My Northern Territory Experience

(2022 to 2024)

As I prepare to leave the Northern Territory to return to Melbourne, I am filled with a huge sense of gratitude for the incredible experiences and connections I have made during my time here. The communities I have had the privilege of working alongside have been instrumental in driving meaningful change across education, government, and the private sector.

One of my most significant moments has been negotiating the Better and Fairer Schools Agreement, a landmark achievement that secured full funding for schools in the Northern Territory by 2029. This milestone was made possible through collaboration with Education Ministers (the now Chief Minister Hon Eva Lawler MLA, and then Hon Mark Monaghan MLA) and the Federal Education Minister (Hon Jason Clare MP), and I am so proud of the positive impact it will have on the lives of children and young people across the Territory.

Prior to entering the political arena, I served as Assistant Director Engagement Programs, where I worked closely with schools in communities in Alice Springs, Tennant Creek, Katherine, and Darwin. Together, we launched and commenced the implementation of the Quality Standards Framework for Flexible Education Programs, providing schools with support to deliver flexible education programs.

My political awakening began with the Pathways to Politics for Women program at Charles Darwin University in September 2023. This transformative experience inspired many of us to pursue political careers, and I’m excited to share our stories and insights through Courageous Dialogues over the coming months.

Throughout my time here, I have been inspired by the passion and dedication of educators, support staff and community leaders. Their commitment to ensuring that every child has access to quality education has been a constant source of motivation. I am also grateful for the opportunities I have had to engage in education initiatives at all levels, from early childhood to tertiary education.

As I reflect on my experiences, I am struck by the diversity and resilience of Territory communities. The unique challenges and opportunities presented by each have shaped my understanding of education, wellbeing, poverty, and what truly matters in life.

While I am excited to return to Melbourne, I will carry the lessons and memories of my time in the Northern Territory during 2022 to 2024. I am confident that the funding and flexible education pathways we have put in place will continue to empower young people, staff and schools to enable them to contribute to their communities in meaningful ways.

I encourage anyone considering moving to or working in the Northern Territory to do so. The experiences and connections you will make here are truly one of a kind. Should you come, make sure you make the most of the dry season, especially between June to August!

Stay tuned for my upcoming podcast series, where I'll share more stories and insights from my time in the Northern Territory, including fascinating encounters with the incredible people I've met along the way.

Supporting Staff: The Importance of Empathy and Communication

Supporting a staff member through their first time facilitating can be a fulfilling and rewarding experience for both the facilitator and you. It is important to approach the situation with a positive attitude and an open mind, assuring the staff member that it is okay to make mistakes and that there is support available.

Giving clear and concise feedback throughout the session is also important. The facilitator should be attentive and present throughout the facilitation, providing constructive feedback immediately while highlighting positive aspects and suggesting improvements in a supportive and positive manner.

It is also crucial to help the staff member remain calm and composed before and during the session. Encouraging deep breaths, pauses when necessary, and maintaining connections with the audience can help them stay focused.

Lastly, supporting a staff member through their first time facilitating is about building a strong and supportive working relationship with the staff member. This helps them build confidence and develop their skills, and is essential for professional growth.

In conclusion, supporting a staff member through their first time facilitating is a valuable experience that highlights the importance of empathy, patience, and effective communication in the workplace. As colleagues, we have a responsibility to help each other grow and succeed, and supporting a staff member through their first time facilitating is just one way to achieve this.

How Technology Brings People Together and Creates Lasting Memories

LAN parties have a rich history dating back to the 1990s and early 2000s when high-speed internet and online gaming were not yet widely available. Today, LAN parties have evolved to include a range of modern technologies that enhance the gaming experience, such as large-screen TVs and VR headsets.

To celebrate my son’s 21st birthday, we recently threw an unforgettable LAN party at our home that showcased how technology can bring people together in a fun and meaningful way. Thanks to Ian Patterson, who provided us with the TVs and VRs, our home was transformed into a digital wonderland that left everyone buzzing with excitement.

