Leah Blyth (SA, Liberal Party, Shadow Assistant Minister for Stronger Families and Stronger Communities) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

There is a crisis in our nation's schools. For all the investment, reform packages and rhetoric, Australia's education system is underperforming. The evidence is undeniable. International rankings show our students slipping year after year in reading, writing, mathematics and science. Employers lament the lack of basic skills in school leavers. Parents complain that their children are distracted, disengaged and disheartened. Teachers themselves are exhausted by the churn of new fads and initiatives that never deliver what they promise.

We were once a country proud of its education system. Today we are in decline. In the name of progress we have traded rigour for irrelevance and depth for destruction. Classrooms are saturated with devices, yet students increasingly struggle with literacy and numeracy. Curriculums are crowded with ideological experiments, while the bedrock skills that form the foundation of learning are neglected. This is not innovation; it's erosion.

And yet there are seeds of hope. Across Australia parents, educators and communities are rediscovering what truly works in education—an approach which is disciplined, rounded and comprehensive. It is an approach that values knowledge, builds character and forms the whole person.

One striking example is St John of Kronstadt Academy, recently profiled in the national press. This school has embraced screen-free learning and returned to the basics of grammar, logic and rhetoric. These students read great books, engage in sustained thinking and learn without the constant harm of digital distraction. It is a reminder that education is not about keeping up with the trends; it is about passing on truth.

Another beacon of renewal can be found in my home state of South Australia. St Benedict School at Mount Torrens in the Adelaide Hills opened its doors in 2024 with a bold vision—to build a school that is both ancient and new. Its founding principal, Fernando Farrugia, captured the heart of their mission when he said, 'We are not reinventing education; we are simply remembering it.' He described their goal as a school not driven by fads but by formation, and not chasing the culture but shaping it. This is not a theory; it is practice. St Benedict students study Latin, read Aristotle, learn mathematics and begin each day with calm reflection. Their classrooms are filled not with screens but with conversation, reading and genuine human interaction. Their education is not about producing test scores but about cultivating wisdom and discernment—an approach which has proven to develop great thinkers throughout the ages.

Of course, launching such a school was not without its challenges. As Mr Farrugia observed, 'Nothing teaches humility faster than opening a new school.' There were printers that would not print, missing whiteboard markers and donated furniture that was yet to arrive. But, beyond the teething troubles, what emerged was something extraordinary—laughter, genuine learning and a community bound together by a shared commitment to a higher purpose. This model is not elitism; it is humanism in its truest form. It says that every child, regardless of background, deserves to be formed in mind and character, to engage with the great ideas of history and to be taught not only how to succeed but how to live well.

This raises important questions for us all. What kinds of citizens are we raising? Are we forming minds capable of reasoned debate, hearts attuned to justice and young people grounded in knowledge and wisdom, or are we producing graduates with credentials but no character and with skills but no discernment?

The answer lies in what we choose to value. If we continue to pursue fashionable theories, digital gimmicks and ideological agendas, the decline will deepen—all the more so if we continue to lower standards in an attempt to be inclusive. But if we champion schools that teach children to think deeply, speak clearly and act justly, there is every reason for hope.

The soul of society is passed on through its schools. If we neglect that inheritance, we risk losing it. But if we nurture it, we can once again build a generation equipped with knowledge, character and the capacity to shape the world for the better. Let's reclaim our inheritance.