❓ WA Education Minister Ravlich refutes claims that students can pass the English exam with diagrams, defending the exam's integrity and challenging the federal minister's alleged misquote. She also highlights an offer for a briefing on WA's education system.
AnsweredQoN 65Legislative Council
QuestionView source ↗
Can the minister advise the house whether her federal counterpart is correct in saying that a student could answer the entire English course exam by drawing diagrams, as reported in this morning’s edition of The West Australian ? Hon LJILJANNA RAVLICH
AnswerView source ↗
I thank the member for some notice of this question. I have a copy of the year 12 English exam in my hand. If people think they could pass this exam by drawing pictures, they have rocks in their heads. I have never heard of anything so ridiculous in my life. I am not so sure whether the federal Minister for Education, Science and Training believes that a student could complete this whole paper by drawing diagrams. She may well have had words put in her mouth. Hon Simon O’Brien interjected. Hon LJILJANNA RAVLICH : She did? Hon Simon O’Brien assures me that she did. I thank the honourable member for that interjection. This is a draft exam that has been sent to English teachers to provide feedback. I understand that the vast majority of teachers support it. This is a three-hour draft exam that comprises three sections. The Leader of the House has just indicated that the suggested number of words to be used for each part of the exam is 200. It is beyond me how 200 words could be drawn. The notion that people will not be marked down if they cannot spell or if their grammar is incorrect is nonsense. Students will be required to produce cohesive texts that follow in a logical sequence and include paragraphs and other divisions, and they must employ the appropriate vocabulary and ensure that the spelling is correct. They must be able to construct sentences and use capital letters, full stops and questions marks etc. Obviously a student will be marked down if all the structural conventions of writing are absent. I challenge the federal Minister for Education, Science and Training to take this exam and to pass it by drawing pictures. Hon Barbara Scott : Did you read exactly what she said? Hon LJILJANNA RAVLICH : I accept that perhaps the federal minister was misquoted. However, I want to put these statements on record because the statements that are alleged to have been made are a gross injustice to the people who have worked on getting this draft paper ready for consultation. They have been slapped in the face because of this alleged misquote. I like to operate in an open, honest and up-front manner. A letter I wrote to the federal minister on 15 March, just two days after she got the portfolio, states in part - I write to offer you a comprehensive briefing by my senior departmental officials on current directions in the Western Australian education and training sectors. An offer has been made. I have had a telephone conversation with the federal minister about a voucher system. The offer to provide the minister with a full and comprehensive briefing has not been taken up. I am happy for her to take it up and I am happy to explain to her the purpose for this and other examination papers and the government’s direction for education in Western Australia.
Hon LJILJANNA RAVLICH replied: I thank the member for some notice of this question. I have a copy of the year 12 English exam in my hand. If people think they could pass this exam by drawing pictures, they have rocks in their heads. I have never heard of anything so ridiculous in my life. I am not so sure whether the federal Minister for Education, Science and Training believes that a student could complete this whole paper by drawing diagrams. She may well have had words put in her mouth. Hon Simon O’Brien interjected. Hon LJILJANNA RAVLICH : She did? Hon Simon O’Brien assures me that she did. I thank the honourable member for that interjection. This is a draft exam that has been sent to English teachers to provide feedback. I understand that the vast majority of teachers support it. This is a three-hour draft exam that comprises three sections. The Leader of the House has just indicated that the suggested number of words to be used for each part of the exam is 200. It is beyond me how 200 words could be drawn. The notion that people will not be marked down if they cannot spell or if their grammar is incorrect is nonsense. Students will be required to produce cohesive texts that follow in a logical sequence and include paragraphs and other divisions, and they must employ the appropriate vocabulary and ensure that the spelling is correct. They must be able to construct sentences and use capital letters, full stops and questions marks etc. Obviously a student will be marked down if all the structural conventions of writing are absent. I challenge the federal Minister for Education, Science and Training to take this exam and to pass it by drawing pictures. Hon Barbara Scott : Did you read exactly what she said? Hon LJILJANNA RAVLICH : I accept that perhaps the federal minister was misquoted. However, I want to put these statements on record because the statements that are alleged to have been made are a gross injustice to the people who have worked on getting this draft paper ready for consultation. They have been slapped in the face because of this alleged misquote. I like to operate in an open, honest and up-front manner. A letter I wrote to the federal minister on 15 March, just two days after she got the portfolio, states in part - I write to offer you a comprehensive briefing by my senior departmental officials on current directions in the Western Australian education and training sectors. An offer has been made. I have had a telephone conversation with the federal minister about a voucher system. The offer to provide the minister with a full and comprehensive briefing has not been taken up. I am happy for her to take it up and I am happy to explain to her the purpose for this and other examination papers and the government’s direction for education in Western Australia.
