❓ Minister Constable addresses concerns regarding an altercation at Narrogin Senior High School involving Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal students, outlining actions taken by the school and department to address the situation and ongoing tensions.
AnsweredQoN 552Legislative Assembly
QuestionView source ↗
NARROGIN SENIOR HIGH SCHOOL
Before I ask my question, I acknowledge the members of the YMCA Youth Parliament who are in the gallery this afternoon. Can the minister update the house on the situation at Narrogin Senior High School as reported in the media? Dr E. CONSTABLE
Before I ask my question, I acknowledge the members of the YMCA Youth Parliament who are in the gallery this afternoon. Can the minister update the house on the situation at Narrogin Senior High School as reported in the media? Dr E. CONSTABLE
AnswerView source ↗
I thank the member for Kingsley for the question. I think it is important for us all to understand the situation at Narrogin Senior High School. I understand that yesterday, four students were suspended after an altercation, and that today, as a result, the parents of some of the Aboriginal students at that school have kept their children home from school. Point of Order Mrs M.H. ROBERTS : Mr Speaker, I am quite interested to hear what the minister has to say, but she is speaking so softly that I cannot hear from here. The SPEAKER : Order! Member, there is no point of order, but might I suggest to all members in this place that when a member is asking a question, or when a minister is responding to a question, especially in the initial stages of that response, they at least remain quiet for that period. Hopefully, member for Midland, that might solve some of the problems. Questions without Notice Resumed Dr E. CONSTABLE : I should explain that I lost my voice two days ago and I just cannot produce any more than members are hearing now. As a result of the altercation yesterday, some parents have kept their children home from school. I understand that 12 Aboriginal students are at home today, or absent from school, and 13 are at school—so about half the Aboriginal students have stayed at home. The department is working with the school to make sure that those students return to school as soon as possible. I understand that two specialist behaviour psychologists have gone to the school to assist the staff and the school with that work, and two mentor principals are also at the school. We should see this in the context of an ongoing range of tensions between a small group of Aboriginal girls—I think around five—and a small group of non-Aboriginal girls. It is all girls who are involved in this—about four non-Aboriginal girls. The sorts of behaviours that they are displaying towards each other have been verbal abuse and fairly low-level physical aggression—scratching, and some hitting and some intimidation. It is very important that we see these events against a general backdrop in the community of problems that the town has had. I think that what is happening at the school is reflecting those issues that we have seen in that local community for some time. The issues among this small group of girls that the school has been dealing with have been ongoing for about nine months. The school has put in place a range of initiatives in the past nine months or so. It has put in place a number of preventive programs for educating parents and students about Aboriginal culture and history; some special programs on society and environment to inform all students about Aboriginal culture, which have been delivered by one of the Aboriginal staff members of the school; and also a range of other background and informative programs for staff to understand the students with whom they are working. The chair of the Aboriginal Education Advisory Council, Carol Garlett, has also been to the school and worked with the Narrogin Aboriginal Community Reference Group—a group of Nyoongah citizens in the town—and central office to make sure that goals for Aboriginal education are being developed and properly actioned within the school. The new principal and the district office have been working very hard on communication strategies between the school and the community and working with them on their concerns. Of really great importance is that the school, community members and the district office are developing programs to ensure that Aboriginal students at the school are engaged, and an additional psychologist is working at the school to help at-risk students. A range of other initiatives have been implemented in the past nine months. I do not need to go into the details of all those initiatives, but my own communications have been with one parent at the school and I understand that he is happy with the work that the school has been doing with his child and with others in the community; others are not as happy. However, these are complex intergroup issues and interpersonal disputes that the school is working to resolve. Mr R.H. Cook : Is this tied in with the suicide prevention strategies down there as well? Dr E. CONSTABLE : Yes, it has been. I spoke with the member for Wagin this morning about these issues to get his views on them, and he assured me that the school has worked extremely hard in the past nine months or so to help resolve these issues. These issues are ongoing and I have been monitoring them as well with the director general.
