AUSTRALIA

Prime Minister urges churches to join national redress scheme in child sex abuse letter

The Sydney Morning Herald reported that Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull has tried to pressure the major churches into circumventing the states and immediately joining the national redress scheme for survivors of child sexual abuse. Mr Turnbull urged institutions including the Catholic Church, the Anglican Church, Scouts Australia and the YMCA to opt into the scheme "as soon as possible" rather than wait for the holdout states. Queensland, Western Australia and to an extent South Australia have all resisted joining the national redress scheme to date, citing concerns about unresolved details.

Government to establish national centre for fighting child exploitation

The ABC News reported that a national centre dedicated to fighting child exploitation will be created in Brisbane, and dozens more Federal Police will focus on the issue with about 200 abuse victims targeted to be saved per year. The Australian Centre to Counter Child Exploitation (ACCCE) will be led by the Australian Federal Police. The new centre will coordinate with state police forces, and work with international counterparts, such as the United States Centre for Missing and Exploited Children. The ACCCE will also include members of the financial intelligence agency AusTrac and the Australian Criminal Intelligence Commission.

Push from Sonya Ryan for Federal Court judges to take over sentencing for child abuse offences

News.com.au has reported that Sonya Ryan, whose daughter Carly was murdered by an online predator in 2007, wants Federal Court judges to hear all cases filed under national criminal law to stamp out inadequate and inconsistent sentences. Figures from the Attorney-General’s Department reveal the average jail term for criminals convicted under Commonwealth child sexual abuse offences since 2010 in state courts was less than two years, when maximum sentences of up to 15 years were available. Under the plan, developed in consultation with members of the Federal judiciary, crimes under Commonwealth law would be considered exclusively in Federal Courts to stop state judges softening the sentencing regime.

Report on the Review of the Victorian Institute of Teaching Released

In a follow up to our previous School Governance article, The Age has reported on the release of the report into the review of the Victorian Institute of Teaching. The review consisted of 34 recommendations and identified serious challenges facing the regulator and inadequacies in the way it functions. Most concerning, it suggested that the VIT was not keeping pace with the community’s expectations around child safety. Education HQ Australia has also done a follow up article.

Education Department to investigate Busselton Senior High School ‘stomp’ attack

Perth Now reported that WA Education Minister Sue Ellery has called for the Education Department to investigate the circumstances surrounding an alleged serious assault on a Busselton Senior High School schoolboy. Video of the attack filmed on a student’s mobile phone shows the victim on the floor of the school gym being punched and kicked repeatedly by another boy. The footage then shows the boy being pulled away before he turns back and stamps twice on the victim’s head. A boy charged with assault occasioning bodily harm will appear in Busselton Children’s Court later this month.

Former WA primary school principal charged over child sexual abuse allegations

The Sydney Morning Herald reported that a former principal of a primary school in Perth has been charged over allegations of child sexual abuse. Police will allege the 56-year-old Chidlow man was the principal of a primary school in the central metropolitan district when the alleged incidents occurred in 2008 involving an eight-year-old boy and he has been charged with Indecent Dealing with a Child Under 13 years and Sexual Penetration of a Child Under 13.

INTERNATIONAL

NZ Girl forced to stay home alone for a month while new school prepared asthma plan

Stuff NZ reported on Sophie Griffiths, 15, who moved to Hawke's Bay but Havelock North High School told her she could not start immediately as a health and safety plan to manage her asthma was not in place yet. The principal said that the school could not pre-prepare a plan as the student’s health needs were not simple and required immediate ambulance access which was unknown until the interview in person was held. The Ministry of Education said, "Schools need good policies and procedures in place to identify if a child or young person needs a health care plan. In this instance, the school believe the risk of enrolling the student without the health care plan in place is too high."

Montreal elementary school is latest to ban homework

CTV News has reported on a Montreal-area school that has banned all homework, aiming to give students enough time to do all of their work in class. School principal Michael Brown says students shouldn’t spend six hours working at school and then be expected to do two more hours of work at home, “We want students to be at home being with their (families), being with their friends, playing and being children.”

Students with specific learning needs in Canada suffering after court ruling on class size

The CBC News has reported on the after-effects of a 2016 court ruling between the B.C. government and the B.C. Teachers Federation, that class size and composition was to be restored to 2002 levels. The unintended side effect of this ruling has been that students with special needs are lacking the specialised teaching support required, with learning assistance teachers being diverted from their usual roles to fill the teaching shortage. Both parties are working together to fix the issue.

Arizona teacher in alleged sexual relationship with 13-year-old student

News.com.au reported on a 27 year old teacher at Las Brisas Academy Elementary School in Goodyear, Arizona, who, as a result of a monitoring app installed on a 13 year old student’s phone, has been accused of a sexual relationship with the student due to text messages found of a sexually explicit nature.

Former Ottawa teacher handed 2 years for sex crimes dating back decades

The CBC News reported on a former Ottawa music teacher who has been sentenced to two years in federal prison for sex-related crimes against students at two Ottawa high schools between 1973 and 1992. He will also serve three years of probation.