I thank the member for some notice of this question. I have a copy of the year 12 English exam in my hand. If people think they could pass this exam by drawing pictures, they have rocks in their heads. I have never heard of anything so ridiculous in my life. I am not so sure whether the federal Minister for Education, Science and Training believes that a student could complete this whole paper by drawing diagrams. She may well have had words put in her mouth. Hon Simon O’Brien interjected. Hon LJILJANNA RAVLICH : She did? Hon Simon O’Brien assures me that she did. I thank the honourable member for that interjection. This is a draft exam that has been sent to English teachers to provide feedback. I understand that the vast majority of teachers support it. This is a three-hour draft exam that comprises three sections. The Leader of the House has just indicated that the suggested number of words to be used for each part of the exam is 200. It is beyond me how 200 words could be drawn. The notion that people will not be marked down if they cannot spell or if their grammar is incorrect is nonsense. Students will be required to produce cohesive texts that follow in a logical sequence and include paragraphs and other divisions, and they must employ the appropriate vocabulary and ensure that the spelling is correct. They must be able to construct sentences and use capital letters, full stops and questions marks etc. Obviously a student will be marked down if all the structural conventions of writing are absent. I challenge the federal Minister for Education, Science and Training to take this exam and to pass it by drawing pictures. Hon Barbara Scott : Did you read exactly what she said? Hon LJILJANNA RAVLICH : I accept that perhaps the federal minister was misquoted. However, I want to put these statements on record because the statements that are alleged to have been made are a gross injustice to the people who have worked on getting this draft paper ready for consultation. They have been slapped in the face because of this alleged misquote. I like to operate in an open, honest and up-front manner. A letter I wrote to the federal minister on 15 March, just two days after she got the portfolio, states in part - I write to offer you a comprehensive briefing by my senior departmental officials on current directions in the Western Australian education and training sectors. An offer has been made. I have had a telephone conversation with the federal minister about a voucher system. The offer to provide the minister with a full and comprehensive briefing has not been taken up. I am happy for her to take it up and I am happy to explain to her the purpose for this and other examination papers and the government’s direction for education in Western Australia.
Hon Simon O’Brien interjected. Hon LJILJANNA RAVLICH : She did? Hon Simon O’Brien assures me that she did. I thank the honourable member for that interjection. This is a draft exam that has been sent to English teachers to provide feedback. I understand that the vast majority of teachers support it. This is a three-hour draft exam that comprises three sections. The Leader of the House has just indicated that the suggested number of words to be used for each part of the exam is 200. It is beyond me how 200 words could be drawn. The notion that people will not be marked down if they cannot spell or if their grammar is incorrect is nonsense. Students will be required to produce cohesive texts that follow in a logical sequence and include paragraphs and other divisions, and they must employ the appropriate vocabulary and ensure that the spelling is correct. They must be able to construct sentences and use capital letters, full stops and questions marks etc. Obviously a student will be marked down if all the structural conventions of writing are absent. I challenge the federal Minister for Education, Science and Training to take this exam and to pass it by drawing pictures. Hon Barbara Scott : Did you read exactly what she said? Hon LJILJANNA RAVLICH : I accept that perhaps the federal minister was misquoted. However, I want to put these statements on record because the statements that are alleged to have been made are a gross injustice to the people who have worked on getting this draft paper ready for consultation. They have been slapped in the face because of this alleged misquote. I like to operate in an open, honest and up-front manner. A letter I wrote to the federal minister on 15 March, just two days after she got the portfolio, states in part - I write to offer you a comprehensive briefing by my senior departmental officials on current directions in the Western Australian education and training sectors. An offer has been made. I have had a telephone conversation with the federal minister about a voucher system. The offer to provide the minister with a full and comprehensive briefing has not been taken up. I am happy for her to take it up and I am happy to explain to her the purpose for this and other examination papers and the government’s direction for education in Western Australia.
