On Friday 26 February 2016, Boarding Australia was invited to give evidence at a hearing of the Standing Committee on Indigenous Affairs as part of their Inquiry into Educational Outcomes for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Students. It was a great opportunity to raise issues that we have been hearing from members.
We particularly focused on:
- ABSTUDY issues for schools / residences, students and families;
- quality and standards in boarding;
- pathways into and out of secondary boarding; and
- ways to improve outcomes for Indigenous boarding students (retention, academic achievement etc).
It was also fantastic for representatives of the Roper Gulf Remote Indigenous Parents Association (RIPA) to provide the Committee with insights from the perspective of an Indigenous parent with a child at boarding.
Since the hearing, the Committee has asked a number of follow up questions which we would like the assistance of members to answer.
We would like business managers, heads of boarding, principals and school counsellors to complete the brief Indigenous Boarding Survey to provide additional evidence that we can offer to the Committee. The survey consists of just 10 questions and responses are due by 11 March 2016. Please also forward this email to other relevant respondents.