While Albanese will not want to go anywhere near it, his close allies in the various education unions and academia will not be able to stay away. With a potential fragmentation of the major party vote at the next election, particularly in Coalition seats (already begun in Warringah, Mayo, and Indi) and Labor seats (Melbourne, Clark) it may be that neither side gets enough seats in their own right. In which case what Albanese thinks may have to be viewed against what his real or de facto coalition partners, the Greens, think, and the stand with McAuliffe and Biden.
Parents know more about their child's education now than they did before the pandemic, for the simple reason they have been supervising them as they learned remotely. They understand how much standards and curricula have deteriorated since their days at school.
This is an election where education and educational standards might prove to be more important than ever, just as they have in Virginia. And an understated, but determined, minister might be the best way to make it a winning one.
Advertisement
Because education is not just an election issue, it is, as the minister has said, a matter of national security. We cannot build a strong, pluralist, society, if our children lack intellectual rigour, are taught to judge people on group identity rather than character, and believe what we have built here is inferior to most of the rest of the world.
Discuss in our Forums
See what other readers are saying about this article!
Click here to read & post comments.
24 posts so far.