24 October 2006

Youth forum on 2020 plan tonight (24-OCT-06)

| Kerces
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Greens MLA Deb Foskey has criticised education minister Andrew Barr for the late advertising of a youth forum on the 2020 school closure plan.

However the minister denied to the ABC that insufficient notice was given, saying that in fact it had been widely publicised. (This ABC story was the first I heard about it)

An advertisement for the forum, which will be held at the new Griffin Centre from 5.30 tonight, appeared on page 13 of Saturday’s Canberra Times. The forum is being run by the ACT Minister’s Youth Council and Andrew Barr and children and youth minister Katy Gallagher will attend.

The ad is below, for those interested.

Youth forum ad

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Teachers are notoriously bad at failing to advertise great things like this that arrive in the mailbox.

I take offense to that Daniel.

It doesn’t go into individual teachers’ pigeon holes, it may go into the principal’s or deputies (unless addressed to a specific teacher). Posters aren’t enough, you could have arranged a talk with either the staff (morning tea) or at an assembly – several people doing this across Canberra two weeks before the date.

You could have e-mailed ACTDET and asked that it be put into the STAFF ALERTS as well as the PRINCIPAL ALERTS that are on the internal server (all teachers can access it) or even as a whole system e-mail.

The ads in the CT were out too late as were the radio announcements.

As you have stated, better planning re: media would have been useful – starting some two weeks before the date. That lies with the organisers, and not the teachers, who aren’t paid to be advertisers OR “allowed” to speak out about the closures (unofficial agreement or why wouldn’t many more be talking?).

Daniel, could you drop us a line when it does go up? Either post it as a story or email me kerces@gmail.com
Cheers.

dhigginbottom1:47 pm 12 Nov 06

Hey guys, The meeting was hosted by the Minister’s Youth Council. Believe it or not all organization was the responsibility of MYC members and staff- Minister Barr was just in attendance by invitation. It isn’t even his council.

Having cleared that up, publicity was particularly badly organized, posters got out to schools but that was about it. Teachers are notoriously bad at failing to advertise great things like this that arrive in the mailbox.

Next time the council will do better.

Problems aside, about thirty young people attended and a report from the consultation will soon be published on the MYC website.

Thankyou for your interest,
Daniel Higginbottom
Member, Minister’s Youth Council

Did anyone go? (And I didn’t know about it till I read it HERE (one day too late – eejits, can’t believe they thought it was widely advertised).

I was in the Dept on Friday and NOTHING was said.

Then again, the first I heard of this was late yesterday afternoon on the radio.

Good advertising? Bullshit.

I agree with jr. I doubt any school-aged students would be reading it, never less, reading about public meetings.

And OMFG…that girl on the computer….she looks like someone i know. Thats weird 😀

Naturally all school age students are scouring the Canberra Times for public meeting notices on Saturdays… NOT!

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