Dr E. CONSTABLE replied: I thank the member for Kingsley for the question. I think it is important for us all to understand the situation at Narrogin Senior High School. I understand that yesterday, four students were suspended after an altercation, and that today, as a result, the parents of some of the Aboriginal students at that school have kept their children home from school. Point of Order Mrs M.H. ROBERTS : Mr Speaker, I am quite interested to hear what the minister has to say, but she is speaking so softly that I cannot hear from here. The SPEAKER : Order! Member, there is no point of order, but might I suggest to all members in this place that when a member is asking a question, or when a minister is responding to a question, especially in the initial stages of that response, they at least remain quiet for that period. Hopefully, member for Midland, that might solve some of the problems. Questions without Notice Resumed Dr E. CONSTABLE : I should explain that I lost my voice two days ago and I just cannot produce any more than members are hearing now. As a result of the altercation yesterday, some parents have kept their children home from school. I understand that 12 Aboriginal students are at home today, or absent from school, and 13 are at school—so about half the Aboriginal students have stayed at home. The department is working with the school to make sure that those students return to school as soon as possible. I understand that two specialist behaviour psychologists have gone to the school to assist the staff and the school with that work, and two mentor principals are also at the school. We should see this in the context of an ongoing range of tensions between a small group of Aboriginal girls—I think around five—and a small group of non-Aboriginal girls. It is all girls who are involved in this—about four non-Aboriginal girls. The sorts of behaviours that they are displaying towards each other have been verbal abuse and fairly low-level physical aggression—scratching, and some hitting and some intimidation. It is very important that we see these events against a general backdrop in the community of problems that the town has had. I think that what is happening at the school is reflecting those issues that we have seen in that local community for some time. The issues among this small group of girls that the school has been dealing with have been ongoing for about nine months. The school has put in place a range of initiatives in the past nine months or so. It has put in place a number of preventive programs for educating parents and students about Aboriginal culture and history; some special programs on society and environment to inform all students about Aboriginal culture, which have been delivered by one of the Aboriginal staff members of the school; and also a range of other background and informative programs for staff to understand the students with whom they are working. The chair of the Aboriginal Education Advisory Council, Carol Garlett, has also been to the school and worked with the Narrogin Aboriginal Community Reference Group—a group of Nyoongah citizens in the town—and central office to make sure that goals for Aboriginal education are being developed and properly actioned within the school. The new principal and the district office have been working very hard on communication strategies between the school and the community and working with them on their concerns. Of really great importance is that the school, community members and the district office are developing programs to ensure that Aboriginal students at the school are engaged, and an additional psychologist is working at the school to help at-risk students. A range of other initiatives have been implemented in the past nine months. I do not need to go into the details of all those initiatives, but my own communications have been with one parent at the school and I understand that he is happy with the work that the school has been doing with his child and with others in the community; others are not as happy. However, these are complex intergroup issues and interpersonal disputes that the school is working to resolve. Mr R.H. Cook : Is this tied in with the suicide prevention strategies down there as well? Dr E. CONSTABLE : Yes, it has been. I spoke with the member for Wagin this morning about these issues to get his views on them, and he assured me that the school has worked extremely hard in the past nine months or so to help resolve these issues. These issues are ongoing and I have been monitoring them as well with the director general.
