❓ WA Minister for Education responds to a question regarding a Bangkok Post article damaging to WA's education export sector, blaming the federal education minister's negative comments on Australian education.
AnsweredQoN 898Legislative Council
QuestionView source ↗
Is the Minister for Education and Training aware of an article in the Bangkok Post that was damaging to Western Australia’s education export sector? Hon LJILJANNA RAVLICH
AnswerView source ↗
I thank the member for that question. Yes, I am aware of that article. An article entitled “Trendy Teaching Slammed” appeared in the Bangkok Post , dated 21 October 2005. That article began by stating that if people were thinking of sending their child to an Australian school, they should think again. This is extremely damaging to our vocational education and training export sector. It needs to be recognised that in Western Australia alone, this is a major industry. It is worth approximately $1.2 billion annually to the WA economy. Nationally, it is worth about $7.5 billion. As an export sector in Western Australia, it is bigger than the wheat sector, the wine sector or the wool sector. Therefore, members might want to know the reason for that damaging article being published in the Bangkok Post , and who was talking down a major export industry in the international press and in the very markets to which we export our education and training products. That article quotes the source, and the source was none other than - members guessed it - the federal education minister, Brendan Nelson. He commented on a dodgy report that he got his mate - here he comes again - Dr Kevin Donnelly, the so-called education expert, to write. He was responsible for writing a report about primary school curricula and where we stand within an international context. Basically, when Dr Donnelly got the contract to do that - it was a job for the mates; it did not go through any tender process - he produced a report, and it stated that Western Australia and, indeed, the rest of Australia basically have a very sloppy education system, and Australian students do not meet international standards. Can members imagine a federal minister, who should be promoting international education, given the importance of it as an export industry, running down education in his own nation and in every state of that nation? Can members imagine what would happen if the federal agriculture minister bagged Australia’s farmers to our international export markets in the same way? Indeed, can members imagine what would happen if any other minister with an export-oriented portfolio did that? They would be carpeted by the Prime Minister and crucified by the press. Minister Nelson has had four years as education minister. He has had four years of talking down our universities, our TAFE sector and our schools. He should mend his ways or hit the highway. Hon Ray Halligan interjected. The PRESIDENT : Hon Ray Halligan has the call, not to interject but to ask a question.
Hon LJILJANNA RAVLICH replied: I thank the member for that question. Yes, I am aware of that article. An article entitled “Trendy Teaching Slammed” appeared in the Bangkok Post , dated 21 October 2005. That article began by stating that if people were thinking of sending their child to an Australian school, they should think again. This is extremely damaging to our vocational education and training export sector. It needs to be recognised that in Western Australia alone, this is a major industry. It is worth approximately $1.2 billion annually to the WA economy. Nationally, it is worth about $7.5 billion. As an export sector in Western Australia, it is bigger than the wheat sector, the wine sector or the wool sector. Therefore, members might want to know the reason for that damaging article being published in the Bangkok Post , and who was talking down a major export industry in the international press and in the very markets to which we export our education and training products. That article quotes the source, and the source was none other than - members guessed it - the federal education minister, Brendan Nelson. He commented on a dodgy report that he got his mate - here he comes again - Dr Kevin Donnelly, the so-called education expert, to write. He was responsible for writing a report about primary school curricula and where we stand within an international context. Basically, when Dr Donnelly got the contract to do that - it was a job for the mates; it did not go through any tender process - he produced a report, and it stated that Western Australia and, indeed, the rest of Australia basically have a very sloppy education system, and Australian students do not meet international standards. Can members imagine a federal minister, who should be promoting international education, given the importance of it as an export industry, running down education in his own nation and in every state of that nation? Can members imagine what would happen if the federal agriculture minister bagged Australia’s farmers to our international export markets in the same way? Indeed, can members imagine what would happen if any other minister with an export-oriented portfolio did that? They would be carpeted by the Prime Minister and crucified by the press. Minister Nelson has had four years as education minister. He has had four years of talking down our universities, our TAFE sector and our schools. He should mend his ways or hit the highway. Hon Ray Halligan interjected. The PRESIDENT : Hon Ray Halligan has the call, not to interject but to ask a question.
I thank the member for that question. Yes, I am aware of that article. An article entitled “Trendy Teaching Slammed” appeared in the Bangkok Post , dated 21 October 2005. That article began by stating that if people were thinking of sending their child to an Australian school, they should think again. This is extremely damaging to our vocational education and training export sector. It needs to be recognised that in Western Australia alone, this is a major industry. It is worth approximately $1.2 billion annually to the WA economy. Nationally, it is worth about $7.5 billion. As an export sector in Western Australia, it is bigger than the wheat sector, the wine sector or the wool sector. Therefore, members might want to know the reason for that damaging article being published in the Bangkok Post , and who was talking down a major export industry in the international press and in the very markets to which we export our education and training products. That article quotes the source, and the source was none other than - members guessed it - the federal education minister, Brendan Nelson. He commented on a dodgy report that he got his mate - here he comes again - Dr Kevin Donnelly, the so-called education expert, to write. He was responsible for writing a report about primary school curricula and where we stand within an international context. Basically, when Dr Donnelly got the contract to do that - it was a job for the mates; it did not go through any tender process - he produced a report, and it stated that Western Australia and, indeed, the rest of Australia basically have a very sloppy education system, and Australian students do not meet international standards. Can members imagine a federal minister, who should be promoting international education, given the importance of it as an export industry, running down education in his own nation and in every state of that nation? Can members imagine what would happen if the federal agriculture minister bagged Australia’s farmers to our international export markets in the same way? Indeed, can members imagine what would happen if any other minister with an export-oriented portfolio did that? They would be carpeted by the Prime Minister and crucified by the press. Minister Nelson has had four years as education minister. He has had four years of talking down our universities, our TAFE sector and our schools. He should mend his ways or hit the highway. Hon Ray Halligan interjected. The PRESIDENT : Hon Ray Halligan has the call, not to interject but to ask a question.
