Health & Safety

We can’t just look to individual schools and teachers to fix this. The whole of the education system needs reform to meet the needs of this large group of children.

Following a catastrophic bushfire threat, Year 4 student Skye Nye said she enjoyed having Tess and Luke at the school during the week: "It's like we're famous now too,' Skye said after being filmed and photographed with the celebrities."

Selling fatty or sugary food and drinks has been banned in Western Australia’s public schools since 2007. A 2018 study found WA children were eating healthier as a result of the ban. But it also found some regional schools were struggling to comply with it.

One problem with the Australian Curriculum content statements is that they are relatively abstract and detached from children’s lived experiences.

In an outbreak situation, xenophobia does not feel like racism. Excluding people who “come from” the epicenter of the outbreak is merely seen as a safety precaution. But precautions can sometimes go too far.

Even students not directly affected by the fires might be distressed by images they have seen or stories they have heard. So, what can schools and teachers do to help students cope in the aftermaths of this crisis?

As the bushfire crisis escalated on the mid north coast, public school students and staff put themselves in the path of danger to defend their communities.

Dr Jane says contrary to claims that cyberhate is mostly innocuous because it is virtual rather than ‘real’, the widespread suffering caused to women is significant, tangible and embodied.

Preventing a break-in comes down to security procedure and protocol. Particularly as schools invest in digital technologies, outdoor learning aids and furniture designs, security needs should be reassessed regularly.

Research shows somewhere between 7% and 45% of children suffer depression after experiencing a natural disaster.