Party goers from diverse backgrounds and walks of life, united by my son's friendship, mingled and bonded while fully immersed in the digital world. Some were seasoned gamers, while others were newbies eager to try it out. The LAN party created a special sense of camaraderie among the party goers, with age and gender not mattering as technology leveled the playing field for gamers of all levels.

As we cleaned up after the party, I felt grateful for the amazing people in our lives and the incredible technologies that connect us. LAN parties have come a long way since their inception, but they still offer a unique opportunity for people to connect in person and experience the thrill of competitive gaming. This was an unforgettable way to celebrate a milestone birthday and showcased how LAN parties remain a fun and exciting way to bring people together through technology.

High Fences

High fences in the middle of nowhere,

Very confronting to the eyes,

Guarding secrets, keeping out the world,

Abandoned, lonely crowds.

The fence topped with barbed wire,

Reaching up to the sky,

It stretches on for metres and metres,

A visual image to make one cry.

No one knows the secrets it may hide,

But one thing is for certain,

The youths learn and grow,

Children’s rights, a crucial fight, that must be won.

We stand and stare at the fence,

Wondering how and why,

But it remains a mystery,

In the middle of nowhere to reside.

Notes:

• Towards the end of 2022 I was fortunate enough to visit Owen Springs Youth Detention for my first time. The high fences were very confronting. I saw another level of engagement in the classroom that I have never seen before. The work being done here is to be celebrated.

• This reflection was created using OpenAI - two poems merged and remixed. The image was created using Adobe Express. Feel free to get in contact if you want a demo!

The Thinking Effect

In 2022, while I was still working at John Paul College in Frankston, I was invited to sit on the other side of a podcast show and was interviewed by Ortal Green for her podcast The Thinking Effect.

I am yet to watch the podcast and I don’t think I will watch it for a few more years. It will be good to go back to this to see how my thinking has changed.

There is always a ‘First Time’

This week I was reminded that the ‘First Time’ for anything is one giant roller coaster ride.

From, ‘this is going to be fantastic’, to ‘WOW’ moments, to ‘yes it’s working’, to ‘what now?’, ‘why on earth did we do this?’, to ‘YES this is brilliant’.

Then you have the ‘opinionated’ who throw you into a spin. You know the ones that are critical from the sidelines. The ones that are ready to smirk and say ‘it’s not working’, but don’t do anything themselves to pull out all the stops to make it work. 

To the ones that pull you forward from this, the ‘supporters’; the ones that go that extra mile and put their smarts to work and have fun with it. The kindness they bring to the table to make you at ease.  To reassure you that it is working and tweak things to see that it does. These are the ones I refer to as My People, the doers. 

It is hard work when it comes to the firsts of anything. I was reminded of the thick skin, resilience and the patience you require within yourself. Not to get frustrated with what is not working, but to see what is, and understand the opportunities that are presented. The patience to reflect on what is happening within the process, without all of the noise. To see through the noise and be flexible, innovative and courageous to get people on board to help within the process, so that the results are at least positive for the ‘First Time’. 

And when that ‘First Time’ is done and it comes to a halt the relief and joy you feel that you gave it your best shot, whatever the outcome. To stand tall and recognise both the good and the bad and reflect on understandings and perspectives of all so that the ‘Second Time’ is even better than the ‘First’.

Good news for me is that I love roller-coaster rides and ‘First Times’. 

The experience provides a richness otherwise not explored. This week, this first time was insightful and there were many learnings about the process, people and work that still needs to be done.

Luna Park Melbourne

The Power of Networks

Instead of just preparing kids for a world of work, how about we do better at preparing them for a world of networks.

There is a lot to be said about the effect Networks can have on both your personal and professional experiences. In my experience, it has been my Networks that have provided me with rich information, opportunities, direction, ideas and inspiration.

