We've achieved much in two years!

It was my honour to serve as Minister for Education and Training. Over the last two years, the Coalition has worked hard to deliver on its key commitments.

In school education our achievements include:

• investing record funding of $69.5 billion in government and non-government schools over the next 4 years;
• providing record funding for students with disability, including $5.2 billion over the period 2014 to 2017;
• a $22 million programme for 33 schools in remote locations to teach foundation literacy skills with two teaching approaches: Direct Instruction and Explicit Direct Instruction;
• beginning the implementation of the key recommendations of the Teacher Education Ministerial Advisory Group (TEMAG) report to improve the quality of teacher education with new national Accreditation Standards for teachers to include the literacy and numeracy test to be required before teacher education students graduate;
• implementing the recommendations of the Review of the Australian Curriculum with full agreement of the states and territories;
• a national Independent Public Schools initiative supported by all states and territories which will give principals, teachers and the community greater responsibility and autonomy in their schools;
• the Leaning Potential app to assist parents to engage more effectively with their children’s education has now been launched and has received over 100,000 downloads.
• restoring the focus on science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) at schools, announcing $12 million to encourage school students to study STEM subjects; and
• gaining agreement from all education ministers to introduce NAPLAN Online from 2017.

In higher education, research, and international education our achievements include:

• the development of a higher education reform package backed by all eight higher education peak bodies and all bar one Vice-Chancellor;
• policies that have helped secure an increase in over $2 billion in Australia’s earnings from international education, on which over 130,000 jobs around Australia depend;
• policies to encourage greater linkage between industry and university research, to improve the impact of Australia’s large and high-quality research effort;
• ensuring funding of major research programmes, for research infrastructure and mid-career fellowships, which were left unfunded by the previous Government; and
• reducing regulation and reporting requirements in higher education, cutting red tape and including a much-needed overhaul of the Tertiary Education Quality & Standards Agency.

I am proud of the achievements we have made. I offer my sincere congratulations to my good friend and colleague Senator Simon Birmingham who will be the new Minister for Education and Training.

Only the Coalition has plans for education that puts students first.