I thank the member for Kingsley for the question. I think it is important for us all to understand the situation at Narrogin Senior High School. I understand that yesterday, four students were suspended after an altercation, and that today, as a result, the parents of some of the Aboriginal students at that school have kept their children home from school. Point of Order Mrs M.H. ROBERTS : Mr Speaker, I am quite interested to hear what the minister has to say, but she is speaking so softly that I cannot hear from here. The SPEAKER : Order! Member, there is no point of order, but might I suggest to all members in this place that when a member is asking a question, or when a minister is responding to a question, especially in the initial stages of that response, they at least remain quiet for that period. Hopefully, member for Midland, that might solve some of the problems. Questions without Notice Resumed Dr E. CONSTABLE : I should explain that I lost my voice two days ago and I just cannot produce any more than members are hearing now. As a result of the altercation yesterday, some parents have kept their children home from school. I understand that 12 Aboriginal students are at home today, or absent from school, and 13 are at school—so about half the Aboriginal students have stayed at home. The department is working with the school to make sure that those students return to school as soon as possible. I understand that two specialist behaviour psychologists have gone to the school to assist the staff and the school with that work, and two mentor principals are also at the school. We should see this in the context of an ongoing range of tensions between a small group of Aboriginal girls—I think around five—and a small group of non-Aboriginal girls. It is all girls who are involved in this—about four non-Aboriginal girls. The sorts of behaviours that they are displaying towards each other have been verbal abuse and fairly low-level physical aggression—scratching, and some hitting and some intimidation. It is very important that we see these events against a general backdrop in the community of problems that the town has had. I think that what is happening at the school is reflecting those issues that we have seen in that local community for some time. The issues among this small group of girls that the school has been dealing with have been ongoing for about nine months. The school has put in place a range of initiatives in the past nine months or so. It has put in place a number of preventive programs for educating parents and students about Aboriginal culture and history; some special programs on society and environment to inform all students about Aboriginal culture, which have been delivered by one of the Aboriginal staff members of the school; and also a range of other background and informative programs for staff to understand the students with whom they are working. The chair of the Aboriginal Education Advisory Council, Carol Garlett, has also been to the school and worked with the Narrogin Aboriginal Community Reference Group—a group of Nyoongah citizens in the town—and central office to make sure that goals for Aboriginal education are being developed and properly actioned within the school. The new principal and the district office have been working very hard on communication strategies between the school and the community and working with them on their concerns. Of really great importance is that the school, community members and the district office are developing programs to ensure that Aboriginal students at the school are engaged, and an additional psychologist is working at the school to help at-risk students. A range of other initiatives have been implemented in the past nine months. I do not need to go into the details of all those initiatives, but my own communications have been with one parent at the school and I understand that he is happy with the work that the school has been doing with his child and with others in the community; others are not as happy. However, these are complex intergroup issues and interpersonal disputes that the school is working to resolve. Mr R.H. Cook : Is this tied in with the suicide prevention strategies down there as well? Dr E. CONSTABLE : Yes, it has been. I spoke with the member for Wagin this morning about these issues to get his views on them, and he assured me that the school has worked extremely hard in the past nine months or so to help resolve these issues. These issues are ongoing and I have been monitoring them as well with the director general.
The SPEAKER : Order! Member, there is no point of order, but might I suggest to all members in this place that when a member is asking a question, or when a minister is responding to a question, especially in the initial stages of that response, they at least remain quiet for that period. Hopefully, member for Midland, that might solve some of the problems. Questions without Notice Resumed Dr E. CONSTABLE : I should explain that I lost my voice two days ago and I just cannot produce any more than members are hearing now. As a result of the altercation yesterday, some parents have kept their children home from school. I understand that 12 Aboriginal students are at home today, or absent from school, and 13 are at school—so about half the Aboriginal students have stayed at home. The department is working with the school to make sure that those students return to school as soon as possible. I understand that two specialist behaviour psychologists have gone to the school to assist the staff and the school with that work, and two mentor principals are also at the school. We should see this in the context of an ongoing range of tensions between a small group of Aboriginal girls—I think around five—and a small group of non-Aboriginal girls. It is all girls who are involved in this—about four non-Aboriginal girls. The sorts of behaviours that they are displaying towards each other have been verbal abuse and fairly low-level physical aggression—scratching, and some hitting and some intimidation. It