AHISA SUBMISSION

Education Council

17 October 2019

Review of the Melbourne Declaration on Educational Goals for Young Australians – Response to Draft Declaration

Following its full submission to the Review, AHISA responded to the Draft Declaration with a letter acknowledging that the draft:
• Refreshed the language of the Melbourne Declaration but not in a way that narrowed the diversity of schools or the opportunities for schools to innovate, express their entrepreneurial capacity or continue to lead the transformation of Australian schooling
• Retained an emphasis on the disciplines as the means of gaining deep knowledge while also acquiring general capabilities.

AHISA welcomed an increase in the number of areas of commitment to action from eight to 10, as a means to sharpen the focus of the education system as a whole on key issues requiring significant further development. AHISA expressed disappointment, however, that an area of action had not been created to give particular focus to the issues of educational opportunity and schooling provision for students living in regional, remote and very remote areas, which had been a recommendation of AHISA’s submission.

Response to the Draft Declaration