Question On Notice No. 716 asked in the Legislative Council on 10 May 2022 by Hon Dr Steve Thomas
Question Directed to the: Minister for Education and Training
Parliament: 41 Session: 1
Question
I refer to the oversight of home-schooled or home-educated students by the Department of Education in Western Australia, and I ask:
(a) was there a call for applications to be appointed as a Home Education Moderator for the South West region in 2021;
(b) if yes (a), when was it made and by whom;
(c) if yes to (a), was a selection panel formed and, if so, who was appointed to the selection panel;
(d) did the selection panel deliver a report, and will the Minister table that report;
(e) if yes to (a), how many applications were received, how many of those applications met the selection criteria, and how many Home Education Moderators were appointed;
(f) were Home Education Moderators appointed under this process given specific jobs or appointed to a pool;
(g) was the selection process called in 2021 put on hold and, if so, why; and
(h) have any full-time Home Education Moderators been appointed to the South West since the call was made in 2021 and, if so, how many and under what circumstances were they appointed?
Answered on 15 June 2022
(a) – (h)
A call for applications to an appointment pool for Home Education Moderators in the South West Region was advertised on jobs.wa.gov.au in October 2021 by the Coordinator Regional Services. A selection panel was formed, consisting of 3 staff: a Coordinator Regional Services, a Coordinator Regional Operations, and a Home Education Moderator. 30 applications were received, of which 28 met the selection criteria and were appointed to the pool. 3 applicants were appointed from the pool to specific positions. The selection process was put on hold from 22 December 2021 to 21 January 2022, due to school holidays and staff being on leave. Since the call, one full-time appointment from this pool has been made to the South West for a five-week period backfilling other home education moderators on leave.