is very important that we see these events against a general backdrop in the community of problems that the town has had. I think that what is happening at the school is reflecting those issues that we have seen in that local community for some time. The issues among this small group of girls that the school has been dealing with have been ongoing for about nine months. The school has put in place a range of initiatives in the past nine months or so. It has put in place a number of preventive programs for educating parents and students about Aboriginal culture and history; some special programs on society and environment to inform all students about Aboriginal culture, which have been delivered by one of the Aboriginal staff members of the school; and also a range of other background and informative programs for staff to understand the students with whom they are working. The chair of the Aboriginal Education Advisory Council, Carol Garlett, has also been to the school and worked with the Narrogin Aboriginal Community Reference Group—a group of Nyoongah citizens in the town—and central office to make sure that goals for Aboriginal education are being developed and properly actioned within the school. The new principal and the district office have been working very hard on communication strategies between the school and the community and working with them on their concerns. Of really great importance is that the school, community members and the district office are developing programs to ensure that Aboriginal students at the school are engaged, and an additional psychologist is working at the school to help at-risk students. A range of other initiatives have been implemented in the past nine months. I do not need to go into the details of all those initiatives, but my own communications have been with one parent at the school and I understand that he is happy with the work that the school has been doing with his child and with others in the community; others are not as happy. However, these are complex intergroup issues and interpersonal disputes that the school is working to resolve. Mr R.H. Cook : Is this tied in with the suicide prevention strategies down there as well? Dr E. CONSTABLE : Yes, it has been. I spoke with the member for Wagin this morning about these issues to get his views on them, and he assured me that the school has worked extremely hard in the past nine months or so to help resolve these issues. These issues are ongoing and I have been monitoring them as well with the director general.
As a result of the altercation yesterday, some parents have kept their children home from school. I understand that 12 Aboriginal students are at home today, or absent from school, and 13 are at school—so about half the Aboriginal students have stayed at home. The department is working with the school to make sure that those students return to school as soon as possible. I understand that two specialist behaviour psychologists have gone to the school to assist the staff and the school with that work, and two mentor principals are also at the school. We should see this in the context of an ongoing range of tensions between a small group of Aboriginal girls—I think around five—and a small group of non-Aboriginal girls. It is all girls who are involved in this—about four non-Aboriginal girls. The sorts of behaviours that they are displaying towards each other have been verbal abuse and fairly low-level physical aggression—scratching, and some hitting and some intimidation. It is very important that we see these events against a general backdrop in the community of problems that the town has had. I think that what is happening at the school is reflecting those issues that we have seen in that local community for some time. The issues among this small group of girls that the school has been dealing with have been ongoing for about nine months. The school has put in place a range of initiatives in the past nine months or so. It has put in place a number of preventive programs for educating parents and students about Aboriginal culture and history; some special programs on society and environment to inform all students about Aboriginal culture, which have been delivered by one of the Aboriginal staff members of the school; and also a range of other background and informative programs for staff to understand the students with whom they are working. The chair of the Aboriginal Education Advisory Council, Carol Garlett, has also been to the school and worked with the Narrogin Aboriginal Community Reference Group—a group of Nyoongah citizens in the town—and central office to make sure that goals for Aboriginal education are being developed and properly actioned within the school. The new principal and the district office have been working very hard on communication strategies between the school and the community and working with them on their concerns. Of really great importance is that the school, community members and the district office are developing programs to ensure that Aboriginal students at the school are engaged, and an additional psychologist is working at the school to help at-risk students. A range of other initiatives have been implemented in the past nine months. I do not need to go into the details of all those initiatives, but my own communications have been with one parent at the school and I understand that he is happy with the work that the school has been doing with his child and with others in the community; others are not as happy. However, these are complex intergroup issues and interpersonal disputes that the school is working to resolve. Mr R.H. Cook : Is this tied in with the suicide prevention strategies down there as well? Dr E. CONSTABLE : Yes, it has been. I spoke with the member for Wagin this morning about these issues to get his views on them, and he assured me that the school has worked extremely hard in the past nine months or so to help resolve these issues. These issues are ongoing and I have been monitoring them as well with the director general.
