Peter Dutton’s shadow education minister Sarah Henderson has revealed that Peter Dutton wants to get his hands on university and school curricula with Trump-style intervention into teaching.
Today’s Australian newspaper reports that a Dutton government would implement “an unprecedented level of ministerial intervention in course content”.
A Dutton government would task TEQSA, the body responsible for registration and compliance for universities, to audit each degree’s compliance with the Government’s political agenda.
Quotes attributable to NTEU National President Dr Alison Barnes:
“Every Australian should fear the prospect of Peter Dutton deciding what does and does not get taught in schools and universities.
“Peter Dutton wants a university and school system where Peter Dutton and his ministers decide what accomplished physicists, engineers and other experts can teach and say in their classrooms and lecture theatres.
“Will climate scientists for example be able to lecture their students or will they be censored?
“This is a dangerous and unwanted. University students and their families want qualified scholars who are experts in their field to decide what will prepare them for their future career, not Peter Dutton. As a parent I want qualified teachers and education experts to decide what my child learns, not Peter Dutton.
“This is one of the first glimpses of Peter Dutton’s plans for our halls of learning – and it’s evocative of the Trump administration’s politically motivated gutting of education and censorship in the USA.”
Contact: Tim Brunero 0405 285 547