Day 3: Primary prevention in schools
Primary prevention education is provided in schools throughout South Australia through the delivery of the Australian Curriculum, the Department for Education’s Keeping Safe: Child Protection Curriculum and other specialist programs.
This day of hearings will focus on ways primary prevention education is being delivered across the different schooling sectors in South Australia, and will seek to understand the evidence about what is most effective and what children and young people want to learn.
Please note: There were technical difficulties during the first three minutes of the public hearing which impact the audio quality for the start of the day. The written transcript provides a record of proceedings.
Morning session - from 9.45am
Discussion about how primary prevention education is addressed in each of the three schooling systems in South Australia.
Tracey Davies, Department for Education, South Australia
Tracey has more than 30 years of experience working in a variety of education roles in Primary schools such as classroom teacher, school counsellor, Deputy Principal and Principal.
Tracey has been a seconded teacher working in a corporate role in Assessment and standards, seconded teacher working with SAPOL to develop and implement a Year 6/7 Crime Prevention education curriculum and a Director of Primary Learners within the Learning and Improvement Division, and for the past four years has been Director of Curriculum Programs within Curriculum and Learning Division.
Dr Jill Gowdie, Catholic Education, South Australia
Dr Jill Gowdie is a Director of Catholic Education South Australia. One of her areas of responsibility is oversight of the curricula which include the teaching of sexuality, respectful relationships and consent within a Catholic educational context. She is also a member of the South Australian Catholic Schools Commission Standing Committee on Catholic Identity and Mission and the National Catholic Education Commission Committee on Faith Formation and Religious Education. She is President of the Association of Practical Theologians in Oceania.
Jill holds a PhD in Educational Leadership, is a Graduate of the Australian Institute of Company Directors and is a recognised speaker and writer internationally on teacher and leader formation, Catholic education, and leadership.
Michele Oliphant, Association of Independent Schools, South Australia
Michele Oliphant has joined the AISSA as the new Consent and Respectful Relationships Education Consultant. This appointment comes as part of a funded reform initiative recently introduced by the Commonwealth Government.
The AISSA, in collaboration with the Association of Independent Schools of the Northern Territory (AISNT), have engaged an Education Consultant to support schools with the development and implementation of Consent and Respectful Relationships Education (CRRE) curriculum and programs in Independent schools across South Australia and the Northern Territory.
Michele joins the AISSA after spending nearly 30 years working as a wellbeing educator in schools across the NT. Michele has a wealth of experience in curriculum co-design, social and emotional learning, suicide prevention and Indigenous Education. She has worked across government and non-government sectors and has a passion for improving learning outcomes for all students through an integrated and whole of community approach.
Perspectives from an educator advocate on relationships and sexuality education.
Dr Tessa Opie is the founder of inyourskin® and is an advocate for healthy and consenting relationships. She has extensive experience in education delivery, working as an educator across the government, not-for-profit, and private sectors, and a guest lecturer at various universities.
Tessa has worked as an expert consultant for several Education Departments including, the South Australian Department for Education, the Western Australian Department of Education and the Northern Territory Department of Education.
Afternoon session - from 2pm
Delivering the Keeping Safe: Child Protection Curriculum in the context of an Anangu community.
Currently the Principal of Fregon Anangu School, Sara has been a leader of the school for the past seven years. She has held a range of roles, including classroom teacher, FIFO behaviour support educator, coordinator and deputy principal.
Sara moved to Australia from France in 2009 and worked in Adelaide as a French teacher until moving to the APY Lands in 2017. Sara will be giving evidence alongside members of the Kungka Ninti team, who are teachers (Anangu educators) at the school and female members of the Fregon community.
Education programs run by Power Community - the use of role models to educate young people
Jake commenced with the Port Adelaide Football Club in 2016 and has over 15 years of experience working in the AFL industry through game development and community engagement.
Currently the General Manager of Power Community Limited, the not-for-profit arm of the Port Adelaide Football Club, Jake has a key focus on operational management, business development and government affairs, leveraging the power of sport for social impact.
Overview of the SHINE SA program delivered in schools.
Holley Skene is the Chief Executive Officer of SHINE SA. Holley has more than 13 years of experience working in the sexual health sector in government and non-government roles in South Australia and has positive and long-term relationships with key stakeholders in the sector locally and nationally.
Holley brings familiarity with SHINE SA’s history, having been employed in various SHINE SA roles between 2013 and 2018, including as Acting CEO. Holley brings strong professional relationships with colleagues and partners and a detailed understanding of what is required for SHINE SA to thrive.
Along with a Bachelor of Social Science and Psychology, Masters in Public Health and Graduate Diploma in Community and Not-for-Profit Management, Holley is skilled and qualified in not-for-profit governance as a graduate of the Company Director’s Course at the Australian Institute of Company Directors and having served for eight years on not-for-profit Boards, including the South Australian Rainbow Advocacy Alliance and Adelaide’s LGBTIQA+ Feast Festival.
An adaptive leader and 2022 graduate of the Governor’s Leadership Foundation, Holley also has a deep personal and professional commitment to diversity, access and inclusion of people from the many priority populations SHINE SA serves.
Holley is deeply committed to SHINE SA’s vision, values and purpose – to provide a comprehensive approach to sexual, reproductive and relationship health and wellbeing by providing quality education, clinical, counselling and information services to the community.