The issues among this small group of girls that the school has been dealing with have been ongoing for about nine months. The school has put in place a range of initiatives in the past nine months or so. It has put in place a number of preventive programs for educating parents and students about Aboriginal culture and history; some special programs on society and environment to inform all students about Aboriginal culture, which have been delivered by one of the Aboriginal staff members of the school; and also a range of other background and informative programs for staff to understand the students with whom they are working. The chair of the Aboriginal Education Advisory Council, Carol Garlett, has also been to the school and worked with the Narrogin Aboriginal Community Reference Group—a group of Nyoongah citizens in the town—and central office to make sure that goals for Aboriginal education are being developed and properly actioned within the school. The new principal and the district office have been working very hard on communication strategies between the school and the community and working with them on their concerns. Of really great importance is that the school, community members and the district office are developing programs to ensure that Aboriginal students at the school are engaged, and an additional psychologist is working at the school to help at-risk students. A range of other initiatives have been implemented in the past nine months. I do not need to go into the details of all those initiatives, but my own communications have been with one parent at the school and I understand that he is happy with the work that the school has been doing with his child and with others in the community; others are not as happy. However, these are complex intergroup issues and interpersonal disputes that the school is working to resolve. Mr R.H. Cook : Is this tied in with the suicide prevention strategies down there as well? Dr E. CONSTABLE : Yes, it has been. I spoke with the member for Wagin this morning about these issues to get his views on them, and he assured me that the school has worked extremely hard in the past nine months or so to help resolve these issues. These issues are ongoing and I have been monitoring them as well with the director general.
Mr R.H. Cook : Is this tied in with the suicide prevention strategies down there as well? Dr E. CONSTABLE : Yes, it has been. I spoke with the member for Wagin this morning about these issues to get his views on them, and he assured me that the school has worked extremely hard in the past nine months or so to help resolve these issues. These issues are ongoing and I have been monitoring them as well with the director general.
Dr E. CONSTABLE : Yes, it has been. I spoke with the member for Wagin this morning about these issues to get his views on them, and he assured me that the school has worked extremely hard in the past nine months or so to help resolve these issues. These issues are ongoing and I have been monitoring them as well with the director general.
Dr E. CONSTABLE replied: I thank the member for Kingsley for the question. I think it is important for us all to understand the situation at Narrogin Senior High School. I understand that yesterday, four students were suspended after an altercation, and that today, as a result, the parents of some of the Aboriginal students at that school have kept their children home from school. Point of Order Mrs M.H. ROBERTS : Mr Speaker, I am quite interested to hear what the minister has to say, but she is speaking so softly that I cannot hear from here. The SPEAKER : Order! Member, there is no point of order, but might I suggest to all members in this place that when a member is asking a question, or when a minister is responding to a question, especially in the initial stages of that response, they at least remain quiet for that period. Hopefully, member for Midland, that might solve some of the problems. Questions without Notice Resumed Dr E. CONSTABLE : I should explain that I lost my voice two days ago and I just cannot produce any more than members are hearing now. As a result of the altercation yesterday, some parents have kept their children home from school. I understand that 12 Aboriginal students are at home today, or absent from school, and 13 are at school—so about half the Aboriginal students have stayed at home. The department is working with the school to make sure that those students return to school as soon as possible. I understand that two specialist behaviour psychologists have gone to the school to assist the staff and the school with that work, and two mentor principals are also at the school. We should see this in the context of an ongoing range of tensions between a small group of Aboriginal girls—I think around five—and a small group of non-Aboriginal girls. It is all girls who are involved in this—about four non-Aboriginal girls. The sorts of behaviours that they are displaying towards each other have been verbal abuse and fairly low-level physical aggression—scratching, and some hitting and some intimidation. It is very important that we see these events against a general backdrop in the community of problems that the town has had. I think that what is happening at the school is reflecting those issues that we have seen in that local community for some time. The issues among this small group of girls that the school has been dealing with have been ongoing for about nine months. The school has put in place a range of initiatives in the past nine months or so. It has put in place a number of preventive programs for educating parents and students about Aboriginal culture and history; some special programs on society and environment to inform all students about Aboriginal culture, which have been delivered by one of the Aboriginal staff members of the school; and also a range of other background and informative programs for staff to understand the students with whom they are working. The chair of the Aboriginal Education Advisory Council, Carol Garlett, has also been to the school and worked with the