Music Education

The Hon. A. PICCOLO (Light) (15:09): My question is to the Minister for Education and Child Development, and I am sure this question is related to my surname. How is the government supporting music education in South Australia?

The Hon. S.E. CLOSE (Port Adelaide—Minister for Education and Child Development, Minister for Higher Education and Skills) (15:10): I am so delighted to be able to answer this question because, of course, although we talk a lot about STEM—and science, technology, engineering and maths are very important—we also talk a lot about languages, which are very important 21^st century skills. So, too, are the creative industries essential for the future of our economy and they also are a joy for many of our students to study and to excel in.

We have a proud history in South Australia of teaching music, including instrumental music, and recently have refreshed our Instrumental Music Program with a funding increase of more than $800,000 last year. We spend about $11 million and we are able to teach about 7,500 students. This is an increase of some 26 per cent on two years ago when we started to make the changes in instrumental music. I am very proud and pleased that we are reaching more and more students with this exceptional offering and making sure that students, regardless of what school they go to, can have access to the wonders of learning a musical instrument.

But we are not resting on our laurels. We are also going to be working now—and members may have noticed the announcement recently—with the ASO and with the Elder Conservatorium on a new strategy. We have put $5 million aside, which we are able to do because we have committed to our share of Gonski, so we are able to invest more in music education. What we want from that work is to increase the number of students who are completing high school with music, to increase the number of students who enjoy and have the opportunity to study music, and ultimately to only increase the magnificent contribution that music and the creative industries make to this economy.