Hon LJILJANNA RAVLICH : She did? Hon Simon O’Brien assures me that she did. I thank the honourable member for that interjection. This is a draft exam that has been sent to English teachers to provide feedback. I understand that the vast majority of teachers support it. This is a three-hour draft exam that comprises three sections. The Leader of the House has just indicated that the suggested number of words to be used for each part of the exam is 200. It is beyond me how 200 words could be drawn. The notion that people will not be marked down if they cannot spell or if their grammar is incorrect is nonsense. Students will be required to produce cohesive texts that follow in a logical sequence and include paragraphs and other divisions, and they must employ the appropriate vocabulary and ensure that the spelling is correct. They must be able to construct sentences and use capital letters, full stops and questions marks etc. Obviously a student will be marked down if all the structural conventions of writing are absent. I challenge the federal Minister for Education, Science and Training to take this exam and to pass it by drawing pictures. Hon Barbara Scott : Did you read exactly what she said? Hon LJILJANNA RAVLICH : I accept that perhaps the federal minister was misquoted. However, I want to put these statements on record because the statements that are alleged to have been made are a gross injustice to the people who have worked on getting this draft paper ready for consultation. They have been slapped in the face because of this alleged misquote. I like to operate in an open, honest and up-front manner. A letter I wrote to the federal minister on 15 March, just two days after she got the portfolio, states in part - I write to offer you a comprehensive briefing by my senior departmental officials on current directions in the Western Australian education and training sectors. An offer has been made. I have had a telephone conversation with the federal minister about a voucher system. The offer to provide the minister with a full and comprehensive briefing has not been taken up. I am happy for her to take it up and I am happy to explain to her the purpose for this and other examination papers and the government’s direction for education in Western Australia.
Hon Barbara Scott : Did you read exactly what she said? Hon LJILJANNA RAVLICH : I accept that perhaps the federal minister was misquoted. However, I want to put these statements on record because the statements that are alleged to have been made are a gross injustice to the people who have worked on getting this draft paper ready for consultation. They have been slapped in the face because of this alleged misquote. I like to operate in an open, honest and up-front manner. A letter I wrote to the federal minister on 15 March, just two days after she got the portfolio, states in part - I write to offer you a comprehensive briefing by my senior departmental officials on current directions in the Western Australian education and training sectors. An offer has been made. I have had a telephone conversation with the federal minister about a voucher system. The offer to provide the minister with a full and comprehensive briefing has not been taken up. I am happy for her to take it up and I am happy to explain to her the purpose for this and other examination papers and the government’s direction for education in Western Australia.
Hon LJILJANNA RAVLICH : I accept that perhaps the federal minister was misquoted. However, I want to put these statements on record because the statements that are alleged to have been made are a gross injustice to the people who have worked on getting this draft paper ready for consultation. They have been slapped in the face because of this alleged misquote. I like to operate in an open, honest and up-front manner. A letter I wrote to the federal minister on 15 March, just two days after she got the portfolio, states in part - I write to offer you a comprehensive briefing by my senior departmental officials on current directions in the Western Australian education and training sectors. An offer has been made. I have had a telephone conversation with the federal minister about a voucher system. The offer to provide the minister with a full and comprehensive briefing has not been taken up. I am happy for her to take it up and I am happy to explain to her the purpose for this and other examination papers and the government’s direction for education in Western Australia.