Narrogin Aboriginal Community Reference Group—a group of Nyoongah citizens in the town—and central office to make sure that goals for Aboriginal education are being developed and properly actioned within the school. The new principal and the district office have been working very hard on communication strategies between the school and the community and working with them on their concerns. Of really great importance is that the school, community members and the district office are developing programs to ensure that Aboriginal students at the school are engaged, and an additional psychologist is working at the school to help at-risk students. A range of other initiatives have been implemented in the past nine months. I do not need to go into the details of all those initiatives, but my own communications have been with one parent at the school and I understand that he is happy with the work that the school has been doing with his child and with others in the community; others are not as happy. However, these are complex intergroup issues and interpersonal disputes that the school is working to resolve. Mr R.H. Cook : Is this tied in with the suicide prevention strategies down there as well? Dr E. CONSTABLE : Yes, it has been. I spoke with the member for Wagin this morning about these issues to get his views on them, and he assured me that the school has worked extremely hard in the past nine months or so to help resolve these issues. These issues are ongoing and I have been monitoring them as well with the director general.
I thank the member for Kingsley for the question. I think it is important for us all to understand the situation at Narrogin Senior High School. I understand that yesterday, four students were suspended after an altercation, and that today, as a result, the parents of some of the Aboriginal students at that school have kept their children home from school. Point of Order Mrs M.H. ROBERTS : Mr Speaker, I am quite interested to hear what the minister has to say, but she is speaking so softly that I cannot hear from here. The SPEAKER : Order! Member, there is no point of order, but might I suggest to all members in this place that when a member is asking a question, or when a minister is responding to a question, especially in the initial stages of that response, they at least remain quiet for that period. Hopefully, member for Midland, that might solve some of the problems. Questions without Notice Resumed Dr E. CONSTABLE : I should explain that I lost my voice two days ago and I just cannot produce any more than members are hearing now. As a result of the altercation yesterday, some parents have kept their children home from school. I understand that 12 Aboriginal students are at home today, or absent from school, and 13 are at school—so about half the Aboriginal students have stayed at home. The department is working with the school to make sure that those students return to school as soon as possible. I understand that two specialist behaviour psychologists have gone to the school to assist the staff and the school with that work, and two mentor principals are also at the school. We should see this in the context of an ongoing range of tensions between a small group of Aboriginal girls—I think around five—and a small group of non-Aboriginal girls. It is all girls who are involved in this—about four non-Aboriginal girls. The sorts of behaviours that they are displaying towards each other have been verbal abuse and fairly low-level physical aggression—scratching, and some hitting and some intimidation. It is very important that we see these events against a general backdrop in the community of problems that the town has had. I think that what is happening at the school is reflecting those issues that we have seen in that local community for some time. The issues among this small group of girls that the school has been dealing with have been ongoing for about nine months. The school has put in place a range of initiatives in the past nine months or so. It has put in place a number of preventive programs for educating parents and students about Aboriginal culture and history; some special programs on society and environment to inform all students about Aboriginal culture, which have been delivered by one of the Aboriginal staff members of the school; and also a range of other background and informative programs for staff to understand the students with whom they are working. The chair of the Aboriginal Education Advisory Council, Carol Garlett, has also been to the school and worked with the Narrogin Aboriginal Community Reference Group—a group of Nyoongah citizens in the town—and central office to make sure that goals for Aboriginal education are being developed and properly actioned within the school. The new principal and the district office have been working very hard on communication strategies between the school and the community and working with them on their concerns. Of really great importance is that the school, community members and the district office are developing programs to ensure that Aboriginal students at the school are engaged, and an additional psychologist is working at the school to help at-risk students. A range of other initiatives have been implemented in the past nine months. I do not need to go into the details of all those initiatives, but my own communications have been with one parent at the school and I understand that he is happy with the work that the school has been doing with his child and with others in the community; others are not as happy. However, these are complex intergroup issues and interpersonal disputes that the school is working to resolve. Mr R.H. Cook : Is this tied in with the suicide prevention strategies down there as well? Dr E. CONSTABLE : Yes, it has been. I spoke with the member for Wagin this morning about these issues to get his views on them, and he assured me that the school has worked extremely hard in the past nine months or so to help resolve these issues. These issues are ongoing and I have been monitoring them as well with the director general.
