Non-mainstream schooling review to ensure student engagement
A review of schools, services and programs will be undertaken to look at how to engage students who receive their education outside of mainstream public education.
The sites, services and programs being reviewed provide education and support programs for children and young people unable to attend mainstream sites for a variety of reasons. These can include disability, behaviour, geographical isolation, mental health concerns, long-term illness, incarceration, attendance or other complexities.
The review comes as legislative changes are proposed to ensure şÚÁĎłÔąĎn students attend school. These strengthened laws will include the introduction of a legislated statutory warning letter that would be sent to parents for failing to enrol a child or failure of a child to attend and will look at the potential to introduce expiation fines.
Nationwide school attendance fell in the wake of the global COVID pandemic and have been slow to return to pre-2020 levels.
In response to this trend of student disengagement, a specialist attendance team was established in 2023 to tackle absenteeism. Additional investments in anti-bullying initiatives, $50 million into mental health and allied health supports on-site, and the banning of mobile phones in schools to tackle social media harassment and violence, were also implemented to make our schools safer.
Non-mainstream education is a large part of ensuring students can remain engaged in education and finish their schooling, even if it’s not in the “traditional” sense.
The review of non-mainstream schools, to be undertaken by the department this year, will take an in-depth look at a range of alternative education options, including:
- Bowden Brompton Community School
- Home Education
- Hospital School SA
- Learning and Behaviour Unit
- Better Behaviour Centres
- Learning Centres
- Open Access College
- Youth Education Centre
Each of these options has different purposes, funding arrangements, structures and governance processes, all of which will be considered under the review.
Of the 174,000 students enrolled in şÚÁĎłÔąĎn public schools during a year, about 10,000 engage in a non-mainstream program, with more than 4000 of those attending Open Access College.
Home Education (or schooling) and the Better Behaviour Centres have high enrolments from children and young people with disabilities. So, it is fitting the review look at schools, or areas with high referrals, to identify what common barriers exist for people with disabilities, determining if it is a localised or system-wide issue.
This work follows the recent announcement of $14 million for special options classes, in the wake of the Disability Royal Commission.
Among the oldest of the non-mainstream programs is the Hospital School program which was first established at the Women’s and Children’s Hospital in 1930 and now provides education to children at three locations.
Another service with a long history is Open Access College which was established in 1991 as a combination of the SA Correspondence School, opened in 1920, and the School of the Air which began in 1958.
Open Access College Deputy Principal Jeane Schocroft said, we are welcoming of this review, which will look to identify what is working well at our site – and others – and build on that to support the learning of young şÚÁĎłÔąĎns who might have complex and diverse needs.
“Open Access College is predominantly an online R-12 school, with some opportunities for face-to-face learning such as practical workshops on site, excursions, visits to homes and to client schools”.
“Our students meet a number of different criteria which can be broadly categorised as distance; medical or psychological; vocational; travellers; or curriculum choice”.
“Our program looks to reconnecting students with learning with the aim of transitioning many students back to mainstream schools”.
“We look forward to participating in the review and building on its outcomes in the future”, said Ms Schocroft.
The review, which will be completed by the end of the year, is intended to ensure sites, services, and programs outside mainstream education are delivering a quality public education for every child and young person.
