Tharwa Primary has given my eldest son, the courage and confidence to be himself, to allow him to grow in a safe environment free of stigma and ridicule. I believe that no other school was able to enrich his life in such a way. At Tharwa he was accepted for who he was. He is a gifted child that did not fit into the square hole that others wanted to squeeze him into.

My youngest son loves going to a school where he can learn about the environment around him and where his creativity is nurtured. He has a passion for making things and is encouraged to show his fellow classmates his latest designs. He loves to be part of School Parliament where he is able to have a say in what happens in his school environment and learn how his actions may effect his local enviroment. He loves to climb the trees, hang from the monkey bars and walk down to the river.

Each of my children are unique and Tharwa Primary created an environment where each were accepted for who and what they were, and made them a valuable member of a wonderful community.

Schools like Tharwa may be small, but offer more to a child than just an education. They allow a child to GROW.

Please do not close down our schools.

Nicole

Whilst unfortunately it comes as no surprise that Tharwa PS, our daughter’s school has been identified to close by the end of 2006, to say that we are disappointed is an under-statement! Having an intricate knowledge of your Government’s social, spatial and economic plans and its emphasis on social capital and inclusion, we find it hard to comprehend that you would consider the closure of a school such as Tharwa, not only because of the historical significance but more importantly for the educational outcomes it is achieving for the children within its community. Community is an important word for our small school. One which has suffered immeasurably due to the 2003 bushfires, Tharwa will now have to deal with the loss of its last bastion of community infrastructure, its school.

We currently have our 9 year old daughter in tears and very anxious because she has just heard she will not be able to go to her school in 2007. We chose Tharwa, because it could offer her the chance to develop her skills in an environment that would assist with her particular learning difficulties. It will be impossible to address these issues at another school where larger class numbers dictate that children with difficulties are often overlooked due to crowded classrooms! We would like you and your Government to be able to clearly enunciate not only to the school community but more importantly to our child what the benefits are to her in the long term in closing her school. Have you or anyone from the department been out to our school to see the quality educational outcomes that are being delivered? What is the cost benefit analysis that has been done in relation to the closure of the school as opposed to the delivery of quality educational outcomes?

We thought that this Government put a high value on quality educational outcomes, but we will need to be convinced as to the small savings that will be achieved by closing Tharwa and how this will be accomplished when the 30 children have to be integrated into much larger and crowded schools they do not want to attend.

Many of our enrolments this year and previously have been children whose parents have moved them from other larger schools in the area because of their dissatisfaction with those schools. We find it strange that the Government puts more value on spending nearly $1million on attracting an AFL team from Melbourne as opposed to investing in our child’s and every other child’s education. Closing our school has wider implications financially on our family as a one income family we cannot afford the petrol to travel across suburbs to take our child to school.

We have tried non-government schooling and this did not satisfy our child’s educational/learning needs. Tharwa has delivered real outcomes for our child’s learning and we have real input into her education. This government cannot possibly be telling us that we now have no choice but to compromise our daughters educational future to help save $$$$$ as her education is the one area as her parents that we can have some choice over and provide her with the best without compromise. Tharwa offers smaller classes, great programs and excellence in learning outcomes and in no way disadvantages her due to its small size. Sometimes big is not always best!

We extend an invitation to you minister to visit our school, observe our learning in progress before you tell our children (face to face) that you are prepared to compromise their educational outcomes and welfare for short-term expediency and a quick fix solution. Education is the very foundation of our society and we implore you to save our school and invest in our child’s and other families futures.

We would like to request a meeting at the earliest convenience with you to discuss this matter further and for you to explain that if the school closes how you intend to look after our daughter’s educational outcomes.

We look forward to hearing from you in the very near future.

Fiona and Chris Hume

I took my son to the Tharwa PS open day mid-morning. The school community opened its armed, welcomed me to school assembly, my son was off playing happily with Thawa children of all ages. What a fantastic school environment - children of all ages working and learning together, challenging each other and being proud of each other’s achievements. Older children lifting the younger ones onto the monkey bars, girls and boys playing together in the trees, being what being a kid is all about. When our open day visit ended, I looked for my son. There he was, joined into the class, answering questions, smiling at his mates. Sitting in a different school uniform, he might have looked quite out of place but he was embraced immediately within this caring school community. When I called him to come back to finish the day at his local school he said “Why mum? This is my school now”. The boy who came to open day and never left. He finished the school day out at Tharwa - starting at the end of term 3, in the middle of the day and has never looked back. A slight lie because he does look back - with fear and dread at the prospects of returning to the local primary school.

Tharwa Primary School is our family. Everyone is accepted for who they are - young and old alike. Children looking out for each other’s little siblings, children who can come to any mum or dad in the playground for a hug after a bump and be comforted as though it was their own parent, bigger kids including little ones in their happy, adventurous play. Children at one with the environment, enthusiastically embracing their Waste-wise program, painting their local bridge, camping out together, respecting the local Aboriginal environment, learning and playing in the bush. These children will grow up as caring and accepting adults of the future, and will always remember their amazing Tharwa start at school. Tharwa is unique, and Tharwa WILL survive, because none of us will let it die!! As my son said on Open Day- “this is our school now”.