The Hodgman Government is committed to improving Tasmania’s educational outcomes and providing universal access to quality play based early learning sooner is a vital part of our plan.
That is why as part of our improvements to the Education Act we are changing the school starting age.
I’m pleased to announce KPMG has been awarded the tender to investigate and produce a report about the social and economic impact of an earlier, voluntary school starting age in Tasmania. The KPMG report will inform the development of an implementation plan and recommendations to the Minister for Education which will be tabled in Parliament before 1 September 2017.
The report will look at how existing early childhood education and care services could be supported to ensure a smooth transition, and further advice about KPMG’s consultation process will be notified to service providers in due course.
An earlier (voluntary) school starting age is a significant opportunity for Tasmania to increase young children’s participation in quality play based early learning and ultimately lift overall educational outcomes.
This can be best achieved in partnership with the education and care sector, which was represented on the tender panel.
I’d like to thank the organisations that submitted a tender response for their interest in being involved in this important improvement for the future of Tasmania and our children.
More Media Releases from Jeremy Rockliff
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