EDUCATIONAL POINTLETS TO PONDER

Darwin and Palmerston schools have been misinformed on the issue of returning school based constables. It’s temporary. SBC’s are to be replaced in urban schools by untrained police auxiliaries. Their annual cost of employment ($3 million total) is apparently being met from the Education Department budget. Some deal!!

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With NAPLAN over for another year, teachers and students can now get on with real teaching and learning. The tests are a distraction from what should be key focus issues for schools. The testing program is a distraction.

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No wonder students’ results in key learning areas are unceasingly in the mediocre to catastrophic range (NT News 25/5). Hungry, tired and downright bored students (boredom often the outcome of sloppy teaching methods) can never excel in key subjects. This story should be a wake-up icall to parents about the importance of the eating and sleeping habits of their children.

—EDUCATIONAL POINTS TO PONDER

The Sunday Territorian (20/6) and the NT News (21/6) carried timely stories warning of the deleterious impact of addiction on young people overusing iPads, iPhones and devices. In this context it makes no sense that the NT Department of Education has no policy limiting the access of primary and secondary students to iPhones during school hours. The department urgently needs to follow the example of those stares which have placed bans on school day usage.

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Katherine and it’s nearby region are flourishing agricultural, horticultural and industrial hubs. I am constantly amazed that school excursions are limited to tourist attractions. Visits should include visits to farms and businesses. Young people have little awareness about the substance upon which the town and its hinterland are based. They leave knowing little about the ‘real’ Katherine.

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A few short years ago the Charles Darwin University was in debt for many millions of dollars. The solution was to curtail TAFE/vet courses and to cut back on staff in those areas. Now, in 2021, the university has a surplus of over $22 million. So the university is going to reinstate TAFE/Vet courses and will obviously rehire staff to run those programs. Help me, help me! I do not understand.