Hon LJILJANNA RAVLICH replied: I thank the member for some notice of this question. I have a copy of the year 12 English exam in my hand. If people think they could pass this exam by drawing pictures, they have rocks in their heads. I have never heard of anything so ridiculous in my life. I am not so sure whether the federal Minister for Education, Science and Training believes that a student could complete this whole paper by drawing diagrams. She may well have had words put in her mouth. Hon Simon O’Brien interjected. Hon LJILJANNA RAVLICH : She did? Hon Simon O’Brien assures me that she did. I thank the honourable member for that interjection. This is a draft exam that has been sent to English teachers to provide feedback. I understand that the vast majority of teachers support it. This is a three-hour draft exam that comprises three sections. The Leader of the House has just indicated that the suggested number of words to be used for each part of the exam is 200. It is beyond me how 200 words could be drawn. The notion that people will not be marked down if they cannot spell or if their grammar is incorrect is nonsense. Students will be required to produce cohesive texts that follow in a logical sequence and include paragraphs and other divisions, and they must employ the appropriate vocabulary and ensure that the spelling is correct. They must be able to construct sentences and use capital letters, full stops and questions marks etc. Obviously a student will be marked down if all the structural conventions of writing are absent. I challenge the federal Minister for Education, Science and Training to take this exam and to pass it by drawing pictures. Hon Barbara Scott : Did you read exactly what she said? Hon LJILJANNA RAVLICH : I accept that perhaps the federal minister was misquoted. However, I want to put these statements on record because the statements that are alleged to have been made are a gross injustice to the people who have worked on getting this draft paper ready for consultation. They have been slapped in the face because of this alleged misquote. I like to operate in an open, honest and up-front manner. A letter I wrote to the federal minister on 15 March, just two days after she got the portfolio, states in part - I write to offer you a comprehensive briefing by my senior departmental officials on current directions in the Western Australian education and training sectors. An offer has been made. I have had a telephone conversation with the federal minister about a voucher system. The offer to provide the minister with a full and comprehensive briefing has not been taken up. I am happy for her to take it up and I am happy to explain to her the purpose for this and other examination papers and the government’s direction for education in Western Australia.
I thank the member for some notice of this question. I have a copy of the year 12 English exam in my hand. If people think they could pass this exam by drawing pictures, they have rocks in their heads. I have never heard of anything so ridiculous in my life. I am not so sure whether the federal Minister for Education, Science and Training believes that a student could complete this whole paper by drawing diagrams. She may well have had words put in her mouth. Hon Simon O’Brien interjected. Hon LJILJANNA RAVLICH : She did? Hon Simon O’Brien assures me that she did. I thank the honourable member for that interjection. This is a draft exam that has been sent to English teachers to provide feedback. I understand that the vast majority of teachers support it. This is a three-hour draft exam that comprises three sections. The Leader of the House has just indicated that the suggested number of words to be used for each part of the exam is 200. It is beyond me how 200 words could be drawn. The notion that people will not be marked down if they cannot spell or if their grammar is incorrect is nonsense. Students will be required to produce cohesive texts that follow in a logical sequence and include paragraphs and other divisions, and they must employ the appropriate vocabulary and ensure that the spelling is correct. They must be able to construct sentences and use capital letters, full stops and questions marks etc. Obviously a student will be marked down if all the structural conventions of writing are absent. I challenge the federal Minister for Education, Science and Training to take this exam and to pass it by drawing pictures. Hon Barbara Scott : Did you read exactly what she said? Hon LJILJANNA RAVLICH : I accept that perhaps the federal minister was misquoted. However, I want to put these statements on record because the statements that are alleged to have been made are a gross injustice to the people who have worked on getting this draft paper ready for consultation. They have been slapped in the face because of this alleged misquote. I like to operate in an open, honest and up-front manner. A letter I wrote to the federal minister on 15 March, just two days after she got the portfolio, states in part - I write to offer you a comprehensive briefing by my senior departmental officials on current directions in the Western Australian education and training sectors. An offer has been made. I have had a telephone conversation with the federal minister about a voucher system. The offer to provide the minister with a full and comprehensive briefing has not been taken up. I am happy for her to take it up and I am happy to explain to her the purpose for this and other examination papers and the government’s direction for education in Western Australia.