In my latest Courageous Dialogues podcast Hamish Curry was kind enough to join me and respond to some prickly questions. Giving his stance on what it means to be courageous as well as the power of networks and being Australian.

During this discussion he shared the idea of allowing students to draw on their Networks to develop their understanding. 

The idea has left me curious on how to build students' networking skills in the classroom as well as what skills and attitudes create confident networkers. In unpacking this further I would suggest that the focus be on teaching resilience with the ability to:

• have courage; the courage to reach out to others with the knowledge that not every effort will be returned and/or even matched.

• be willing; willing to being open and confident to make sense of understanding out loud with others without the fear of looking stupid and/or intimidated by others.

• continually put in effort; the effort that comes with the continuous pursuit of reaching out to go further with your own understanding.

The power of Networks can deepen your understanding of the world and can provide for meaningful experiences. 

In my experience through networking I have had opportunities to explore diverse industries and roles, traveled to locations that are less explored and find out about cultures, values and faiths that I may not have otherwise found out about. 

How have your Networks impacted you?

What should we focus on teaching students?

STEM or STEAM? You Decide!

A conversation with Dr Adrian Bertolini to SPARK your thinking.

I was excited to have Dr Adrian Bertolini on Courageous Dialogues. Before, Adrian was well known for It Takes a Spark! he was already doing some fabulous work within education with the ruMAD? program.

In my second year of teaching, over 15 years ago, I joined the ruMAD? program. It was in its initial stages and I was looking for ways to engage with the curriculum both for the students and myself quite frankly. This was where I first came across Adrian’s thinking and it has influenced the educator I am today.

Through ruMAD? my foundational thinking and understanding of how we should be designing curriculum was sparked. Relevant, contextual and focused on making a difference where possible, but most of all fun and challenging for all involved.

Today Adrian is well known in the STEM field for supporting education systems. I had the opportunity to have a conversation with him and we spoke of being courageous, the acronym of STEM, explicit teaching, as well as STEM designs across primary and secondary education.

(A short podcast version will be up on the website in the coming days.)

Desire and Grit

Today I was reminded of one of my proudest moments in life, my Masters graduation.  

After entering education as a mature age student, many stops and starts, working full-time and with young children I never thought I’d actually complete my masters. 

There were many years of sleepless nights, gruelling years of research and coursework as well as balancing everyday life. It was tough and I did pull out at one stage throwing the towel in. But after a bit I’d miss reading for a purpose so I paced myself over the maximum amount of time allowed to complete it, not ever thinking I would.

This was my first graduation ceremony as I didn’t have time or the energy to attend the previous ones and to be honest I didn’t need to work particularly hard for them. But when my masters came to a completion I was stunned that I had actually got to the end and I was proud so I took the gown and hat and celebrated with my family, my children, husband and parents.

A timely reminder that life does not need to be linear and those proud moments are made up of hard-work and determination. I am a firm believer that you can start from anywhere if you just have the desire and the grit to go for it, even if it is slow with stops and starts.

I’d love to hear about your proudest moment and what made it so. This one was one of mine.

Monash University, Clayton, Australia.

Living Systems Explained

In my efforts to bring change to education and to make a difference, Courageous Dialogues has been created.

I have been asked to explain the connection to living systems as my good science teacher friends want clarification!

My thinking here will of course evolve through the course of these discussions and further exploration and thinking. Essentially, the living systems I speak of is the web of connections we have as individuals to the collective. It is the values, beliefs and understandings we have of ourselves and the world around us. Our connections, what makes us care, dismiss, judge, sit up, move, etc.

How do our environment, actions and people influence us?  What calls us to make an impact?

Courageous Dialogues will invite individuals in all areas of industries and experiences as evidence that we live in an interconnected world, embedded in relationships of understanding and  the experiences of many. 

That education is not isolated from these but rather the result of these connections is what makes the difference.

It is my hope that through the conversations you choose to listen to, it makes you think about how you can make creating a healthier and supportive environment a priority for you and those around you.