The SPEAKER : Order! Member, there is no point of order, but might I suggest to all members in this place that when a member is asking a question, or when a minister is responding to a question, especially in the initial stages of that response, they at least remain quiet for that period. Hopefully, member for Midland, that might solve some of the problems. Questions without Notice Resumed Dr E. CONSTABLE : I should explain that I lost my voice two days ago and I just cannot produce any more than members are hearing now. As a result of the altercation yesterday, some parents have kept their children home from school. I understand that 12 Aboriginal students are at home today, or absent from school, and 13 are at school—so about half the Aboriginal students have stayed at home. The department is working with the school to make sure that those students return to school as soon as possible. I understand that two specialist behaviour psychologists have gone to the school to assist the staff and the school with that work, and two mentor principals are also at the school. We should see this in the context of an ongoing range of tensions between a small group of Aboriginal girls—I think around five—and a small group of non-Aboriginal girls. It is all girls who are involved in this—about four non-Aboriginal girls. The sorts of behaviours that they are displaying towards each other have been verbal abuse and fairly low-level physical aggression—scratching, and some hitting and some intimidation. It is very important that we see these events against a general backdrop in the community of problems that the town has had. I think that what is happening at the school is reflecting those issues that we have seen in that local community for some time. The issues among this small group of girls that the school has been dealing with have been ongoing for about nine months. The school has put in place a range of initiatives in the past nine months or so. It has put in place a number of preventive programs for educating parents and students about Aboriginal culture and history; some special programs on society and environment to inform all students about Aboriginal culture, which have been delivered by one of the Aboriginal staff members of the school; and also a range of other background and informative programs for staff to understand the students with whom they are working. The chair of the Aboriginal Education Advisory Council, Carol Garlett, has also been to the school and worked with the Narrogin Aboriginal Community Reference Group—a group of Nyoongah citizens in the town—and central office to make sure that goals for Aboriginal education are being developed and properly actioned within the school. The new principal and the district office have been working very hard on communication strategies between the school and the community and working with them on their concerns. Of really great importance is that the school, community members and the district office are developing programs to ensure that Aboriginal students at the school are engaged, and an additional psychologist is working at the school to help at-risk students. A range of other initiatives have been implemented in the past nine months. I do not need to go into the details of all those initiatives, but my own communications have been with one parent at the school and I understand that he is happy with the work that the school has been doing with his child and with others in the community; others are not as happy. However, these are complex intergroup issues and interpersonal disputes that the school is working to resolve. Mr R.H. Cook : Is this tied in with the suicide prevention strategies down there as well? Dr E. CONSTABLE : Yes, it has been. I spoke with the member for Wagin this morning about these issues to get his views on them, and he assured me that the school has worked extremely hard in the past nine months or so to help resolve these issues. These issues are ongoing and I have been monitoring them as well with the director general.
