As Australians, we believe that everyone deserves a fair chance at life.
No one should miss out on the opportunity to do well if they work hard.
Being a former High School Teacher of History, English and Japanese, I know that to get that chance, students, especially students from a poorer background, need great teachers and schools to get the best start on the road to success.
That’s why I was so pleased that this budget has the right priorities and increased the funding for Teacher Aides by $24.8 million so that there will be a Teacher Aide for every prep classroom beginning at the 2018 year.
This means that teachers have the extra support they need to concentrate on teaching.
Teacher Aides play a vital role in helping children develop the basic skills they need for learning and interacting with others at school.
Participating in prep has been proven to improve a child’s educational outcomes and is a critical foundation year for schooling.
Each prep classroom will have more assistance to develop stimulating and interesting classroom resources that are designed with the student in mind.
I’m glad that these teachers will be there in time for the opening of the new Yarrabilba Primary School in 2018.
The investment in the new school in Yarrabilba is on top of the recently opened new classrooms at Logan Village and new Special Education rooms at Flagstone Community College.
It’s my job to be on the side of local students who deserve their fair chance at a great education - I’ll continue to fight for more funding for our local schools and better resources for our teachers.