Nightcliff, Darwin

Does where you sit matter?

WHERE YOU SIT MATTERS!

Absolutely it does. There are several scenarios that are interesting to me that I could unpack but for now let's discuss the good old debate of seating arrangements in classrooms - rows verses group layouts.

I strongly believe that if you want students to trust each other, share their knowledge and support each other in their learning one of the key ingredients is to ensure that the tables are set up to support this. That and creating the norm that seating arrangements change every few weeks, generally coinciding with the units being taught.

As someone who has taught across Early Childhood, Primary and Secondary I can confirm that this becomes challenging at secondary. And not because students don't want this but rather it seems that teachers prefer this arrangement.

In my experience, mainly through observations of many classes across the region, the row arrangement creates division, isolation and is a way to deliver content in a way to control the class where you are essentially the guest speaker and contribution is low.

Group arrangements on the other hand enforces 'we are a community', 'we can grow and learn together'. It is through group seating arrangements that we develop respect, appreciate differences, and learn new ways of working together. 

I'm curious to why some teachers feel that group seating arrangements are not conducive to learning effectively.

What do you prefer and why?

Increase feedback responses

A good friend and I love getting together every few weeks to discuss how we go about driving improvements in our settings. Our latest discussion was around how to increase staff feedback over time. The following suggestions, some that may not be new to you, are key to driving improvement:

Request feedback often but not too often - you should be able to work out your limits!

• Ask only for things that really matter and will in turn drive improvement.

• Make the request simple. Seriously simple. What worked well? and Even Better If? are generally all you need.

• Don't dumb the survey down by asking about how the food or room was. If it matters, they'll use the final comment box.

When analysing feedback:

• Don't discount perspectives. They all make up the big picture of what's happening on the ground.

• Dig deeper for understanding. Observe, follow up, investigate if you must.

• Follow up face to face without judgment and in safe comfort zones for individuals that have said something that is concerning, or you want to hear more about.

Communicating:

When you communicate strategies, plans, initiatives, or any kind of change make sure you say something along the lines of:

"We heard what you said and have made these changes..."

In fact, wherever possible if there is a link to the feedback then say it out loud, and often. "What you said matters, so we have...". Use statements from the feedback that drove decisions or further investigations.

Simple steps really but sometimes forgotten. Over time, as your community trusts that their feedback is being heard you should see an increase in responses.

If someone responds to feedback, regardless of if you believe it's positive or negative, they care enough about what is happening. They are giving you an opportunity to create a cohesive forward-thinking environment.

Increase feedback over time by letting people in your community know that their perspective matters.

Fluted Cape, Bruny Island in Tasmania

Community Engagement

COVID-19 is presenting us with an opportunity to be creative on how we bring our community together.

At Mentone Girls’ Grammar School the aim of the focused COVID-19 mitigation plan was to increase the capability of individuals and teams in a matter of a few weeks to develop and sustain the cultural conditions, structures and processes that support a high performance remote learning culture within our school community.

Staff are modelling and engaging in learning and teaching behaviours that support a culture of continuous improvement and engagement. The community is digging deep to ensure that students, parents and their colleagues are keeping safe and well-motivated to explore new ways of learning and communities of practices. Real Learning is taking place in innovative ways and has engaged our community in a way that we are all looking out for each other. 

With the onset of COVID in 2020 I focused on mobilising the Mentone Girls’ Grammar community. I did this in the  way of Professional Learning Programs for staff and community webinars and events for students and parents.  Webinars and events were deliberately designed to bring together the community during a time of real isolation.  New teaching strategies and tools have been implemented to enable students to engage in learning online. We are making use of Adobe SPARK to design programs of learning that incorporate the voices of our students and bring about community engagement. 

I was invited to present at the Adobe Inject Creativity Live show to discuss how Mentone Girls’ Grammar School has been making use of Adobe during the unexpected closures in response to COVID-19. The episode below is just the introductory to the session that took place afterwards.