The Minister of Education tried to reassure Tasmanian parents about changes to the Education Act, due to be debated in the next session of Parliament.
Minister Rockliff outlined that while amendments may reduce the age of compulsory schooling to 4.5 years, allowances will be made for children who are not yet ready to enter the classroom
It is heartening to hear that Minister Rockliff won't be forcing very young children into the school environment when they're not ready. Although, the government's approach is still quite unclear because final reforms have not yet been tabled.
What kind of education 4.5 year olds will be expected to part of? These are questions parents want clarified.
There's significant community pressure building, with Tasmanian parents wanting to know what the plan is.
It was unfortunate Minister Rockliff used Question Time to berate others in the House to support amendments to the Act, sight unseen. A sign of a Minister not yet able to fully explain his reforms.
Minister Rockliff's outburst today shows just how much pushback there's been from the community. He has quite a long way to go to bring Tasmanians with him on changes to the Education Act.
