HAPPENING NOW! Head to our Facebook page to watch the Education Perspectives panel livestream!

Thanks to @AEUVictoria for supporting this panel

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VicSRC Student Executive Advisory Committee member Tafara is moderating, and welcomes us with a reminder that we live, work and play on Aboriginal lands never ceded

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Our panelists are year 11 Mortlake College Lochie, year 12 metro student Talia, and year 12 student and disability advocate @issyhay

What does learning mean to you?

"Learning the skills that will help student's achieve their life goals, making friends and connections, broadening our knowledge, and settibg us up for life."
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@issyhay: "It's learning, but learning with intention. It's not limited to being in a school context."

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What's the role of students in education?

"As students, we're the key stakeholders. We're the most important stakeholder but we're not seen as that. And the current system treats students as consumers, and the last thing to be considered in decision-making."

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On the topic of #COVID19Aus: What should we retain from this experience?

COVID has highlighted disparity across diverse groups of students. Acessibility and disability support is lacking. And tht not everything you is printed black and white in a textbook.

"The education system wasn't designed for marginalised students - those with disabilities, racially and culturally diverse students, queer, trans/ non-binary students - it was designed by cis hey old white men."

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"We need to normalise other streams of education, to look at the student not just their scores and results."

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What is one thing you would tell education stakeholders?

"We need to update the system. It's outdated and not moving with the times. I'd tell them that a hundred times over of I had to."

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"This pandemic has shown the faults in our education system - and we've seen that changes CAN be made, and quickly, where there's been a urgent incentive to."

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Students are being disenfranchised and not being given access to the service to deserve. Sucks that it took a pandemic to show us, but now we've seen it, we can fix it.

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On mental health: there's not very much support in Talia's school, with teachers and school leadership being selective with which students they offer support to.

Tafara says we need to improve the culture of mental health support in schools universally.

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@issyhay calls for reform and an education revolution - so that any student going through the system comes out more prepared and a better person. That's what should matter.

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Tafara points out that good schools are 'good' based on results, but it shouldn't be - we should centre education around who the person the student is, not what marks they get.

"Treat students like people, not statistics."

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Do you feel disadvantaged by the kind of school you attend?

For Issy, being a student in a low socioeconomic school meant unequal access to resources, and being in a mainstream school meant that their access needs and supports weren't provided for.

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Talia, who requires the support of an integration aide, says she's been often treated as different and has been alienated.

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How can students and teachers work together to actually empower student voice?

Lochie says there is a need for change in that regard - being heard is hugely important, but some teachers aren't listening.

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A lot of schools just go to the SRC (if they have one) for student feedback, but that means only a privileged few student voices get heard.

Schools need to initiate the communication process with ALL students, and treat students as equals.

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Lochie: "Everyone's voice should be heard, not just student council - why don't the teachers come to us and ask us directly? It's important we build a relationship with our school that we enjoy, we go there for 13 years! There's definitely room for improvement."

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"We need to upskill teachers on technology and online learning."

One of Talia's classes was cancelled entirely because the teacher couldn't work out how to share a PowerPoint.

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Tafara makes the excellent point that there's a real need to upskill teachers on cultural awareness and accessibility as well. Discrimination and exclusion in schools for marginalised students is a huge issue.

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"We need to be prepared for our reality - our parents might have been in the same job for 30 years, but that's not reality for our generation. We need to learn useful life skills like flexibility and adaptability, things that matter across the board."

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"Being a good person matters in every job. Lifelong learning is so important - education shouldn't stop at uni or highschool. Why don't they teach us critical thinking, how to support ourselves and our peers? That's a skill that's going to matter our whole lives."

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"Australia might be great in the OECD ranking, but focusing on that means ignoring all the problems in our system. We're not number 1, and it wouldn't matter even if we were - we need a system that works for everyone, not one that just looks good in ratings."

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"Let's make some noise and make positive change! Let's make a system that works for everyone."

That's a wrap!!! INCREDIBLE discussion Huge thanks to our panelists @issyhay, Talia, Lochie and moderator Tafara! And thanks again to @AEUVictoria for supporting!

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