As a result of the altercation yesterday, some parents have kept their children home from school. I understand that 12 Aboriginal students are at home today, or absent from school, and 13 are at school—so about half the Aboriginal students have stayed at home. The department is working with the school to make sure that those students return to school as soon as possible. I understand that two specialist behaviour psychologists have gone to the school to assist the staff and the school with that work, and two mentor principals are also at the school. We should see this in the context of an ongoing range of tensions between a small group of Aboriginal girls—I think around five—and a small group of non-Aboriginal girls. It is all girls who are involved in this—about four non-Aboriginal girls. The sorts of behaviours that they are displaying towards each other have been verbal abuse and fairly low-level physical aggression—scratching, and some hitting and some intimidation. It is very important that we see these events against a general backdrop in the community of problems that the town has had. I think that what is happening at the school is reflecting those issues that we have seen in that local community for some time. The issues among this small group of girls that the school has been dealing with have been ongoing for about nine months. The school has put in place a range of initiatives in the past nine months or so. It has put in place a number of preventive programs for educating parents and students about Aboriginal culture and history; some special programs on society and environment to inform all students about Aboriginal culture, which have been delivered by one of the Aboriginal staff members of the school; and also a range of other background and informative programs for staff to understand the students with whom they are working. The chair of the Aboriginal Education Advisory Council, Carol Garlett, has also been to the school and worked with the Narrogin Aboriginal Community Reference Group—a group of Nyoongah citizens in the town—and central office to make sure that goals for Aboriginal education are being developed and properly actioned within the school. The new principal and the district office have been working very hard on communication strategies between the school and the community and working with them on their concerns. Of really great importance is that the school, community members and the district office are developing programs to ensure that Aboriginal students at the school are engaged, and an additional psychologist is working at the school to help at-risk students. A range of other initiatives have been implemented in the past nine months. I do not need to go into the details of all those initiatives, but my own communications have been with one parent at the school and I understand that he is happy with the work that the school has been doing with his child and with others in the community; others are not as happy. However, these are complex intergroup issues and interpersonal disputes that the school is working to resolve. Mr R.H. Cook : Is this tied in with the suicide prevention strategies down there as well? Dr E. CONSTABLE : Yes, it has been. I spoke with the member for Wagin this morning about these issues to get his views on them, and he assured me that the school has worked extremely hard in the past nine months or so to help resolve these issues. These issues are ongoing and I have been monitoring them as well with the director general.
The issues among this small group of girls that the school has been dealing with have been ongoing for about nine months. The school has put in place a range of initiatives in the past nine months or so. It has put in place a number of preventive programs for educating parents and students about Aboriginal culture and history; some special programs on society and environment to inform all students about Aboriginal culture, which have been delivered by one of the Aboriginal staff members of the school; and also a range of other background and informative programs for staff to understand the students with whom they are working. The chair of the Aboriginal Education Advisory Council, Carol Garlett, has also been to the school and worked with the Narrogin Aboriginal Community Reference Group—a group of Nyoongah citizens in the town—and central office to make sure that goals for Aboriginal education are being developed and properly actioned within the school. The new principal and the district office have been working very hard on communication strategies between the school and the community and working with them on their concerns. Of really great importance is that the school, community members and the district office are developing programs to ensure that Aboriginal students at the school are engaged, and an additional psychologist is working at the school to help at-risk students. A range of other initiatives have been implemented in the past nine months. I do not need to go into the details of all those initiatives, but my own communications have been with one parent at the school and I understand that he is happy with the work that the school has been doing with his child and with others in the community; others are not as happy. However, these are complex intergroup issues and interpersonal disputes that the school is working to resolve. Mr R.H. Cook : Is this tied in with the suicide prevention strategies down there as well? Dr E. CONSTABLE : Yes, it has been. I spoke with the member for Wagin this morning about these issues to get his views on them, and he assured me that the school has worked extremely hard in the past nine months or so to help resolve these issues. These issues are ongoing and I have been monitoring them as well with the director general.
Mr R.H. Cook : Is this tied in with the suicide prevention strategies down there as well? Dr E. CONSTABLE : Yes, it has been. I spoke with the member for Wagin this morning about these issues to get his views on them, and he assured me that the school has worked extremely hard in the past nine months or so to help resolve these issues. These issues are ongoing and I have been monitoring them as well with the director general.
Dr E. CONSTABLE : Yes, it has been. I spoke with the member for Wagin this morning about these issues to get his views on them, and he assured me that the school has worked extremely hard in the past nine months or so to help resolve these issues. These issues are ongoing and I have been monitoring them as well with the director general.
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