Laura Smyth (La Trobe, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Over the last few weeks I have had reason to focus again on education, excellence in teaching and the opportunities for lifelong learning that are available in my electorate of La Trobe. Since parliament last met, I have been fortunate to have visited many educators and students in my electorate and I would like to remark today on a few of them.

I have been extremely impressed by three schools in my electorate in recent weeks—all of them primary schools, all of them with a community focus, all of them creating a sense of generosity and community involvement amongst their students.

Kallista Primary School was kind enough to invite me to its recent fair at which I was able to open the school’s excellent new junior learning centre completed under the BER program. I was impressed by its kitchen garden program and particularly by the dedication of children, staff, parents and others in the school community to an education which values community and our environment.

I recently visited Harkaway Primary School, which is presently finalising its own BER project. I was impressed by the respectful way with which children at Harkaway treated each other, their teachers and parents. In particular I was impressed by the way that children with special needs were assisted by teachers and other students thoughtfully and without fuss.

I was pleased to visit St Thomas More’s Primary School in Belgrave to open its new school hall that was completed recently under the BER program—and not before time. Though the school community was fond of the old hall, it had fallen into some disrepair and the children now have a new oval to play on. The building will make it easier for the school community to gather together for special events, and I have no doubt that they will use it to its full potential.

I was delighted to have had an opportunity to visit Mount Dandenong Preschool last week to present a national excellence in teaching award to a tremendously dedicated teacher, Jo Gaissl. I was able to see Jo in action, teaching a class of littlies and her enthusiasm for education was unmistakeable.

At the other end of the lifelong learning spectrum, I met with Casey U3A for its recent 20th anniversary celebration. The U3A is around 300 members strong and, as many here will know, presents ways for those who are senior residents in our community to continue to learn new skills and talents, and to socialise. The Casey U3A also regularly engages in debate and the exchange of ideas around issues of public policy. I was pleased to have been able to contribute to some of that debate in recent weeks and hope to again in future.

Whatever one’s time in life, there must be good opportunities for education. Education has been, and will continue to be, a central focus of this government in terms of financial commitments and policy and structural reforms to education. Education has obvious value in terms of skill development but, for my part, it has its most significant value in shaping the kind of society that we wish to live in. All of those educators and students I have met with in recent weeks seem to have been similarly disposed and it has been a pleasure to meet them.