Can members imagine a federal minister, who should be promoting international education, given the importance of it as an export industry, running down education in his own nation and in every state of that nation? Can members imagine what would happen if the federal agriculture minister bagged Australia’s farmers to our international export markets in the same way? Indeed, can members imagine what would happen if any other minister with an export-oriented portfolio did that? They would be carpeted by the Prime Minister and crucified by the press. Minister Nelson has had four years as education minister. He has had four years of talking down our universities, our TAFE sector and our schools. He should mend his ways or hit the highway. Hon Ray Halligan interjected. The PRESIDENT : Hon Ray Halligan has the call, not to interject but to ask a question.
Hon Ray Halligan interjected. The PRESIDENT : Hon Ray Halligan has the call, not to interject but to ask a question.
The PRESIDENT : Hon Ray Halligan has the call, not to interject but to ask a question.
Hon LJILJANNA RAVLICH replied: I thank the member for that question. Yes, I am aware of that article. An article entitled “Trendy Teaching Slammed” appeared in the Bangkok Post , dated 21 October 2005. That article began by stating that if people were thinking of sending their child to an Australian school, they should think again. This is extremely damaging to our vocational education and training export sector. It needs to be recognised that in Western Australia alone, this is a major industry. It is worth approximately $1.2 billion annually to the WA economy. Nationally, it is worth about $7.5 billion. As an export sector in Western Australia, it is bigger than the wheat sector, the wine sector or the wool sector. Therefore, members might want to know the reason for that damaging article being published in the Bangkok Post , and who was talking down a major export industry in the international press and in the very markets to which we export our education and training products. That article quotes the source, and the source was none other than - members guessed it - the federal education minister, Brendan Nelson. He commented on a dodgy report that he got his mate - here he comes again - Dr Kevin Donnelly, the so-called education expert, to write. He was responsible for writing a report about primary school curricula and where we stand within an international context. Basically, when Dr Donnelly got the contract to do that - it was a job for the mates; it did not go through any tender process - he produced a report, and it stated that Western Australia and, indeed, the rest of Australia basically have a very sloppy education system, and Australian students do not meet international standards. Can members imagine a federal minister, who should be promoting international education, given the importance of it as an export industry, running down education in his own nation and in every state of that nation? Can members imagine what would happen if the federal agriculture minister bagged Australia’s farmers to our international export markets in the same way? Indeed, can members imagine what would happen if any other minister with an export-oriented portfolio did that? They would be carpeted by the Prime Minister and crucified by the press. Minister Nelson has had four years as education minister. He has had four years of talking down our universities, our TAFE sector and our schools. He should mend his ways or hit the highway. Hon Ray Halligan interjected. The PRESIDENT : Hon Ray Halligan has the call, not to interject but to ask a question.
I thank the member for that question. Yes, I am aware of that article. An article entitled “Trendy Teaching Slammed” appeared in the Bangkok Post , dated 21 October 2005. That article began by stating that if people were thinking of sending their child to an Australian school, they should think again. This is extremely damaging to our vocational education and training export sector. It needs to be recognised that in Western Australia alone, this is a major industry. It is worth approximately $1.2 billion annually to the WA economy. Nationally, it is worth about $7.5 billion. As an export sector in Western Australia, it is bigger than the wheat sector, the wine sector or the wool sector. Therefore, members might want to know the reason for that damaging article being published in the Bangkok Post , and who was talking down a major export industry in the international press and in the very markets to which we export our education and training products. That article quotes the source, and the source was none other than - members guessed it - the federal education minister, Brendan Nelson. He commented on a dodgy report that he got his mate - here he comes again - Dr Kevin Donnelly, the so-called education expert, to write. He was responsible for writing a report about primary school curricula and where we stand within an international context. Basically, when Dr Donnelly got the contract to do that - it was a job for the mates; it did not go through any tender process - he produced a report, and it stated that Western Australia and, indeed, the rest of Australia basically have a very sloppy education system, and Australian students do not meet international standards. Can members imagine a federal minister, who should be promoting international education, given the importance of it as an export industry, running down education in his own nation and in every state of that nation? Can members imagine what would happen if the federal agriculture minister bagged Australia’s farmers to our international export markets in the same way? Indeed, can members imagine what would happen if any other minister with an export-oriented portfolio did that? They would be carpeted by the Prime Minister and crucified by the press. Minister Nelson has had four years as education minister. He has had four years of talking down our universities, our TAFE sector and our schools. He should mend his ways or hit the highway. Hon Ray Halligan interjected. The PRESIDENT : Hon Ray Halligan has the call, not to interject but to ask a question.
Can members imagine a federal minister, who should be promoting international education, given the importance of it as an export industry, running down education in his own nation and in every state of that nation? Can members imagine what would happen if the federal agriculture minister bagged Australia’s farmers to our international export markets in the same way? Indeed, can members imagine what would happen if any other minister with an export-oriented portfolio did that? They would be carpeted by the Prime Minister and crucified by the press. Minister Nelson has had four years as education minister. He has had four years of talking down our universities, our TAFE sector and our schools. He should mend his ways or hit the highway. Hon Ray Halligan interjected. The PRESIDENT : Hon Ray Halligan has the call, not to interject but to ask a question.
Hon Ray Halligan interjected. The PRESIDENT : Hon Ray Halligan has the call, not to interject but to ask a question.
The PRESIDENT : Hon Ray Halligan has the call, not to interject but to ask a question.
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