Aurukun school reopens with increased security and community backing: education chief

Aurukun’s Cape York Aboriginal Academy, which shut down for a month after violent incidents, reopened this week following a controversial state government review.

Students attend the Cape York Aboriginal Australian Academy in Aurukun

Students attend the Cape York Aboriginal Australian Academy in Aurukun. Source: AAP

 

Queensland’s education chief, Dr Jim Watterston, told ABC radio that the community had rallied around the school during the week by focussing on attendance.

On Wednesday 136 children out of possibly 200 in the community turned up for lessons, with a larger complement of 22 teachers.

He said attendance officers had been visiting homes at 7.30am and buses had been laid on to get kids to school.

Security had been increased and “we think we’ve got everything in place”.

Earlier this month, the of the government review because it was done while the school was shut.
"Some accurate observations, some fair assessments, but also a whole lot of stuff that is patently incorrect, inaccurate," he said at the time.

"This is the only assessment in the history of Queensland schools that's been done while the school is not open."

But Dr Watterston defended the review, which came up with 27 recommendations, including that the government’s curriculum be run alongside the school’s more prescripted lesson-by-lesson “direct instruction” method.

He said there was still a strong need for the direct instruction method but that had not been the centre of the review.

He said the community had met the teachers at an orientation day and the police had thrown a barbeque for everyone this week.

"We're certainly confident there's community cohesion around the school and we're certainly confident that the community values the school," he said.

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2 min read
Published 15 July 2016 3:07pm
By NITV Staff Writer
Source: NITV News


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