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‘ Political indoctrination ’
One Nation ’ s Mark Latham . Photo : Peter Lorimer
Mark Latham accuses school of ‘ losing the plot ’.
By Wade Zaglas
Outspoken One Nation politician Mark Latham has launched a scathing attack on a task assigned to a Year 8 class in a NSW school .
The task is part of the Personal Development , Health and Physical Education ( PDHPE ) curriculum and asks students to identify various types of discrimination occurring in Australia , as well as the benefits of promoting diversity .
“ The assessment task clearly addresses syllabus content and there is absolutely nothing controversial in it ,” said Mark Northam , secretary of the Independent Education Union NSW / ACT Branch . The branch represents 32,000 teachers and support staff in the non-government education sector .
The task requires students to consider a vast array of groups and individuals who are still subjected to discrimination , including refugees , LGBTIQ people , as well as minority religious and racial groups including Indigenous Australians , to name a few .
“ That ’ s a pretty broad list to draw from , so why Mr Latham would continually single out the LGBTQI community for specific attention is unclear . It says everything about his personal biases and nothing about the task itself ,” Northam said .
“ We call on him to put an end to his fear campaign that targets our most vulnerable students .”
The union took particular issue with the fact that Latham , who is chair of the NSW Parliament ’ s Education Committee , criticised the school and named particular teachers on Facebook .
“ Despite what Mr Latham might believe , PDHPE these days is about much more than physical fitness , and the personal development component has a legitimate place in the syllabus ,” Northam said .
“ Australia is at its best when all citizens are included in civic life , be it on the sporting fields , the workplaces , the boardrooms , and the parliaments throughout this country . All syllabuses have a role to play in promoting diversity and inclusivity that allows every Australian to play their part .”
In his Facebook post titled ‘ another private school loses the plot ’, and naming the school in question ( St Paul ’ s Catholic College at Booragul , near Lake Macquarie in NSW ), Latham said : “ In their Year 8 PDHPE class they are teaching political lessons on ‘ diversity ’, ‘ racism ’ and ‘ LGBTIQ discrimination ’.
“ This subject is supposed to be Personal Development , Health and Physical Education . It ’ s very hard to see what identity politics ( race , gender and sexuality ) has to do with these areas of study .
“ These students are only 13-14 years old . If they want to study politics at university , that ’ s their choice as adults . But they should not be subject to
All syllabuses have a role to play in promoting diversity and inclusivity that allows every Australian to play their part .
teachers pushing their political views onto them as young teenagers .”
The chair of the NSW Parliamentary Committee on Education commended some of the students ’ parents for withdrawing their children from the class . He also stated that such content is a form of political indoctrination that does nothing to improve student outcomes .
“ Why have subjects like English , PDHPE and History become just another form of political indoctrination in our schools ? Why don ’ t teachers understand this is inappropriate , wasting time and resources that should be used to lift student academic results and standards ?” he said . “ It ’ s a tragedy for our nation and its young people . We are paying the price of dropping down the international league tables of academic success .
“ The long-term price for Australia is a dumbed down nation where our youth know more about the LGBTIQ alphabet than the real one , the one that helps them to read and write .”
Education Review contacted Mark Latham ’ s office for comment . ■
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