Purpose of public education in South Australia

What's been decided?

Our strategy for public education in South Australia has been released, which incorporates the purpose of public education in SA.

To help build a world-leading public education system for South Australia, we asked you to be involved with a statewide conversation, starting with our learners.

We’ve heard from over 12,000 preschoolers and school students across the state, staff, families, the community, employers and others.

We also engaged with a range of local, national and international experts.

Your voices were used to create the purpose statement for South Australian public education.

Background

The world is changing and the future we’re educating young people for will be different from today. Our public education needs to adapt to this change to give our children and young people the best opportunity to thrive.

Our people, geography, communities and industries are unique. We need to build upon statements such as the Alice Springs (Mparntwe) Education Declaration and the Statement on Public Education in South Australia to ensure what we provide meets our students’ needs and takes advantage of the opportunities we have as a community.

What led to success for people in the past will likely not be sufficient for success in the future. While knowledge acquisition and achieving growth for every student will continue to be key to public education, our young people need to develop the skills to use and complement technology, so they are first-class humans, not second-class robots.

We need to be clear about what we’re trying to provide for our students so we can measure whether we’re achieving it.