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Parliamentary Questions


Question Without Notice No. 1219 asked in the Legislative Council on 23 October 2019 by Hon Aaron Stonehouse

Parliament: 40 Session: 1

DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION — COMPULSORY SCHOOL AGE

1219. Hon AARON STONEHOUSE to the Minister for Education and Training:

I refer the minister to recent calls by the Australian Childcare Alliance to lift the minimum school starting age in Western Australia from 4.5 years to five years, and note that parents can request delayed entry into the system for their child only under exceptional circumstances.

(1) What, if any, advice does the department offer principals to assist them in deciding whether a given request constitutes exceptional circumstances?

(2) Given that WA has the lowest school entry age of any state or territory in Australia, with many allowing starts as late as at six years of age and Queensland going as far as 6.5 years, does the government have any plans to review the current WA policy to at least give parents, who are surely the best judges of their child's developmental level, some level of choice on when they begin their child's schooling?

Hon SUE ELLERY replied:

I thank the honourable member for some notice of the question.

(1) Principals are advised to consider the student's educational needs and personal circumstances in consultation with the parents. Collaboration between a principal and a student's family to determine the most suitable class placement is a longstanding practice. A student's age is a key consideration in their class placement. This does not, however, preclude placement with younger or older students when this best meets a student's long-term educational needs.

(2) No.