Better Schools Funding

Mr ODENWALDER (Little Para) (14:32): My question is to the Minister for Education and Child Development. Can the minister advise the house how Better Schools funding is being used by the Elizabeth Park Primary School to support vulnerable students?

The Hon. S.E. CLOSE (Port Adelaide—Minister for Education and Child Development, Minister for Higher Education and Skills) (14:33): I would be delighted and will be delighted to give some detail about the ways in which Better Schools funding is being used in Elizabeth Park Primary School. I would like to add initially that I recently visited Elizabeth Park Primary School (the principal is Patrick Moran), and the kids there were amongst the most engaged and confident I have seen, particularly for a low SES school.

They have a magnificent kitchen garden, and the capacity of those kids to show me around that garden, to explain why they have it, and to show me their understanding of the curriculum about composting, about science, about the life cycle of plants and animals, was quite remarkable and has really stayed with me. It was one of the many highlights of visiting schools.

But, yes, indeed, these schools can only succeed if we fund them appropriately and if we fund them in a way which enables them to redress some of the social disadvantage and educational disadvantage that some children, regrettably, start school with. At Elizabeth Park, it is a category 2 school, which means that it is amongst the most socioeconomically disadvantaged schools in our state.

In 2012, the Australian Early Development Census assessed that half of reception students at the school were developmentally vulnerable in two or more of the five—I believe it is five—areas that they measure. Worryingly, 80 per cent of these children were vulnerable or at risk in communication skills or general knowledge.

Not only is it important that kids start school with reasonable literacy, reasonable numeracy and a capacity to build on those, but also those social self-management skills that enable them to then learn more: to be able to sit still, to listen, to be able to communicate their needs well, to understand other communication, and to have a reasonable general knowledge. All of these background skills are crucial in children's success.

It was a particular concern to the school, as research has shown that children who are vulnerable in two or more domains are predicted to perform about 35 per cent below NAPLAN minimum standard by the time that they reach year 7. Having some evidence to respond to, the principal, Patrick Moran, and his staff and his community knew that they needed to make some inroads. They also recognised that that needed to happen in the earliest possible years.

Elizabeth Park Primary School has used their Better Schools funding of $100,000 in 2014, $140,000 in 2015 and $180,000 this year to help employ two additional staff in leadership banded positions who are able to identify and deliver programs that specifically aim to improve literacy and social skills for the younger students. These additional staff members work with teachers, SSOs and community groups to identify the kind of support individual children need and to coordinate and deliver those programs. It is one of the examples of a school that truly understands that it comes from the community and needs to engage deeply with its community if it is going to give those children the chance that they deserve.

Some of those programs include family playgroups that focus on literacy and speech pathology sessions for children to improve their phonological skills, as well as support for mothers with mental health issues, which is identified as a particular concern, and giving out free books to children.

The program is starting to show results. The number of children assessed as vulnerable in two or more categories has fallen from 50 per cent in 2012 to 37 per cent in 2015, and those vulnerable in communication skills and general knowledge has nearly halved from 80 per cent to 42 per cent from 2012 to 2015. Principal Patrick Moran has said, 'The Better Schools funding has allowed us to identify, coordinate and target programs that are delivering substantial improvements in our children's confidence and capabilities.'