EDUCATION IN RURAL & REMOTE COMMUNITIES.

The challenges inherent in providing quality education within the context of remote and rural communities are uniquely different and can only be fully appreciated and met by those who live and work in these communities. What is clear, is that the seedlings grown and nurtured in the isolation of the air-conditioned and luxuriously appointed offices of our urbanized cities, more often than not, fail to take root and rapidly die when attempts are made to transplant them into our remote and rural climes.

Success begins to be enjoyed only when enterprising individuals, groups and communities become actively engaged in seeking "bush solutions" to "bush problems". It will be their commitment and ingenuity that "saves the day!"

Unfortunately, the once powerful voices of the "bush lobby" are fading as the trends towards urban migration continue. Despite governmental rhetoric to the contrary, it is clearly evident that policies and the subsequent flow of resources will continue to target, favor and support the "critical masses"- those living on the urban fringes of our State and Nation- those with the "voting power" to make or break governments!

In such a politically contrived landscape, only "lip-service" can be given to the noble sentiments embraced by those who supposedly uphold the principles underlying social justice, equity and equal opportunity.

What then are the challenges in providing quality education to the State's most deserving clientele- the children of the West - the children of those who, in many ways, continue to be this Nation's pioneers - the people who indeed, should be regarded as the "Salt of the Earth"?

• Challenge 1: Staff Recruitment

Teachers make the difference! The quality of learning experiences students enjoy is directly proportional to the quality of the teaching that delivers it!

Considerable difficulty has always been experienced in attracting both teachers and quality administrators to serve in our remote and rural schools. The Remote Area Incentive Scheme, re-launched in1990, in its present form, has not provided an answer to this continuing dilemma and its reputed success is, I believe, little more than political propaganda.

Our "Outback Schools" are simply not, generally speaking, the preferred choice of the many now serving in them. For many, it is simply a case of accepting the best or only option available at the time. Our remote and rural communities will be best served by providers who WANT to be there and WANT to be part of the action and hopefully, for the sake of continuity, for a considerable span of time. It is this commitment we are looking for. In fact, our rural and remote communities are becoming increasingly vocal in demanding no less.

Many of these teachers and administrators are for the first time in their lives coming face to face with the realities of living and working in a rural and remote setting. Many consequently endure relatively long and sometimes painful periods of conditioning as they endeavor to orientate themselves to a new and different lifestyle and work environment. During this time of self-adaptation and acceptance, immense pressures are placed upon them personally, socially and professionally. Peak classroom performance can readily "take a back seat" should the drama intensify as it unfolds.

For the greater part, the teachers and administrators being attracted to serve in these settings are young, relatively inexperienced and are consequently in need of extremely high levels of support - support that cannot be guaranteed in the light of budgetary constraints, access restrictions, isolation and other factors associated with the tyranny of distance. Whilst we may well admire the calibre, energy and strength of these young professionals, we must accept that many, in essence, remain in internship and require high levels of on-going practical training as a meaningful response to meeting their own Learning and Development needs.

WHERE SHOULD WE BE CONCENTRATING OUR EFFORTS?

WHERE ARE THE ANSWERS?

1. The Promotion of Teaching in Country Areas:

• To attract quality personnel, we need to become more proactively engaged in marketing and promoting rural culture and the opportunities that exist within the Services Sector for employment and career enhancement. This challenge may well be addressed through the establishment of a WHOLE OF GOVERNMENT agency charged with this responsibility. Located in a major provincial centre such as Roma, Charleville, Longreach or Mount Isa, a RURAL AND REMOTE AREA PROMOTION, RECRUITMENT AND ORIENTATION AGENCY should be established to service the needs of ALL Government Departments in this regard. This "inter-agency approach" makes sense economically and will also result in the better co-ordination of overall service delivery.
• To address its "Education brief" this agency could quite well become involved in such activities as:
• Organising Teaching Practicums in Rural and Remote Area School settings
• Promotional Team Visitations to Universities and other Teacher Training Institutes
• Organising and conducting Orientation/ Induction Programs for newly appointed staff
• Production & Dissemination of promotional literature including School & Community Profiling
• Showcasing and sharing the Distinctiveness of our Rural & Remote Area Schools.

The agency's major goal would be to progressively increase the numbers of teachers who voluntarily elect to accord their No.1 preferences to serve in rural or remote school location.

2. Grow them in the bush for service in the bush:

All our teacher training infrastructure is currently located within the urbanised coastal fringe where the "one model fits all" mentality seems to be paramount in the minds of course designers and others far removed from the realities of life in our smaller rural and remote area communities.

Our kids need teachers trained in the art of country living - especially equipped to meet the unique challenges inherent in the delivery of an appropriate curriculum in diverse settings.

Consideration may well be given to the establishment in one or more of our larger more remote provincial towns of UNIVERSITY ATTACHED OUT-STATIONS outfitted with residential facilities to provide short term accommodation for Trainee Teachers to undertake their rurally based field studies.

Pre-Service courses designed to thoroughly acquaint Teachers in Training with the myths, legends and traditions of our "Little Bush Schools" are essential and best delivered with input from reputable and knowledgeable identities drawn from local communities in which they live and work.

Our rural and remote area schools are revered as "Community Schools" and in this sense play an integral role in fostering and sustaining a healthy community spirit. They capture the rich tapestry of the past and are largely seen as bastions for the preservation of traditional mores, beliefs and values.

In these communities those bent on radical reform are treated with suspicion and often with disdain. It takes longer to build trust, to earn respect and win acceptance in these relatively closed and largely conservative environs.

Evolutionary change is acceptable providing parents and community members are kept fully informed and are given the opportunities to be involved in the decision-making processes. They will adopt the view that you, the teacher, will only be there for the short haul. They will be the ones who will inherit and have to live with the legacy you leave! In the change process, no matter how convincing the change agent is, these country folk "don't suffer fools gladly," and they will refuse to endorse any plan or action to dilute an over-riding curriculum emphasis on Literacy and Numeracy and the traditionally recognised 3R competencies.

Our "Small Schools" are "Great Schools" and they deserve to be protected, resourced and acknowledged as the "Vital Hubs" of the communities they so passionately serve!