VCOSS: Education Forum Keynote Speech
Below is the points I spoke on in my pre-recorded keynote speech for VCOSS's annual education forum.
Me :)
Acknowledgement of Country
Issy, they/them, queer, 17, disabled (psychosocial, neurodivergent, chronic illnesses, chronic pain) currently in year 12 at an alternative school doing VCE
I work in the disability and youth space so thinking about these kinds of things is something I thoroughly enjoy (check out YDAS ;) )
My experiences in 2020
I do not live in a bushfire affected region - i can only speak to my experience as someone who has been largely affected by the covid-19 pandemic
As someone who was already participating in education in a non-mainstream way as well as having access needs that are different to most students, i think the ways in which i was impacted by this adverse situation were quite different to that of other students
Looked like: choosing to stop attending classes around 2 weeks before schools made those recommendations due to increased risk for myself, have not stepped into the physical building of my school since the end of february as my school by not being a mainstream public school did not have to as directly follow gov guidelines to return. As you are hearing this recording I will be sitting the GAT, which will be the first time I have gone to school in over 7 months.
I already had low contact hours (10.5 per week in total) so in some ways it was easier than other students who had close to 40 contact hours a week, however as much of my engagement of learning was within those 10.5 hours, it made them far more important, and accessing them remotely was harder and thus more influential
My access needs completely changed throughout the pandemic especially regarding access to education
As someone with autism, adhd, consistent short term memory loss and auditory processing disorder, i am already not made for a traditional classroom, let alone an online one. So engaging in 3.5hr long online classes was incredibly hard and I have found that I often completely disassociate the entire lesson and have to do all the learning myself again which is a major effort and disruption.
Mental health severely harmed by this pandemic, as has been a common experience - so much so that i have in many cases had to make decisions to pick either my education or my mental health - attending classes and completing work was sometimes something i had to choose to not do due to the adverse impacts it will have had on my mental health
Losing all semblance of support and routine for my mental and physical health as a disabled person in a most fundamental year of education is something i won't be able to properly articulate
My ability to learn was altered and my ability to maintain wellness was altered - meaning education has been something really heavy for me this year
What has this meant for me and my place in education as a whole?
While i already knew the framework i was thinking under before the pandemic was flawed - with a specific atar and study scores in mind at the start of the year, flawed because the system isn't accommodating enough to my specific needs, but also because even if it was, aiming for an arbitrary number is not conducive to supporting self and wellbeing to the fullest extent. I realised this problematic mindset for myself as issues I had were exacerbated, meaning my mental health and wellbeing were far more unstable, in a time where they were even more important.
I considered disengaging with education overall this year, dropping out of high school due to the adverse effects this year had on my health and how that would have adverse effects on my ability to perform and thus be determined to succeed - i am grateful i had enough support to not be forced to disengage
My current goal is to graduate year 12, to do so only if it is what would be best for my mental health - i have also had the opportunity to reconsider what higher education means to me, and i now have a set of goals that are in line with being able to learn in a way that not only allows me to maintain health, but also that contributes to it. It shouldn't have taken a pandemic for me to realise i was allowed to prioritise my education in this way
This year and the lack of support from the education system, but also the systems in power at the moment, both as a young person as well as a disabled person who needs extra support, had made me reconsider my entire thoughts around learning and if i ever wanted to participate in learning. When learning is so crucial to life and wellbeing, the poor handling of a situation to make me feel as if learning isn't for me is a massive sign that mistakes were made in my supports
It has been hard to realise that because of inaction by departments that should have been supporting me better during this time that i have become somewhat resentful of education providers overall - because i felt the system didn't care about me enough, i felt i didn't care for the system either - segues nicely into what can the system do better to support students in disaster responses?
How to support students in system level prepared responses to disasters
This is especially important, as we plunge deeper into global economic and political instability and come closer to an irreversible climate catastrophe, the effects of which we are already seeing
Young people, especially diverse and marginalised young people like myself are often the most vulnerable to mass change at the same time as being the most left out of decision making and thought processes - thus we have an opportunity right now, to make meaningful action to ensuring that we have measures in place to support young people as a priority - i have a few ideas :)
Fluid - before doesn't necessarily mean after this disaster, it is always the before of the next one
The before:
It looks like the 'prevention before cure'
It looks like increasing youth mental health funding, it looks like active conversations about mental health in schools, in classrooms, in peer support officers
It looks like communicating what supports are available to students before they may desperately need them
It looks like already making the education system more flexible - offering classes online, offering blended learning, offering online catch up with teachers and support staff, anything else available off the bat - these disasters proved that flexibility is possible, now we need to not go back to 'normal'
It looks like viewing young people, especially those with diverse educational needs and experiences as a core decision maker and putting processes in place to prove that we are valued
It looks like acknowledging that just because we are not in current crisis mode does not mean inaction is valid
It looks like putting diverse young people in positions of power so when disaster happens we already have the structures to supports to engage in action
It looks like making it easier for young people to access the things we are already entitled to - to help us form bases of power and stability to fall back on
The during:
It looks like implementing young people, especially those of marginalised or disproportionately impacted communities being given seats at the table of decision making - this could be on school boards, with government level decision makers - because if people in power are forced to see us, then they will be more accountable to prioritising us and our needs
It looks like youth workers and teachers and school supports and those who work with young people being prioritised as people with power and access to communities - it looks like these people being viewed as essential workers
It looks like not taking the easy road out and pigeonholing young people as any one thing - it looks like not using us in the political blame game
It looks like ready reconsideration of decisions made that impact young people
It looks like guaranteed fiscal and emotional and systemic and educational and structural and societal support for young people
The after:
It looks like actually asking diverse young people what the systems did well and what they didn't do well, it looks like listening to those answers
It looks like accountability, for poor decisions that overlooked our needs, and genuine work in the 'before' stage of the next disaster to make sure those things don't happen again
It looks like viewing this as a stage for opportunity and growth rather than one of sinking back to a failing normal
It looks like a sigh of relief and then a focussed direction
These may seem general and not just education department specific, but that is intentional. Young people are more than just a code of random letters and numbers in a government system of proof of enrollment. Sure, we can and are engaged learners and students, but if the systems around the education system don't build us up, we will have no option but to fall through the cracks, where education doesn't become a need anymore, and survival takes all priority. Implementing these systems levels ideas into the education system itself is the first step, but going beyond that and recognising young people are more than just students, and acknowledging that our intersections need intersections of support and that supporting us as people will support us as learners which will support us as people
Wrap Up
I am grateful to have had the opportunity to be listened to, in a forum that I know isn't meaningless. Young people of diverse experiences, myself and otherwise aren't given a platform nearly enough, so i am deeply appreciative to have taken some of your time today.
I urge you to embrace the asset of the minds and experiences of the incredible young panellists you will be about to meet as we are the key stakeholders in this discussion and our insights are important, i promise you that