This year, the nationally agreed education agenda for Australia – the Melbourne Declaration on Educational Goals for Young Australians (2008-2018) – is in its final year. The agreement, between all States and Territories, was made to ensure Australian schools provide the best educational outcomes for all children.
Here’s a list of areas in the lives of all Australian children, in which the governments of the day (2008) considered it absolutely necessary for schools to be involved.
- intellectual
- physical
- social
- emotional
- moral
- spiritual
- aesthetic
Two years prior to this agreement and its implementation, Australia ranked among the top 10 countries in educational outcomes for 15-year-olds, in Science, Reading and Maths (PISA 2006).
In 2015, seven years after the agreement, Australia’s performance dropped to 10th in Science, 12th in Reading, and 20th in Maths. In 2017, according to United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), Australia ranked 39th out of 41 countries for quality education.
So what went wrong?
In Australia, the first laws and the subsequent Constitutions for each of its States were based on values that came from Judeo-Christian traditions. When public schools were established, they too were guided by those same values.
The Melbourne Declaration, however, makes no mention of this. Its focus instead is on global citizenship, anti-discrimination, Asia Literacy, technology, equality and indigenous affairs.
If Australia is to reclaim its place among the top 10 countries for educational outcomes, perhaps the next set of educational goals should begin with an agreement on the fundamentals: a respect for and appreciation of difference; competency in the English language; and an assurance that Judeo-Christian values remain woven into the fabric of our schools, our laws, and the Australian way of life.
Copyright © 2018 Cheryl Lacey All rights reserved.
Parent, educationist and advocate of agitating change in Australian education. By raising the bar we can face any global challenges facing Australia and Australians.
Contact Cheryl on cheryl@cheryllacey.com