Hon Simon O’Brien interjected. Hon LJILJANNA RAVLICH : She did? Hon Simon O’Brien assures me that she did. I thank the honourable member for that interjection. This is a draft exam that has been sent to English teachers to provide feedback. I understand that the vast majority of teachers support it. This is a three-hour draft exam that comprises three sections. The Leader of the House has just indicated that the suggested number of words to be used for each part of the exam is 200. It is beyond me how 200 words could be drawn. The notion that people will not be marked down if they cannot spell or if their grammar is incorrect is nonsense. Students will be required to produce cohesive texts that follow in a logical sequence and include paragraphs and other divisions, and they must employ the appropriate vocabulary and ensure that the spelling is correct. They must be able to construct sentences and use capital letters, full stops and questions marks etc. Obviously a student will be marked down if all the structural conventions of writing are absent. I challenge the federal Minister for Education, Science and Training to take this exam and to pass it by drawing pictures. Hon Barbara Scott : Did you read exactly what she said? Hon LJILJANNA RAVLICH : I accept that perhaps the federal minister was misquoted. However, I want to put these statements on record because the statements that are alleged to have been made are a gross injustice to the people who have worked on getting this draft paper ready for consultation. They have been slapped in the face because of this alleged misquote. I like to operate in an open, honest and up-front manner. A letter I wrote to the federal minister on 15 March, just two days after she got the portfolio, states in part - I write to offer you a comprehensive briefing by my senior departmental officials on current directions in the Western Australian education and training sectors. An offer has been made. I have had a telephone conversation with the federal minister about a voucher system. The offer to provide the minister with a full and comprehensive briefing has not been taken up. I am happy for her to take it up and I am happy to explain to her the purpose for this and other examination papers and the government’s direction for education in Western Australia.
Hon LJILJANNA RAVLICH : She did? Hon Simon O’Brien assures me that she did. I thank the honourable member for that interjection. This is a draft exam that has been sent to English teachers to provide feedback. I understand that the vast majority of teachers support it. This is a three-hour draft exam that comprises three sections. The Leader of the House has just indicated that the suggested number of words to be used for each part of the exam is 200. It is beyond me how 200 words could be drawn. The notion that people will not be marked down if they cannot spell or if their grammar is incorrect is nonsense. Students will be required to produce cohesive texts that follow in a logical sequence and include paragraphs and other divisions, and they must employ the appropriate vocabulary and ensure that the spelling is correct. They must be able to construct sentences and use capital letters, full stops and questions marks etc. Obviously a student will be marked down if all the structural conventions of writing are absent. I challenge the federal Minister for Education, Science and Training to take this exam and to pass it by drawing pictures. Hon Barbara Scott : Did you read exactly what she said? Hon LJILJANNA RAVLICH : I accept that perhaps the federal minister was misquoted. However, I want to put these statements on record because the statements that are alleged to have been made are a gross injustice to the people who have worked on getting this draft paper ready for consultation. They have been slapped in the face because of this alleged misquote. I like to operate in an open, honest and up-front manner. A letter I wrote to the federal minister on 15 March, just two days after she got the portfolio, states in part - I write to offer you a comprehensive briefing by my senior departmental officials on current directions in the Western Australian education and training sectors. An offer has been made. I have had a telephone conversation with the federal minister about a voucher system. The offer to provide the minister with a full and comprehensive briefing has not been taken up. I am happy for her to take it up and I am happy to explain to her the purpose for this and other examination papers and the government’s direction for education in Western Australia.
Hon Barbara Scott : Did you read exactly what she said? Hon LJILJANNA RAVLICH : I accept that perhaps the federal minister was misquoted. However, I want to put these statements on record because the statements that are alleged to have been made are a gross injustice to the people who have worked on getting this draft paper ready for consultation. They have been slapped in the face because of this alleged misquote. I like to operate in an open, honest and up-front manner. A letter I wrote to the federal minister on 15 March, just two days after she got the portfolio, states in part - I write to offer you a comprehensive briefing by my senior departmental officials on current directions in the Western Australian education and training sectors. An offer has been made. I have had a telephone conversation with the federal minister about a voucher system. The offer to provide the minister with a full and comprehensive briefing has not been taken up. I am happy for her to take it up and I am happy to explain to her the purpose for this and other examination papers and the government’s direction for education in Western Australia.
Hon LJILJANNA RAVLICH : I accept that perhaps the federal minister was misquoted. However, I want to put these statements on record because the statements that are alleged to have been made are a gross injustice to the people who have worked on getting this draft paper ready for consultation. They have been slapped in the face because of this alleged misquote. I like to operate in an open, honest and up-front manner. A letter I wrote to the federal minister on 15 March, just two days after she got the portfolio, states in part - I write to offer you a comprehensive briefing by my senior departmental officials on current directions in the Western Australian education and training sectors. An offer has been made. I have had a telephone conversation with the federal minister about a voucher system. The offer to provide the minister with a full and comprehensive briefing has not been taken up. I am happy for her to take it up and I am happy to explain to her the purpose for this and other examination papers and the government’s direction for education in Western Australia.
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