Moral Teachings

The Hon. S.L. GAME (16:12): I move:

That this council—

1. Recognises that parents are in charge of the moral and ethical teachings of children;

2. With regard to moral and ethical teachings, notes there is growing dissatisfaction within the community about overreach by government and schools, and concerns that too much power has been handed over to government and schools;

3. Acknowledges that issues around gender fluidity should be absent from school curriculums; and

4. Calls on the Minister for Education to guarantee that topics like incest and bestiality are never again delivered as part of an SA school curriculum, as was seen at Renmark High School last year.

The state government recently released its list of three approved service providers that are charged with the responsibility of delivering sex education programs in public schools in 2025. Included on this list was SHINE SA, which previously delivered the ill-fated Safe Schools program in South Australia.

The government's announcement of its approved service providers included a reassurance that what happened at Renmark High School last year 'can't happen again'. To refresh members' memories, in March last year a class of year 9 students were exposed to concepts like bestiality and incest during a sexual education class. These girls' parents were not notified about the session's content beforehand. They were blindsided by it. The session upset some of the children and, naturally, some of the parents.

As I said in Riverland media last week, the Education and Children's Services (Parental Primacy) Amendment Bill introduced to this chamber last year would prevent a repeat of that outrageous incident at Renmark High School. My bill would ensure that parents and families remain responsible for imparting core values such as morals and ethics on developing minds, and that teachers stick to teaching the facts.

It would also ensure that curricula, syllabuses, and courses of instruction at all levels of schooling are free of gender fluidity teaching, given this doctrine is not 'evidence-based', to quote one of the terms used by the education minister last week. This bill completely removes gender fluidity from the curriculum in South Australian schools. This is not a right-wing view; this is a responsible view and the position, I believe, of the overwhelming majority who currently feel browbeaten into keeping quiet on the matter.

A 2024 Advertiser poll showed overwhelming support for this bill, with 80 to 90 per cent of the over 600 respondents agreeing that parents should be in charge of guiding their children on these moral and ethical matters. If a child is feeling confused about their sex, let the school be guided by their parents.

It is wrong that the current system allows parents to be excluded from these discussions and for the school to take control. Let children be who they are. Why are we encouraging children to think about what sort of sex partner they might be and who they might want to have sex with at this age? This is not the role of schools. Schools need to focus on engendering ambition and developing confidence in our young people.

We do have a sex confusion pandemic occurring in our schools, and that is what parents and principles are telling me in confidence. I have heard from many South Australian parents who are deeply concerned about what is being taught to their children. Now more than ever people are starting to stand up and question what they have been told to accept, rebelling against this government overreach. Those pushing their political ideology and agenda have no place in our schools.

My bill requires schools to consult with parents before sex education courses are delivered, essentially moving away from a system that ignores family values. The government claims this approved provider system is a new approach aimed at preventing a repeat of the 2024 incident. That is not good enough for the vast majority of sensible, caring parents. Words and promises that these providers have gone through a rigorous process before being selected fail to restore parents' confidence in the system. They and their children deserve better and stronger measures.

Debate adjourned on motion of Hon. I.K. Hunter.