Q+A: Debate surrounding ethics classes in school

TONY JONES:

Our next question, and it is our last question, comes from Desley Little.

DESLEY LITTLE:

It is with disbelief and disgust to hear that ethics classes are now to be voted out by Fred Nile in New South Wales. With the many issues and problems discussed on Q&A recently, be they ethics of media, journalists, police and politicians, how different would life be in Australia if the whole population was schooled in ethics throughout all schooling and tertiary training?

TONY JONES:

Christine Nixon?

CHRISTINE NIXON:

Look, I think… I've sort of just followed the debate in New South Wales recently, but I think that the earlier you expose young people to thinking about issues, to understanding values and to getting a good hold on that themselves and why they believe in what they believe, we are a better community, and I think it's a great sadness that that might, in fact, be taken away because of a political expediency.

TONY JONES:

Brief answers from everybody because we're nearly out of time. Peter Dutton?

PETER DUTTON:

Well, I'm a parent of three young children. I think, like most parents, I want to see an education system where my children are being taught the facts and not having particular agendas shoved down their throat from the left or right. They can make up their own decisions about their life choices later on but try and stick to the facts in terms of what it is they're being taught and I don't think we can ask for more or less than that.

TONY JONES:

Heather Ridout?

HEATHER RIDOUT:

Well, I'm all for it. I think kids need to learn how to think, to also understand there's other aspects to life. There's a spiritual side of life, a philosophical side of life, that values are really what you are all about, not just about facts and figures and analysis and so I've tried to bring my children up like that and I think they're much better off for it.

TONY JONES:

Stephen Mayne.

STEPHEN MAYNE:

I think you need to keep it reasonably secular, keep the extremes out, but I certainly think values and ethics absolutely should be hammered through the education system in a very vigorous way.

TONY JONES:

Brendan O'Neill. Shaking your head, I see.

BRENDAN O'NEILL:

I think there's a real double standard in Australia at the moment, because you have on one hand, lots of liberal commentators saying, 'Kick religious instructors out of school,' and on the other hand 'Keep the ethics teachers in.' There's a great similarity between those two groups of people. I think ethics largely should be left to parents and family and community. Schools should teach maths and English and actual knowledge.

TONY JONES:

Tanya Plibersek?

TANYA PLIBERSEK:

I think that if you're going to have time in the curriculum for religious instruction, then parents and families should have the choice whether their children do that or whether they do ethics but I certainly would think that talking to kids about ethical behaviour and good choices should be part of the broader curriculum all the time as well.

TONY JONES:

OK, we've… As always, we've gone over time. Please thank our panel — Peter Dutton, Christine Nixon, Heather Ridout, Tanya Plibersek, Brendan O'Neill and Stephen Mayne.