, and to ask how they were going to support their students going forward.

My nearest university, Edith Cowan University, has a student success team to assist students make a smooth transition to university and help them stay on track with their studies so they can reach their full potential. This includes supporting study progress, health and wellbeing, assessing personal challenges and developing action plans to overcome them and providing referrals to specialist support services, both at Edith Cowan University and in their community. The ECU student success team offers support to all students—domestic students and onshore international students.

The Kurongkurl Katitjin is ECU's Centre for Indigenous Australian Education. Their student success team are responsible for providing dedicated support and guidance to the Edith Cowan University's Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students. ECU also has a uni prep student success team specially trained to assist commencing students and help them to succeed in their courses of choice. This is just one example of what universities are doing in Western Australia.

The recommendations outlined in this bill are incredibly important if we are to truly help disadvantaged students in my electorate and across the nation to fulfil their potential. I commend the bill to the House.

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