00:00A busy day for the Education Ministry, opening a new preschool and cracking down on the National Anthem.
00:08We just had Australia Day yesterday where we saw a resounding support for Australia Day.
00:14This is part of our government's consistent approach right across the Territory
00:18to make sure that we know that the National Anthem is sung.
00:21And yes, that means both verses.
00:24The National Anthem is two verses and two verses are to be sung.
00:31It's holistic, singing the whole song.
00:36On the streets, a mix of reactions, mainly indifference.
00:40I've always had to do it, so it doesn't really worry me.
00:43No, I don't think it's that important.
00:45I think it's fine. It's not bad.
00:48The government says the Anthem mandate is key to restoring a sense of national pride in Territory's students.
00:53But two days out from the new school year, and with attendance rates declining,
00:57some have questioned if the government's focus is in the right place.
01:00In ten years of working in education in the NT, I've had exactly zero conversations
01:06about whether we should be singing the National Anthem more in schools
01:09or whether we should be singing the National Anthem less.
01:12It's my understanding that most schools are already singing the National Anthem anyway.
01:16The Education Union wants the government to focus on teacher safety, teacher workload and student need.
01:22The government's parliamentary colleagues also unhappy.
01:25We have gone a long way towards stepping into and learning about the Ballander system of education,
01:30but they need to come and learn about our education system.
01:33We need to stop playing politics and focus on getting better outcomes for our children.
01:38What the government will do to schools who don't comply with the new rules, it's yet to be known.
01:43I don't know that there will be consequences for schools that don't adhere,
01:46but what we're saying is that we want to make sure that schools are singing the National Anthem.
01:51A classroom question unanswered for now.
01:54A classroom question unanswered for now.
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